As a kickoff to the 2016 Albuquerque Balloon Festival, the school district made arrangements for balloonists to visit several schools early last Friday morning to demonstrate how the balloons are filled with hot air sufficient hot to lift their cargo.  Children, staff, and parents were able to watch the balloonists unpack the balloons, attach the heaters to the cargo basket, and fill the balloon with hot air using the propane heaters and fans.  It was a nice start to the annual Albuquerque International Balloon Fiesta, this year entitled “Desert Kaleidoscope”, 1-9 October.

Be sure to take a camera if you are fortunate enough to be able to attend this colorful event.  Events are scheduled throughout the day – from balloon ascensions at dawn,  to late evening balloon glows, to nighttime fireworks.  Given these divergent lighting conditions, the ideal lens for the best quality photos is a “fast” (f/2.8 or better) fixed aperture zoom lens.  These photos, which were taken about 7 AM, were shot with my Nikon D7100 camera and a Nikon f/2.8 17-55mm zoom lens.

Capture the Wonders Found in Travel and Life                              Email: d300dave@gmail.com

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