Fireworks, Bellevue downtown park
News ·Saturday July 4, 2009 @ 23:49 EDT (link)
I looked around to see where the nearest best fireworks show would be; I considered Carnation, but they wanted $4 to park and Bellevue billed their event as the eastside's largest fireworks show, and Bellevue Square was offering free parking. So I decided on Bellevue; and I dropped TH and Katt a note figuring I might see them there since they live nearby (it was the same park as the OC picnic). I hadn't been to the event previously, and wasn't aware that it crammed (they claimed) 60,000 people into that small park.
When I got there (~2045) I figured I'd swing by the park parking lot to try for a spot—ha! It wasn't even possible to attempt: it was by permit only, probably for symphony and fireworks vehicles (and important politicians). Even nearby side streets were packed, so I gave up and drove to Bellevue Square. The crossings were flooded with people, and police were directing traffic. I wonder if McIvor was there (yes, there's a Bellevue cop called McIvor (say it out loud…)). Despite our OC picnic here, I was carrying concealed because of the crowds and because a lot of my attention would be on photography.
There was an ocean of people in the grassy area spreading out from the stage to infinity. They were on blankets and camp chairs, with hardly space in between to walk. I finally found a square yard or so of unclaimed grass and set up my camp chair under me and and my tripod in front of me.
My strategy if I return in future years is either
- stay up all night so I'm sleepy; bring a tent and plenty of food and drink and entertainment, camp out close to the symphony stage, sleep in the afternoon, or
- bring my bicycle on a rack, park a few blocks away, bike in with my backpack.
The latter's more likely; I hate waiting around, and I really only wanted to see the fireworks. Unless I could get reasonably close, the nearby chatter tends to ruin the music. If I biked in from a reasonably distant side street, I could get there almost exactly on time, allowing time to put up my tripod only; I wouldn't need to thread through the sea of people (or wait for the crawling, milling sheep to make their sluggish way out of the park): I could set up on one of the paths (as long as they weren't blocked off as firework fall areas) or even outside the park proper.
The general atmosphere brought me back to the Memphis in May event in 2002, except the Memphis event had better food, was less crowded, had better music, and a better backdrop for the fireworks (the Mississippi—ah, the reflections!—with the bridge all lit up).
I took about 400 pictures of the fireworks, experimenting with a few different speeds (1/10 to 1" did best). I kept the ISO equivalent to 400; it might have been better to set it lower so I could do longer exposures without whiteouts. But I'm quite happy with the results.
AS said they got there ~1930 and managed to park on the first level of the garage, and get out within 15 minutes. I had to park in the far reaches of the third level (3J) and it took an hour to get out of the lot (2225-2330). What a mess!
I stopped in at work again: still no build, but I synced a build break fix and now there's hope for Monday.
