Advice: First time photographing fireworks...

[JustinL]

Click the shutter just before the in air explosion if you want to get the most of the bloom (unless you want the light trail going up as well of course - then you'd increase your time the shutter is open).

Wrong. :banghead:

BULB.

agreed bulb with shutter release and black card

 

[tmjjk]

You guys are awesome... and this is great info. I am jumping in to hear all of it. Please forgive me... I am actually going to google it now... but I am unsure of what BULB means. I am shooting with a canon xs. I obviously am unfamiliar with flash, typically shoot with ambient light... thank you

 

[BuS_RiDeR]

Thanks for the advice and tips... I'll post a few examples when I am done... If it ever stops raining here that is... As for addinf fireworks to the scene... Well, I'll do what I can. Unfortunately I'm not overly sure there is anything interesting that I'd want in the shot. We'll see...

Interesting how there are so many different opinions.

 

[BuS_RiDeR]

Thanks for all the tips and advice. Here were 3 of my better shots from my first attempt with fireworks....

http://www.thephotoforum.com/forum/...ttempt-fireworks-photography-c-c-welcome.html

 

[Ubermensch84]

Shot fireworks for the first time on the 4th. I guess I used longer exposures than everybody else but needed it to get the strip me thinks? I have other ones that look less chaotic with fewer personal fireworks being set off in the foreground but this is only one I have uploaded so far
[TABLE="class: lhcl_advancedExifFields"]
[TR]
[TH]ISO[/TH]
[TD]100[/TD]
[/TR]
[TR]
[TH]Exposure[/TH]
[TD]25.0 sec[/TD]
[/TR]
[TR]
[TH]Aperture[/TH]
[TD]8.0[/TD]
[/TR]
[/TABLE]

 

[SoCalTiger]

Shot fireworks for the first time on the 4th. I guess I used longer exposures than everybody else but needed it to get the strip me thinks? I have other ones that look less chaotic with fewer personal fireworks being set off in the foreground but this is only one I have uploaded so far
[TABLE="class: lhcl_advancedExifFields"]
[TR]
[TH]ISO[/TH]
[TD]100[/TD]
[/TR]
[TR]
[TH]Exposure[/TH]
[TD]25.0 sec[/TD]
[/TR]
[TR]
[TH]Aperture[/TH]
[TD]8.0[/TD]
[/TR]
[/TABLE]
View attachment 14027

The trick for longer exposures is that you can block the lens in between shots (like with a black sheet or piece of cardboard). That allows you to capture more fireworks without overexposing the background. Of course, since you were doing a panorama of the strip that might not have been possible since multiple fireworks may have been going off constantly. Going down one stop to F/11 may have been a good compromise too. I do like this view.

 

[888Photography]

Uber, that picture is incredible. I would have thought that a 25 second exposure at f8 would have blown out the light, but it's perfect.