What better way to spend a Sunday afternoon than by watching a parade.
The sun was out, spirits were high, and the temperature was low. It was
a brisk -8 degrees on parade day, but being Montrealers, we're not about to let a little cold spoil a good time.
I've got a little story to tell when it comes to photographing the St.
Patrick's Day Parade. A few years back I "coached" a fellow photography/journalism
student while taking photos at this parade and the photos that I
"coached" this person to take ended up earning them an
A+ on the assignment. I had just finished my Certificate in
Photography from Concordia and I was happy to know that the photos I
"coached" this friend to use could earn a high mark from someone other
than my Concordia professor. Don't worry Mr. Anber, I didn't "coach"
anyone in any of
our classes. After having skipped last years parade, I was more than
happy to be back on the street this year. My usual strategy is to place
myself on the side of the street that the sun isn't shining on. The
best reason behind this is that there is much more space to move, and
you can easily find a spot to stand without worrying about blocking the
view of someone else, or getting into an elbowing war trying to protect
your
spot.
The only negative is that sometimes because there are fewer people on
that side, the people who pass don't always turn to wave in your
direction and you end up with lots of shots of the back of people's
heads. Another thing I like to keep in mind when I take photographs of
such events, is that I try and imagine myself as being an actual press
photographer and try to create images that I could imagine being used in a
newspaper or online. Always try and look for something special or unique.
Along that line, I often go right on the computer when I get home and
check out the local newspapers to see what kind of pictures the pros
took. I think my pictures rank up there with the ones that I've seen
published online. Also, going back to my speil about location, a
photographer from the Montreal Gazette, Phil Carpenter, published a shot
taken from my exact location. I know, this may not seem like much, but
to me I see it as a pro using the same technique as I do, which means I
must be doing something right. You also have to be
pretty fast with the trigger, so I generally try and shoot in AV mode.
AV allows me to set the aperture I want to use and the camera then
takes care of the shutter speed that will be necessary, which means I have one
less thing to think about. All of the pictures in this post were shot at f/2.8 as I wanted to have the widest opening possible, and ISO 100. I did take a few shots at f/14 and higher as I wanted to create some effects photographs using the slower shutter speeds to capture motion in the hands of the drummers and some flag bearers, but those experiments will be saved for another time. In order of appearance, the shutter speeds used were, 1/1000sec, 1/800sec, 1/500sec, 1/1000sec and 1/2000sec. They were also all shot using the Canon 24-70mm lens, so all of the photographs fall somewhere between those focal lengths. If I were to be asked about a favourite, they say to always lead with your best. I feel that the first shot was the headline grabber for my afternoon. The float passing by with everyone on it having a good time gets doubled in fun with the addition of the people also having a party on their balcony. It's like the title says, everybody loves a parade.
spot.
The only negative is that sometimes because there are fewer people on
that side, the people who pass don't always turn to wave in your
direction and you end up with lots of shots of the back of people's
heads. Another thing I like to keep in mind when I take photographs of
such events, is that I try and imagine myself as being an actual press
photographer and try to create images that I could imagine being used in a 
newspaper or online. Always try and look for something special or unique.
Along that line, I often go right on the computer when I get home and
check out the local newspapers to see what kind of pictures the pros
took. I think my pictures rank up there with the ones that I've seen
published online. Also, going back to my speil about location, a
photographer from the Montreal Gazette, Phil Carpenter, published a shot
taken from my exact location. I know, this may not seem like much, but
to me I see it as a pro using the same technique as I do, which means I
must be doing something right. You also have to be
pretty fast with the trigger, so I generally try and shoot in AV mode.
AV allows me to set the aperture I want to use and the camera then
takes care of the shutter speed that will be necessary, which means I have one
less thing to think about. All of the pictures in this post were shot at f/2.8 as I wanted to have the widest opening possible, and ISO 100. I did take a few shots at f/14 and higher as I wanted to create some effects photographs using the slower shutter speeds to capture motion in the hands of the drummers and some flag bearers, but those experiments will be saved for another time. In order of appearance, the shutter speeds used were, 1/1000sec, 1/800sec, 1/500sec, 1/1000sec and 1/2000sec. They were also all shot using the Canon 24-70mm lens, so all of the photographs fall somewhere between those focal lengths. If I were to be asked about a favourite, they say to always lead with your best. I feel that the first shot was the headline grabber for my afternoon. The float passing by with everyone on it having a good time gets doubled in fun with the addition of the people also having a party on their balcony. It's like the title says, everybody loves a parade. 
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