Fire chief supervising firemen

This photo from a shopping center fire in Lagrange, IL depicts a fire chief supervising firemen directing a master stream from a tower ladder during the final stages of the fire. There were all manner of lights shining on the scene and towards my position … all adding to the dramatic feel of the final image.

There’s a street light overhead, spotlights on the truck and other ambient light that illuminates the water stream in the foreground. The original exposure had more of a silhouette of the firefighters in the bucket, but I masked them and brought back much of the detail.

night fire scene with fire chief — All the different lights, the smoke, and the wet reflection from the water in the street combine to make this a dramatic image. Larry Shapiro photo

I like the overall look of the image with all the different elements contributing to the finished file … the debris in the street, the haze over their heads from the smoke and the washed out area from the street light, the base of the ladder that is at the truck which is overexposed and soft … there’s just more going on in this image than one might realize at first glance.