Fireworks Photos

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Jim Dick

Jim Dick

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We are in Celina, OH and they are having Freedom Days this weekend. Last night they had a fireworks show which was great. I've posted 14 photos at http://photo.net/photos/jimdick. This is my first serious attempt at catching these great shows.

The celebration was muted by the serious storm last Friday and another is on its way. Located in Indiana as I type. We'll be heading for the repair service building when it hits.
 
Good work, those are great!  All they need is the sounds :)
 
Ned,

I never think about it but the camera will do video and audio! Maybe next time. ;D

Tom,

I also like 1920 but i858 reminds me of my queen palms back in FL. ;D
 
Nice set of images Jim.  Fireworks are fun to shoot.  I've attached a couple of mine from just a week ago.
 

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Ron,

Nice! I've got some similar but didn't put them on photo.net. I'm trying to copy the master! :) :)
 
Really neat pictures Jim.  Just bought a new camera, now have to learn how to use it.
 
Hi Ron, care to share the secret to taking those great fireworks shots? TIA.
 
Robin,

Thanks, I'm still trying to learn mine. ;D It takes time and patience and lots of reading.
 
Tom,

Not sure how Ron does it but I'm hoping to find out. :) I set the camera to manual focus, F11, bulb, ISO 100. Exposure was between 1&5 seconds depending on the brightness of the fireworks. Used a tripod and remote shutter release.
 
Jim and Ron,
Nice photos! Loved them all!

Jim, are you staying at the fairgrounds in Celina?

-Roni
 
There are many different ways to do fireworks. I am anxious to hear how Ron does his. I hate tripods so I hand hold. I usually set it to ISO 3200, manual focus and play with the exposure while shooting. I use a telephoto and open the aperture all the way. Then I vary my shutter between 1/30th and 1/125th. I like trying lots of different settings while the show is going on since each show is different. Since fireworks shows usually last between 15 minutes and a half an hour there is lots of time to play with the settings. Most all fireworks shows have a "big bang" ending and by the time it gets there I have found the best settings for finale. The problem with doing it the way I do it is that you need to do some heavy noise reduction in post processing to make the sky black. So my method won't work for most people. 

Another interesting way to shoot fireworks is using the Bulb setting (manually opening and closing the shutter) and a piece of cardboard to put over the lens. Then you can open and close the lens several times to get multiple exposures on one image. It is also possible to shake the camera during a shot or zoom in or out during the exposure for some different effects.

Just about every digital camera made lately has "Scene" modes such as Portrait, Landscape, Beach, Sunset, etc. Usually one of these settings is called Fireworks.
 
Thanks Tom. Siunds Sounds way too complex for this PAS guy. I've had 'scene' mode on numerous cameras over the years, but often forget it's there, or that it has a fireworks option. Thanks for the reminder.
 
You are welcome Tom. It is a bit complicated shooting fireworks and that is why they put the Fireworks Scene setting in P&S cameras to make it simple for the P&S shooters. Those scene modes are really great. Most of the better P&S cameras have a scene mode for just about every situation you run into. Sony has another mode call Auto+ in which the camera will try and figure out which Scene Mode works best for the particular situation you are shooting in and then uses it's best guess to take the photo.
 
Sony has another mode call Auto+ ....
Click to expand...

That sounds like an awesome feature for PAS, but must be relatively new; I don't recall seeing it on either of my prior Sony cameras. Of course, I might just be having a brain fart  :-[
 
I do believe it is a relatively new addition. Sony has been thinking way outside the box for the last few years trying to gain traction in the Canikon dominated marketplace. Here is a bit more info about A+:

http://esupport.sony.com/US/perl/support-info.pl?&info_id=736&mdl=SLTA33L
 
Tom, Tom & Jim:

      No secret to shooting the fireworks and there is more than one formula that works.  I personally use a tripod, ISO 100 most of the time, F8 or F11, camera pre-focused at the proper distance utilizing Live View.  Do not use auto focus as it isn't reponsive enough and all the fireworks are in the same zone of focus.  Put it on Bulb and use a remote release.

      I open the shutter at the explosion and keep it open till the trails have ended.  With these settings, the timing doesn't get too critical.  If the shutter is open too long, the whites will tend to be blown out.  Most of the time, I get pretty good color saturation with this method.  I also do not get too much of background light.  I like the skies pretty dark.  This should work pretty good for reflections also.

      The Sony cameras should get excellent images since they have no mirror movement.

      Those images were shot across a lake about 3/4 of mile with the 100 to 400 meter telephoto.  If I am real close, I use the 24 to 105 mm zoom.  When that close, sometimes I will use a polarizer to enhance the colors a cut the light just a little.
 
    One additional thing.  If you are blowing out the whites, then change your aperature to F16 or F22 to cut down the light.    Pay attention to your histogram to make sure you are not blowing out the whites.

 
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