New England Hot-Air Balloons

Hello, this is my first Nikonites blog, and this has been quite a summer for hot-air ballooning in New England. Hot-air balloons are one of my favorite subjects to photograph - full of variety and color. Lighthouses are also a favorite subject of mine. But this blog is all about the balloons. So, let me start off with a couple of choice shots from the recent Great Falls Balloon Festival, held in Auburn-Lewiston, Maine. All were shot with a Nikon D80 with a Nikkor 18-200 VR/AF zoom lens and a 72mm circular polarizer. ISO-100, f8, 1/125-1/250 sec.

1. The giant Jack-in-the-box!
Special Shape Balloons - GonyeaGalleries' Photos

2. Old Mac Donald's Farm
Special Shape Balloons - GonyeaGalleries' Photos

Somehow I'm not able to display the image from URL, so for now I'll have to post links. Sorry. Hope you like the pictures - a lot more are coming...

Thank you for looking,
Art

Loved your photos. Looks like the balloonists up north are a lot more creative than I've seen here in VA. All we have is round striped balloons.

Thanks for the compliments, Mike. I'm so busy these days I don't always get around to answering all email and comments right away, sorry for the delay. My wife and I go to several of these balloon festivals every year, and the specialty balloons are a treat. If you want to see some funny balloon shapes (dogs, fish, cake, etc,.) check out my Special Shapes gallery at Special Shape Balloons - GonyeaGalleries' Photos.

These are beautiful balloons and beautiful photos. Nice job!