Fiesta Photo Tips

I have new respect for San Antonio photojournalists who cover Fiesta, the city’s infamous 10-day holiday. This year was my first Fiesta, and I am exhausted. I attended just about every free event and have the photos to prove it. In this blog post I would like to give my impressions as a new resident of San Antonio, a few Fiesta photo tips, and finally a list of the things I plan to do differently next year.

The Fiesta Events I Attended

There is a street photographer in town named Eric Gustafson, whose work I greatly admire. On Instagram he called Fiesta the Olympics of street photography in San Antonio. Boy, was he right. I had something to photograph every day, and often there were multiple events to shoot.

I made a point of mainly attending free events, just to cut down on costs. Furthermore, I also focused on events where there was more to photograph than simply people eating or bands playing. Photographing musicians isn’t my thing, and no one looks good stuffing food in their face. So, with that in mind, here is a list of the events I photographed:

Fiesta Fiesta & Carnival
Crowning of Rey Feo
Rey Fido
Pilgrimage to the Alamo
Old Day in Mexico
United Pow Wow
Both mariachi parades on the river
Texas Cavaliers river parade
Battle of flowers parade
Fiesta flambeau parade
King William Fair

My Favorite Fiesta Events to Photograph

Fiesta Fiesta was my favorite event, mainly because it was sensory overload. This was my first introduction to what Fiesta really is, and it seemed like every crazy hat in the city was there. There were terrific photo opportunities left and right, plus a carnival in the back.

Parade-wise, I got my best pre-parade photos at Battle of Flowers, but my best parade photos during a parade were at Fiesta Flambeau. (I was also witness to a little law and order action, and you can see those photos here.)

My Approach to Fiesta

This first year was a matter of figuring out exactly where I wanted to stand to get the best angles. And to that end, note that I did not pay for a parade seat. I did not want to be stuck in one spot, and for each parade, moving provided both pros and cons photographically speaking.

My Fiesta Photo Tips

So, with that summary out of the way, here are my top Fiesta photo tips.

Do your research. While I could have done more research on each event, I made a point of knowing the parade routes, times, and guesstimated the best locations for each event. It pays to know where you need to be before an event starts.

Get there early. The best thing I did during Fiesta was to arrive two hours early to the Battle of Flowers parade. I was able to walk the whole length of the parade route from downtown to the staging area. Here I got photos of the balloon wranglers, beauty queens on break, and military musicians practicing. To me, photos of parade floats are always a bit disappointing. It’s the people enjoying the parade and the excitement that goes into setting up the parade that make for the most interesting photos.

Push your fear to the side. If taking a stranger’s photo scares you, then Fiesta is the event to help you get over it. People in this town are so lovely and laid-back and I thank God every day I had moved here from New York. My best Fiesta moments were spent interacting with people and taking their photos. Unless you are very creepy or getting in someone’s face, just put on a smile, wave, and snap away.

You don’t need to spend money on events to get good photos. Again, Fiesta Fiesta was my favorite event to shoot. Furthermore, photos from the paid ticketed events really can’t be sold to stock agencies. Shutterstock, for instance, has a requirement that any photos on a stage need press authorization.

Your best view of any parade is probably going to be from a multi-level parking lot. There is a parking lot right above Whataburger in downtown that has a fantastic view over the official parade route. I worked my way down from the eighth floor to the third, taking photos all along the way.

Try for straight on shots. There are two points along the parade route where the road takes a sharp left or right. If you are directly angled so that the parade is coming to you, you can get the best straight on shots. Short of being in the parade yourself, these are going to get your images.

A telefocus lens and high shutter speed are your friend. Getting close at Fiesta event is often a challenge. You can cut the distance in half with a lens and an extender. I relied on my 70-200mm lens and my Canon Extender EF 2X III.

If you can’t get close, then get creative. For the Texas Cavaliers River Parade, you need to be in good light and close to the parade floats to get a really clear shot. This is difficult unless you have a seat in the Arneson River Theatre. If those tickets were out of your price range or sold out, then try a slow shutter speed to bring out the colors of the floats.

Be prepared to walk. There were some days that I put over 24,000 steps. Fiesta is a workout, so be prepared. Get some decent shoes and know that you are going to be hoofing it.

Bring water, or at least a water bottle. For most of the events you can find a water fountain, so if you bring an empty bottle, you can fill it up and not have your bag be too heavy.

Load up on suntan lotion. Even with overcast skies, the Texas sun is no joke.

The parades are long. Be prepared to be on your feet for at least five hours for any of the parades. Full disclosure, I never made it to the end of either the Battle of Flowers or the Fiesta Flambeau parades. That said, my goal next year is to take photos of the cleanup crews following the parades.

My Photo Gear for Fiesta

My gear for Fiesta was a Canon 5D Mark IV with a 24-70mm f/2.8 lens and an extra 70-200mm f/2.8 lens in my bag. For the Old Day in Mexico event, I brought my Extender EF 2X III which was a fantastic tool to get up close and personal to the horseback riders. For video, I simply used my iPhone. If no one is paying me to take photos, then I tend to travel as light as possible.

Things I Would Do Differently Next Year

Truthfully, I photographed everything I wanted to during the 2024 Fiesta. The only thing I truly missed out on was Cornyation, presented at the Empire Theatre. Count me in for next year as it sounds like all the crazy characters hang outside the theater before and after the show.

Online Gallery

I have put all of my Fiesta shots together into an online gallery, so if anyone wants to relive the memories, go here. As exhausting as it was, I loved every minute of Fiesta and I already have it on my calendar for next year.

Enjoy the images, and as usual, I will have more photo adventures for you next week!

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