what mode for day one?

[naptime]

so for those of you that haven't read my intro...

my daughter and i are breaking into photography on Christmas eve. I've purchased canon eos 2000's for both of us.

for our first day.... how should we shoot?

should we just set the camera on the auto mode and just enjoy our first day?

would it be best to use one of the program modes, like aperture priority or shutter priority, etc..?

we both have books coming as well, and have a lot to learn. i have been reading a lot on the forums, and am somewhat starting to understand the correlation between shutter, aperture, and film speed... but since the camera's are wrapped up.... i'm just reading.. not practicing...

as these are film cameras, we cant just mindlessly shoot in any old mode with no thinking about what we are doing.. just wasted money imo.


so, just curious what's the best mode to start with for day one, when she hasn't read any of the info regarding settings yet.




also.... just in case we haven't gotten a full grasp by time NYE gets here..... we are going downtown to try and shoot the fireworks...

any recommendations on settings for shooting fireworks?

we have tripods as well as shutter release cables.

should we shoot with 200 or 400 film?
how slow of a shutter speed? 1 second? bulb? faster than that?
what's a good mode to use other than full auto.. ie: shutter priority, iso, aperture, etc...


i know that as beginners we don't expect every picture to be perfect.. but i hate to turn in a roll of film, and have EVERY picture completely useless.


we will be shooting in b&w to begin with, and will be processing at home.. but for NYE we are going to shoot the fireworks in color. as we are also hoping to shoot some pics of downtown across the river... Toledo makes for some nice evening shots when done properly by people that know what they are doing.

 

[MLeeK]

First day-I'd probably say auto. Those are your Christmas pictures and you'll want to capture them AND have them be useable. Plus you need to learn how to read and guage your meter before you'll get an accurate picture in another mode.

For fireworks you'll need a remote, a tripod and to remember that your meter in the camera is WRONG. It is metering the black sky and should be about 2 to 3 full stops or more underexposed.
Fireworks and night lights are done with a long exposure with the camera in bulb mode.
Here are a couple of the first links I found when I googled-they look like pretty good info:
How to Photograph Fireworks
How to Photograph Fireworks Displays

 

[naptime]

i hope i am posting these links properly, as these are not MY shots...

but these are the types of photos we are hoping to take on new years eve.

these are downtown toledo shots, from other photographers on flickr...


http://www.flickr.com/photos/zogmyster/4063396381/in/photostream/TOLEDO OHIO by Stephan Herzog Photography, on Flickr


http://www.flickr.com/photos/zogmyster/4063396381/in/photostream/TOLEDO 1028093 by Stephan Herzog Photography, on Flickr


http://www.flickr.com/photos/zogmyster/4063396381/in/photostream/The Canon G11 does Toledo, Ohio. by rsteup, on Flickr


Toledo Skyline by Luke Hertzfeld, on Flickr

 

[naptime]

and this is the type of fireworks..

again, these are links to others flikr fotos of toledo fireworks
http://www.flickr.com/photos/lindymagoo/730825768/

Toledo Fireworks DSC3094 by Lindymagoo, on Flickr

 

[Robin Usagani]

fireworks = Bulb mode on tripod.

 

[naptime]

First day-I'd probably say auto. Those are your Christmas pictures and you'll want to capture them AND have them be useable. Plus you need to learn how to read and guage your meter before you'll get an accurate picture in another mode.

For fireworks you'll need a remote, a tripod and to remember that your meter in the camera is WRONG. It is metering the black sky and should be about 2 to 3 full stops or more underexposed.
Fireworks and night lights are done with a long exposure with the camera in bulb mode.
Here are a couple of the first links I found when I googled-they look like pretty good info:
How to Photograph Fireworks
How to Photograph Fireworks Displays

thanks for the links

i was thinking auto for the first day, like you said because they are our first shots with the cameras. and i'd hate to see them all be useless.

but i didn't want to criple us by starting off on the easy foot either.

we have tripods and remotes for both cameras..... but i did NOT buy meters.... umm is this something we are going to NEED ? i bought lenses, and uv filters, and cpl filters, and cases and tripods and remotes... but no meters...

i better go read those links !!!

 

[Pau1]

Wow.

 

[pengoan228]

and this is the type of fireworks..

again, these are links to others flikr fotos of toledo fireworks


Toledo Fireworks DSC3094 by Lindymagoo, on Flickr

i like it :X

 

[MLeeK]

There is a meter in your camera. Having a hand held meter is SO MUCH BETTER, but you can start and learn to do a beautiful job with the in camera meter.

Find the manual to your camera on line and download it to read it before hand seeing how yours are wrapped

 

[Robin Usagani]

How would a hand meter work? Go drive to the bridge, call the daughter on the camera of the reading?

 

[MLeeK]

Sending you something...

 

[MLeeK]

How would a hand meter work? Go drive to the bridge, call the daughter on the camera of the reading?

I didn't mean hand held meter for this shot. I meant the meter in camera. And a hand held meter is SO much better for everything else... Smart ass! LOL!

 

[naptime]

thanks again for those links.

EXACTLY what i was looking for.

they gave a recommended iso of 100. a recommend shutter speed for 2-4 seconds. start just before the explosion, and hold until after the trails form. and recommended aperature of 8-16.

they were the perfect dummies guide to getting started!!

thanks

 

[naptime]

thanks. yes, we have both paperback manuals, and i also have the pdf version of the manual as well.

guess i need to read it

 

[Robin Usagani]

Good luck to you... I would say I dont even know where to begin if I had to shoot a firework show without my preview screen. I would probably meter the bridge where I expose it correctly around 2-4 second. I am still not sure why you dont go with a digital camera.