Sep 07 2008
Photographing Fireworks
The Fireworks At Lighthouse Park Washington
We had a perfect night for a fireworks display. The sky was clear and the weather still warm. I saw a few other photographers on the scene with their tripods ready for the show.
Here are a few tips when photographing fireworks:
- Use a tripod - this is a must!
- Set your camera to manual and adjust it to bulb (the shutter stays open as long as you hold down the release).
- Use a shutter release cable (or IR shutter release) to prevent camera shake as you press and hold the shutter open
- Set your ISO speed to 100 or 200
- Use F/Stop F/11 or F/16
- Prefocus using the manual focus - auto-focus won’t work
- Experiment - take some with several bursts and some with just one
- For multi bursts cover the lens with something black between explosions to prevent over-exposure - try not to touch your camera to prevent shake
- Try for an upwind position (if the smoke surrounds you, your photos will turn out hazy).
- Use a UV filter, but remove the polarizing filter for this type of work
- Have an extra battery charged up and ready - long exposures with the shutter held open - runs down batteries quickly
Do you have a favorite tip you’d like to share, or place to photograph fireworks, please comment
