With the 4th of July upon us firework shows will be a common event in many cities and towns across the USA. As photographers this rare event is challenge many of us can’t wait to shoot. However, since it occurs only once a year it is not something one can practice shooting like waterfalls or sunsets. To get the most out of this potentially spectacular event I am sharing some tips that have worked for me in the past.
1) Arrive early to claim a spot with a good vantage point. Once the crowds arrive and show begins it can be impossible to move around.
2) Use a tripod or rest your camera on a solid surface – handholding is not an option!
3) Compose, focus and set your camera to manual focus before the action starts. This is critical since if you wait until dark your ability to focus can be severely compromised. Of course it is important to know where the fireworks will be before you compose and lock your focus so when in doubt ask around or take your best guess to find a starting point.
4) Set you camera to Manual mode and select a long shutter speed, start with about 3 or 4 seconds. Adjust your aperture and ISO accordingly to properly expose (or even overexpose a little) and readjust, this includes shutter speed, as needed once the show begins. Don’t completely rely on the histogram since blown highlights are not always a bad thing here. White balance can be tricky and I suggest shooting in RAW and start off with Auto or Daylight/Sunny. Daylight will not add or remove a colorcast. Instead it will preserve the actual colors -- which may differ from what you see since our brains have their own auto WB ability that allow us to recognize white as white regardless of the light color. In my example shot over New York City the sodium vapor streetlights create a warm cast like a tungsten bulb so a setting of Tungsten (Incandescent) was used to compensate for the orange city lights.
5) Since exposures need to be long, 1 second and as long as 30 seconds, and the background is dark, noise may become a factor. If your camera has a Long Exposure Noise Reduction feature it may be good to turn it on to get a cleaner look. However, on cameras such as Nikon. this will double the exposure time and possibly cause a few missed shots.
6) Be patient and wait for the right moment. These shows have a rhythm or cycles that ideally build up to spectacular climax. This is about quality not quantity and your success rate might be only 10% -- it can take 40 shots to get 4 great captures especially if it is not windy since smoke will reliably mask the bombs bursting in air.
7) Compositions can be either solely the lights in the sky, or also include a landscape component. If there is an interesting landscape it might be best to include it to give a sense of place.
As you will find this is not as easy as it seems. Be patient, adjust your settings as needed, and use the tips above as a starting point and ideally you will return with several WOW shots. Good luck!!!
1) Arrive early to claim a spot with a good vantage point. Once the crowds arrive and show begins it can be impossible to move around.
2) Use a tripod or rest your camera on a solid surface – handholding is not an option!
3) Compose, focus and set your camera to manual focus before the action starts. This is critical since if you wait until dark your ability to focus can be severely compromised. Of course it is important to know where the fireworks will be before you compose and lock your focus so when in doubt ask around or take your best guess to find a starting point.
4) Set you camera to Manual mode and select a long shutter speed, start with about 3 or 4 seconds. Adjust your aperture and ISO accordingly to properly expose (or even overexpose a little) and readjust, this includes shutter speed, as needed once the show begins. Don’t completely rely on the histogram since blown highlights are not always a bad thing here. White balance can be tricky and I suggest shooting in RAW and start off with Auto or Daylight/Sunny. Daylight will not add or remove a colorcast. Instead it will preserve the actual colors -- which may differ from what you see since our brains have their own auto WB ability that allow us to recognize white as white regardless of the light color. In my example shot over New York City the sodium vapor streetlights create a warm cast like a tungsten bulb so a setting of Tungsten (Incandescent) was used to compensate for the orange city lights.
5) Since exposures need to be long, 1 second and as long as 30 seconds, and the background is dark, noise may become a factor. If your camera has a Long Exposure Noise Reduction feature it may be good to turn it on to get a cleaner look. However, on cameras such as Nikon. this will double the exposure time and possibly cause a few missed shots.
6) Be patient and wait for the right moment. These shows have a rhythm or cycles that ideally build up to spectacular climax. This is about quality not quantity and your success rate might be only 10% -- it can take 40 shots to get 4 great captures especially if it is not windy since smoke will reliably mask the bombs bursting in air.
7) Compositions can be either solely the lights in the sky, or also include a landscape component. If there is an interesting landscape it might be best to include it to give a sense of place.
As you will find this is not as easy as it seems. Be patient, adjust your settings as needed, and use the tips above as a starting point and ideally you will return with several WOW shots. Good luck!!!
