It's lit up in my hometown – this year for the 20th time. KRONACH leuchtet (kronachleuchtet.com) is more than a highlight – in the truest sense of the word. I missed it 20 times, but I’ve been there at least 15. Sometime around 2010, I started getting more serious about photography – and since then, I’ve visited KRONACH leuchtet every year to capture my hometown bathed in nighttime light.
I myself have participated three times with a so-called Light Point. One year, my wife Bettina and I even designed a joint Light Point. You can view our joint Light Point from 2019 here – the text was written by me, the photos by Bettina: Link to the blog: https://blog.snoir.de/archive/324 - You can also find Bettina on Gan Jing World with her own channel: Bettinas Jungbrunnen.
There are many approaches and perspectives to photography. I consider in advance what subjects I might encounter, what lighting conditions I can expect—after all, light is central to photography—and how much time and energy I have to focus on the subjects on location. The surroundings also play a role.
Yesterday evening, April 30, we were out and about in my hometown. I decided on the following equipment configuration:
Camera: Canon EOS 5D Mark II
Lens: Canon EF 50 mm F1.2 L USM
I've become a big fan of prime lenses. In situations like yesterday, I shoot exclusively in manual mode – I like to experiment a bit. Even though the large number of visitors and the quick decision-making when taking photos can be challenging, it's still great fun to see how the subjects develop in the process. There are countless ways to stage what we see. It's like writing – here, too, it's about developing your own style.
Yesterday, I also saw many people taking photos with their cell phones – I myself did the same thing alongside my Canon. And I have to say: today's smartphones are so good that I, too, like to use smartphone photography often.
With this column, I want to use fewer words today – instead, I want my hometown and the pictures to do the talking. Here you can see a small selection of my shots. Let's start with the Canon photos.
KRONACH leuchtet Song
Canon EOS 5D Mark II, lens = Canon EF 50 mm F1.2 L USM in use
And now the smartphone photos
A little addition from me. Sometimes, however, I also resort to my good old analog camera: my Canon AE-1 with a 50 mm prime lens.
If you'd like to see some analog photos I shot with my AE-1, you can check them out here: https://blog.snoir.de/analogphotos
Sapere aude!
S. Noir
The link to the original German text: https://www.ganjingworld.com/s/NKm3nBgD0G