I have a fireworks thing at a country club I am shooting and wanted to know if anyone has any useful recipies for good capture.
Thanks and hugs.
Full Version: Tips for fireworks shooting?
QUOTE(CL Park @ June 28 2007, 09:31 PM) 
I have a fireworks thing at a country club I am shooting and wanted to know if anyone has any useful recipies for good capture.
Thanks and hugs.
Thanks and hugs.
I just received an email from adorama about this. Check their site.
QUOTE(EddieV @ June 28 2007, 06:37 PM)
I just received an email from adorama about this. Check their site.
Thanks a bunch
I got the one from Adorama this week too... looks to be promising advice. Similiar to shooting the moon. Get a tripod, Shoot ISO 100-200, and play with shutter speeds. Have fun! I'll be on the road when they go off 
Check out this post on Daily Photo Tips...
http://dailyphototips.blogspot.com/2006/07...y-tips-for.html
Oh, BTW, it's free.
I mean like free free.
http://dailyphototips.blogspot.com/2006/07...y-tips-for.html
Oh, BTW, it's free.
I mean like free free.
I shoot fireworks every year - here's the magic recepie....
1. Tripod and cable release. This is really super important. If you don't have a cable, you can just press the button, but they won't be sharp. Or use the self timer in the shortest duration, but you wont' have any control over when to open or close the shutter.
2. ISO 100 is fine, the higher ISO you go, the more noise you'll have in the sky, but the more you'll pick up background glows also, which can be cool.
3. Start around f/ 5.6 (manual mode of course, manual Fstop, and Bulb shutter)
4. MANUAL focus your lens to infinity, then back it off just a hair. Most lenses will actually focus past infinity a bit leaving your shots out of focus. You can test this in daylight - focus on something really far away, then look at your scale and see how close to the focus stop it actually is. Try to manually set it right there during the main event.
5. Turn on your highlight blink-ey preview. Where the pic blinks the blown out areas. Most people when shooting fireworks will blow them out - white streaks instead of pretty purples and greens. That's the real key - catch the color!
6. Shoot in Raw if you have the card space - more margin for error. If you dial it in, then large HQ jpeg should be fine.
When the action starts.....
7. Shoot a couple, then check your preview. If the streamers are blinking they're blown out - stop down a bit. Look at your histogram. Should have a few touching the right side, but not many.
8. Dial your ISO up and down to catch the right amount of background glow. The real beauty of fireworks is to catch some of the natural scenery around the fireworks, not just the pops themselves.
Getting good fireworks takes a bit of feness with the camera - try to dial in your settings good as early in the show as possible, then shoot away. Hey, if you blow it, you've got to wait a whole nother year!
1. Tripod and cable release. This is really super important. If you don't have a cable, you can just press the button, but they won't be sharp. Or use the self timer in the shortest duration, but you wont' have any control over when to open or close the shutter.
2. ISO 100 is fine, the higher ISO you go, the more noise you'll have in the sky, but the more you'll pick up background glows also, which can be cool.
3. Start around f/ 5.6 (manual mode of course, manual Fstop, and Bulb shutter)
4. MANUAL focus your lens to infinity, then back it off just a hair. Most lenses will actually focus past infinity a bit leaving your shots out of focus. You can test this in daylight - focus on something really far away, then look at your scale and see how close to the focus stop it actually is. Try to manually set it right there during the main event.
5. Turn on your highlight blink-ey preview. Where the pic blinks the blown out areas. Most people when shooting fireworks will blow them out - white streaks instead of pretty purples and greens. That's the real key - catch the color!
6. Shoot in Raw if you have the card space - more margin for error. If you dial it in, then large HQ jpeg should be fine.
When the action starts.....
7. Shoot a couple, then check your preview. If the streamers are blinking they're blown out - stop down a bit. Look at your histogram. Should have a few touching the right side, but not many.
8. Dial your ISO up and down to catch the right amount of background glow. The real beauty of fireworks is to catch some of the natural scenery around the fireworks, not just the pops themselves.
Getting good fireworks takes a bit of feness with the camera - try to dial in your settings good as early in the show as possible, then shoot away. Hey, if you blow it, you've got to wait a whole nother year!
Here are a few from the past couple years.....
Click to view attachment
Click to view attachment
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Click to view attachment
QUOTE(Kevin King @ June 29 2007, 01:53 PM)
I shoot fireworks every year - here's the magic recepie....
1. Tripod and cable release. This is really super important. If you don't have a cable, you can just press the button, but they won't be sharp. Or use the self timer in the shortest duration, but you wont' have any control over when to open or close the shutter.
2. ISO 100 is fine, the higher ISO you go, the more noise you'll have in the sky, but the more you'll pick up background glows also, which can be cool.
3. Start around f/ 5.6 (manual mode of course, manual Fstop, and Bulb shutter)
4. MANUAL focus your lens to infinity, then back it off just a hair. Most lenses will actually focus past infinity a bit leaving your shots out of focus. You can test this in daylight - focus on something really far away, then look at your scale and see how close to the focus stop it actually is. Try to manually set it right there during the main event.
5. Turn on your highlight blink-ey preview. Where the pic blinks the blown out areas. Most people when shooting fireworks will blow them out - white streaks instead of pretty purples and greens. That's the real key - catch the color!
6. Shoot in Raw if you have the card space - more margin for error. If you dial it in, then large HQ jpeg should be fine.
When the action starts.....
7. Shoot a couple, then check your preview. If the streamers are blinking they're blown out - stop down a bit. Look at your histogram. Should have a few touching the right side, but not many.
8. Dial your ISO up and down to catch the right amount of background glow. The real beauty of fireworks is to catch some of the natural scenery around the fireworks, not just the pops themselves.
Getting good fireworks takes a bit of feness with the camera - try to dial in your settings good as early in the show as possible, then shoot away. Hey, if you blow it, you've got to wait a whole nother year!
1. Tripod and cable release. This is really super important. If you don't have a cable, you can just press the button, but they won't be sharp. Or use the self timer in the shortest duration, but you wont' have any control over when to open or close the shutter.
2. ISO 100 is fine, the higher ISO you go, the more noise you'll have in the sky, but the more you'll pick up background glows also, which can be cool.
3. Start around f/ 5.6 (manual mode of course, manual Fstop, and Bulb shutter)
4. MANUAL focus your lens to infinity, then back it off just a hair. Most lenses will actually focus past infinity a bit leaving your shots out of focus. You can test this in daylight - focus on something really far away, then look at your scale and see how close to the focus stop it actually is. Try to manually set it right there during the main event.
5. Turn on your highlight blink-ey preview. Where the pic blinks the blown out areas. Most people when shooting fireworks will blow them out - white streaks instead of pretty purples and greens. That's the real key - catch the color!
6. Shoot in Raw if you have the card space - more margin for error. If you dial it in, then large HQ jpeg should be fine.
When the action starts.....
7. Shoot a couple, then check your preview. If the streamers are blinking they're blown out - stop down a bit. Look at your histogram. Should have a few touching the right side, but not many.
8. Dial your ISO up and down to catch the right amount of background glow. The real beauty of fireworks is to catch some of the natural scenery around the fireworks, not just the pops themselves.
Getting good fireworks takes a bit of feness with the camera - try to dial in your settings good as early in the show as possible, then shoot away. Hey, if you blow it, you've got to wait a whole nother year!
WOW Kevin, Thank you. Now comes the really stupid question. How long t leave the shutter open when Im on BULB, because wont I get a ton of streaking if its open too long? (Yes, I am actually a professional photographer, isnt that scary
)
those shots are insane cool!
Hey Jen,
I actually taught a class at the Junior College on this. Kevin gave you great advise. With respect to how long, one trick I do is have a black card to cover the lense during the exposure between bursts, while on bulb.
PS (and don't take offense to this) don't use your flash. I actualy had a student come backt o call with images that looked OK for the most part except for the forground (like the ground and all the backs of the heads of the people sitting around him) that had been illuminated by his flash.
Good luck!
I actually taught a class at the Junior College on this. Kevin gave you great advise. With respect to how long, one trick I do is have a black card to cover the lense during the exposure between bursts, while on bulb.
PS (and don't take offense to this) don't use your flash. I actualy had a student come backt o call with images that looked OK for the most part except for the forground (like the ground and all the backs of the heads of the people sitting around him) that had been illuminated by his flash.
Good luck!
QUOTE(CL Park @ June 29 2007, 05:19 PM)
WOW Kevin, Thank you. Now comes the really stupid question. How long t leave the shutter open when Im on BULB, because wont I get a ton of streaking if its open too long? (Yes, I am actually a professional photographer, isnt that scary )
)Jen,
I generally start out at about 10 seconds and tweak from there!
Also, if you stop down to F8 or more, the strret lights look like stars.
Candy
now another twist.... I have a couple who is going to have a surprise fireworks show at their reception. MOB told me about it but B&G don't know yet. I want ot be able to get them IN some of the pix. I was thinking of busting out the ol' ONE LIGHT method for this.... Maybe I'll practice with some people on the 4th of July! I'm so excited now!
I'm so excited now!
QUOTE(PamB @ June 29 2007, 04:27 PM)
Hey Jen,
I actually taught a class at the Junior College on this. Kevin gave you great advise. With respect to how long, one trick I do is have a black card to cover the lense during the exposure between bursts, while on bulb.
PS (and don't take offense to this) don't use your flash. I actualy had a student come backt o call with images that looked OK for the most part except for the forground (like the ground and all the backs of the heads of the people sitting around him) that had been illuminated by his flash.
Good luck!
I actually taught a class at the Junior College on this. Kevin gave you great advise. With respect to how long, one trick I do is have a black card to cover the lense during the exposure between bursts, while on bulb.
PS (and don't take offense to this) don't use your flash. I actualy had a student come backt o call with images that looked OK for the most part except for the forground (like the ground and all the backs of the heads of the people sitting around him) that had been illuminated by his flash.
Good luck!
That is brilliant. Thanks so much. Your in my thoughts Pam.
QUOTE(CL Park @ June 28 2007, 10:31 PM)
I have a fireworks thing at a country club I am shooting and wanted to know if anyone has any useful recipies for good capture.
Thanks and hugs.
Thanks and hugs.
In Scott Kelby's book Digital Photography, he says to set the ISO to 100, f11 for 3-4 seconds. I tried this a couple of weeks ago; it works.
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