fireworks for new years pictures

[crazeazn]

I've never shot fireworks before, whats the best way to approach this?

Tripod? I'm figuring yes...
Iso? 400-800?
Long exposures right? (to get the effect) Can anyone give me a number or range?
Aperture? Shoot i shoot wide open? or shoot somewhere in between?
what about AF? or manual focus set to infinity?
probably a wide angle lense as well...

Thanks in advance!

- John

[JamesB]

tripod

ISO 400

f 5.6 to f8

1 to 5 seconds is plenty

if you have a remote use it. set camera to bulb mode and set desired apeture then click and hold, click and hold. if oyu want longer exposures adjust your apeture accordingly

manual focus on a distant object and (usually infinity works)

yes wide angle

here are some of my shots, exposure settings below the thumbs (ISO is 400)
http://www.nightshooter.com/D60/Nigh...h04/index.html

http://www.nightshooter.com/D60/Nigh...h05/index.html


James

[crazeazn]

i'm a noob, what is bulb mode? what do you mean by click and hold? i have a remote.

[JamesB]

what camera do you have?

sorry, click and hold means click the shutter button on the remote and hold it. This is for using the bulb mode setting. release the button after a few seconds.

on my Canon 20D there is a M on the little dial that allows you to set the shutter speed to what you want and the apeture.

you get into bulb mode by turning the dial past the 30 second exposure setting. It will display "Bulb" to let you know its in the bulb mode.

bulb mode allows you to control how long you want the shutter open. if its 1 second or 1 hour you control the exposure length , not the camera.

If you dont have a bulb mode option, set the camera for 5 seconds, click the shutter and let it take the exposure, when its done, do the same thing for the next fire work.


also I forgot to mention you need to anticipate the explosion and click the shutter just before it booms and close the shutter shortly after. Usually 1 to 3 seconds is good enough. increase it for desired effect.
some fire works you can see the trail as it goes up. use this as a guide to your timing. the first few may be a miss, but once you get the hang of it you will get some good ones.

James

[crazeazn]

i have a rebel xt, i gotcha. :] thanx alot

[engstrom]

I've had good luck shooting from a tripod with bulb like described above except I use ISO 100 and f11. Remember, the fireworks are very bright.

[DEMDeepEllumMusic]

Firework are basically pinpoints of light. Now you can get some great pictures if you are shooting a work that burns long after it explodes and starts to fall downward, this will leave streams of light on the film. I've shot fireworks on film but not on digital but the principles would be the same. I would say shoot at the low end of your ISO range-closer to 100 than to 400 since you are shooting minature suns/spotlights unless you are shooting say a skyline in the background but the vast majority of fireworks shots are with a clear sky in the background.

I don't think I have ever seen a fireworks shoot with a full moon in the background. :)

[84NETgal]

Yikes, i hope you had good luck seeing fireworks. :oops: last i heard there was a statewide burn ban in effect so...no fireworks.

did you manage to catch some?

[crazeazn]

well, i drove to my friend's house in katy and i LOLed cuz on the way there i-10 had signs saying burn ban in effect. however katy was sooo foggy it was difficult to get good pictures. most of my images were way over exposed =( even @ f11, the timing is sooooooooooooooo difficult

[txphotog]

Well didnt take any pics of fireworks but had fun shooting some off. Belive it or not a burn ban does not ban fireworks. Isnt that odd? I talked to a fire captain yesterday for work and he didnt have an clear answer on why.

[krodgers]

Here are a couple that I did at Lake Granbury over the 4th of july. Acording to some reads that I have done when the Aperture is adjusted it will very the thickness' of the light streaks. The way that I judge the time is when I hear the launch I open shutter and then close it when I see the fireworks falling off. Takes practice.

First image was (iso-100)(bulb mode - 6s @ f10)(70-200mm @70mm focal length)


second image was (iso-100)(bulb mode - 4s @ f8)(70-200mm @200mm focal length)

[sraulers]

James: Excellent shots on your site!

Kendall: I really liked everything about your second shot: the composition and the exposure were outstanding. Brings to mind "the rockets red glare" from the anthem...

Good tips folks!

[texaswolflady]

When I shot fireworks this past 4th of July, I had my tripod, iso 100, focused out to inifity, and shutter speed of 3 seconds. This info I got of the web and was pleased with the results.

There were no fireworks in my neighbor hood due to the statewide fire ban and fireworks were included, at least here. I know the deputys were on the news on TV, going to people's homes who were shooting fireworks and explaining to them why they needed to stop.

[Jake]

When I shoot fireworks I use ISO 100, bulb and f/4 to f/11 depending on the surrounding.
I try to get something in the shot with the fireworks and set the focus to infinity.

[engstrom]

And even if you can't get something in the shot, if it's close to an interesting object you can easily combine the pictures: