Mass Ascension

Here are some of my photos from the first mass ascension of the fiesta on Sunday morning (Oct 7). There are several, but it shouldn't take too long to scroll through this post, as I'll try to keep the words to a minimum.



The "show" began with a handful of Dawn Patrol balloons preparing to fly up before the others. As I mentioned before, this was a very exciting time. I used my sister's tripod for many of these photos so I could do 1-2 second exposures. I only wish I had rented a better lens for this event, since I just had to use my kit lens for its wider angle.




The balloons did a bit of glowing for a pretty light show.


Then they began taking off one at a time to cheers from the crowd. An announcer told us the balloon names as they lifted off.




As it started getting lighter, other balloons were being inflated.




This balloon went up and the national anthem was sung.



More and more balloons were ascending. They say the balloons leave in two waves, but it seemed more like they just went up at all different moments over the course of an hour or so.


My sister (who appears in a couple of these since I kept stopping to take pictures while she walked ahead) and I really liked that swirly one.





R and I were kind of making fun of the fact that lots of people were holding up their iPads to take pictures. I guess it's a sign of the times, and my dad was saying that it makes it much easier to email the photos to people, but it seemed kind of silly like there's got to be a better way to photograph the event. I don't own an iPad, though.



Lots of cute balloon designs and shapes. I tried to include several in this post.






It seemed like every time we turned around, several new balloons were being inflated. It was impossible to keep up with all of the different styles.





That zebra had a little trouble with his nose falling toward the ground. It took awhile before it could actually take off.




A butterfly that I think I photographed better that night.




I really liked this one for whatever reason. My sister got me one of the cards (balloon pilots hand cards out to the kids who collect them).



On the left, someone is trying to take a creative photo of their friend "holding" the penguin's camera, I guess.




The people who direct the balloons for takeoff are called zebras because of their striped outfits. Some take the name literally in how they dress.


And that's my summary of mass ascension! It was a great morning. Next up I'll post photos from the evening events. Thanks for looking!