These are my best tips on how to photograph fire performers and other flow artists. Fire spinning is a dangerous and beautiful art form. The best fire performer photography is more than just dialing in the best camera settings to photograph pretty fire textures and siiiiiiiiick fire spinning trails while ignoring the human performer who is risking serious injury or death every time they set fire to their props.
Great fire performer photography shows off the fire spinner at their most primal and powerful. As a photographer, the simplest way you can show the fire performer at their most primal is to focus your attention, and thus your viewer’s attention, away from the fire and to the performer where it always belongs.
It is my hope that these high-level tips, tricks, and camera settings can help you improve your fire performer photography by learning how to see past the fire in order to document the soul of the performer by combining techniques from photojournalism, and sports photography in particular, with elements of portraiture.
How You Can Improve Your Photography of Fire Performers and Flow Artists
How Does a Photojournalist Photograph Fire Performers
The best way to photograph fire performers is to learn the skills unique to photojournalism and sports photography. This is my primary technique.
How To Photograph Fire Performers Safely
Something to ask yourself: is it really that difficult to ask for permission, or are you just lazy, entitled, and possibly predatory? Always. Get. Consent.
How To Photograph Fire Performers Like a Soldier
In Part 3 of this Series on improving fire performer photography, I present to you the Four Fundamentals of Basic Rifle Marksmanship. Wait, whaaaaaaat?
How To Photograph Fire Performers On the Move
We’ll continue learning to think like a combat shooter because Army fundamentals and good fire performer photography fit well perfectly. Here’s how.
How To Photograph Fire Performers With Boredom
Photographing fire performers and flow artists became boring for me a long time ago and that is perfectly okay. In fact, boredom can be a powerful asset in your creative…
How To Photograph Fire Performers By Thinking
Looking for the best camera settings to use when photographing fire performers? I’ll give you a hint. There aren’t any. Read on to see what I mean.
How To Photograph Fire Breathers
What are some of the best camera settings for taking good photos of fire breathers? HINT: I don’t care about getting siiiiiiiiick fire textures.
How To Photograph Fire Fans and Palm Torches
Fire fans and palm torches are the best props for beautiful portrait-like action shots. Here’s how to photograph the performers who use them.
The Best Advice for New Photographers
This is the very best advice I can possibly give to new photographers. If you’re serious, then anything else comes second.