Photographing Fireworks

juju · Oct 4, 2007

Hi,

i have just been asked to document a party which includes a disco in a marquee and a fireworks display.

does anyone have any tips for photographing fireworks and disco as i have never done either before. its not till november so i have some time to prepare

Big Mike · Oct 4, 2007

Try a search for fireworks...it's been talked about before.

Johnboy2978 · Oct 4, 2007

Quick tips would be
(1) shoot with a tripod
(2) better to use a cable release
(3) bulb exposure
(4) focus to infinity
(5) aperture around f/8

doenoe · Oct 4, 2007

think for disco shots you need some decent shutterspeeds, since you dont want alot of blurry stuff in your pic. As it will probably will be dark there, thats gonna be tricky. Probably need a flash and/or a lens with a small f-number (canon 50mm 1.8 for example)

juju · Oct 4, 2007

cool thanks for the tips guys.

i am using a canon eos 400D can anyone tell me how to set it to bulb exposure if it can be please. i understand it gives you control of the shutter by how long you hold the button but not sure where the setting is.
is it something that only comes into function when a remote is being used ?

doenoe · Oct 5, 2007

when you turn the wheel to change the shutterspeed, just keep on turning (to longer shuttertimes) in the end it will say bulb.
Well, thats how it works on my 350D, but i think its pretty much the same.

Mesoam · Oct 5, 2007

you really don't need a tripod because of how bright the fireworks are your shutter speed should be high

being selective with fireworks is tricky your best bet is to just focus where they are going and shoot away

doenoe · Oct 5, 2007

the tripod is more for the fact that you can open the shutter longer, so you can get light trails and stuff from the firework. So keeping the shutter open for a longer time will give blur without the tripod.

keith204 · Oct 5, 2007

If you want a super long exposure speed (above 30 seconds) you can turn on 'mirror lock up' in your custom parameters menu.

hammerhead_05 · Oct 5, 2007

ahhhhhh......listen to this trick:
set your camera on a tripod....set for about a 15 or 30 second exposure (depends on the frequency of fireworks being shot off) (bulb if REALLY slow) Take a piece of cardboard - spraypaint it completely black. Press the shutter button with the piece of cardboard in front of the lens (do not bump your camera) and as you see a shoot flying up in the air - remove the cardboard - capturing the 'ka-boom'. Then throw the cardboard back over the sense immidiately. This technique will give the illusion of several explosions at once.
You can play with the amount of explosions and the rockets before they explode. Its quite fun

six-five-two · Oct 5, 2007

I suggest using a cable release and bulb mode, holding it from when the fireworks are being launched to in the air. (Quite an obvious suggestion though).