Las Vegas Ballagio Fountain

[bob williams]

My wife and I are planning a trip to Vegas in January. I am very interested in photographing the Ballagio fountain at night.This will be new to me and I am interested in hearing how some of you might approach this. My Equipment:


Canon 50 D


24-105L


10-22


580exII flash


Tripod.


If you have suggestions I would love to hear them.





Thanks

[wickerprints]

Forget using the flash for the fountain unless you want to illuminate a foreground element (e.g., pose someone in front of the fountain). The flash is not useful for lighting the fountain itself, for two reasons: (1) there's no aesthetic reason to attempt to overpower the fountain's own lighting, and (2) you could not do so anyway given the size of the fountain, the wide angle required to capture it, and the distance to the fountain.


You will want to use a tripod if you are shooting at low ISO or wish to blur the water's motion. However, there is a long sidewalk that extends along the front edge of the pool containing the fountain, diametrically opposite to the hotel. There are several balconies and a concrete/stone railing along this sidewalk that are ideal for viewing. In a pinch, you could simply rest your camera on the railing (it is wide enough) instead of using a tripod.


I would use the EF-S 10-22 mounted on the 50D. I am not sure if the 24-105/4L IS will be wide enough, since the fountain is very large, and the water jets attain impressive heights.


Also please note that the fountain is not continuously on, but instead goes through a series of "shows" punctuated by periods of inactivity. Las Vegas is surprisingly cold at night in January (though if you are from, say, Minnesota, then I'm sure you'll be fine in a T-shirt and shorts LOL). It may be wise to try to find out the fountain's scheduled display times so that you're not standing outside for 30 minutes waiting for it to go.

[bob williams]

Great suggestions Wicker, Sounds Like you have experience----any suggestions on camera setup such as metering, white balance etc?

[alexniedra]

Ah yes - The Bellagio Fountain. Unfortunately I visited Nevada before I picked up on my passion for photography!


I would suggest using an exposure of several seconds to capture the flow of the fountain display. Set your 50D up on the tripod and use the self timer. As far as I recall, you can probably get away with using the 24-105 L at 24mm. Depending on what you are looking for, you may opt for the 10-22 to capture as much of the scene as possible. I would suggest using aperture priority and f/8-f/11 and an ISO level that will provide low noise but enough "head-room" to give a decently long exposure time. I hope you understand what I'm getting at. I would not suggest using the flash for the fountain pictures.


Anyway, enjoy the trip - You are well equipped for the endless photo oppurtunities you'll find in Vegas.

[alexniedra]

any suggestions on camera setup such as metering, white balance etc?


Forgot to mention that in my post. I would suggest auto white balance and evaluative metering. I would suggest using Live View and manually focusing on the display. A narrow aperture (such as f/8 or f/11) will provide you with a relatively long exposure time as well as adequate depth-of-field to keep the entire scene in focus.

[mattsartin]

not to put a damper on your trip, but if i recall correctly a friend told me they wont let you set up a tripod out front there. this info isn't 100% accurate and for your sake i hope i'm completely wrong! good luck, there will plenty else to shoot i'm sure if this doesn't work out. good luck!

[bob williams]

It won't be the first time I have been told to "go away"---probably wont be the last. But thanks for the heads up ----I gues I'll have to hide behind the "no tripod" signs, I I can say I didn't know. I am hoping that since it is winter, there won't be a lot of people out at night so maybe I can pop a few shots off before I attract any "security" attention.





Thanks Matt,

[bob williams]

Thanks Alexniedra, Great points, and I have them written down.

[Keith B]

If a tripod isn't permitted, and you do it covert style, I'd go with the 10-22. Have the camera on the tripod set to Av @ f8-11. Set it for the 2 second timer so you don't get any vibration from releasing the shutter. Get close, put the tripod down, focus, crop quick and take the pic and go.

[ISAIAH]

My 40D shot well with 17mm f2.8 1/25 ISO640. This was as wide as I had and was off left at corner. You may see more options w 10-22.


BTW bring a Tiffen star filter of your choice for some fun. This can help with other shots of hotels especially dealing with nuisance street lights

[bob williams]

Good Points, Thanks Isaiah.