How To Shoot Fireworks

Since it's the 4th of July in the U.S., Independence Day, it's a good time to review the basics of photographing fireworks. It's easy, it's fun and a great way to preserve the memories of those wonderful displays.

Scout Your Location

This is one time that being close is not an advantage. Try to find an elevation some distance away that will give you a vantage point for something besides the sky bursts. Water is a great choice. You'll get a secondary reflection off the surface that adds depth and echoes the colors in the sky. City lights would be another good choice.

Keep a watch out for distinctive foreground shapes that you might use the fireworks to silhouette or frame. If you have a fill flash along the effect can be quite dramatic.

Bring Your Tripod

Hand held will be a no-go for fireworks photography. The exposure times are just too long to get a decent image hand held.

Try to show up at your location in time that you still have enough time to check your framing and level with the horizon. At times like these having a bubble level on your tripod really pays for itself.

Keep in mind that, unless you've been to that spot before and know the terrain, you might have to shift your frame depending on the altitude the display operators are using for the shells. I mark preset points with a grease pencil above and below and left and right of my preferred frame. That way I don't have to guess in the dark, I can simply move to the next preset. If you can, set preset marks for both horizontal and vertical framing.

Remote Release

You'll also want to use your remote release on the "B" or bulb setting. Trying to hold the release button will invite camera shake, even on a tripod.

Aperture

A lot of people think you need a fast lens to photography fireworks but in my experience f8 to f16 usually works just fine as a starting point. Fireworks are particularly bright, so you don't need a fast lens and lower f-stop to get the best results.

Start at f8, adjust if necessary.

ISO

Same story with the ISO. Using a higher ISO will just invite over-exposure of the shell bursts. Start at ISO 100 and adjust after the first couple if necessary.

Remember, you're not striving for perfect exposure, you're striving for the perfect fireworks shot. Sometimes those poorly exposed make the best shots.

The Technique

Depending on how much ambient light is left in the night sky, usually you just open the shutter before the launch and close it after the burst trails off. This is where you can start having fun.

Don't be afraid to vary the number of bursts in one shot from just one or two to leaving the shutter open for three or four. Sometimes you'll over-expose one, no big deal. Adjust as necessary for the conditions.

Mainly just have fun. Photography can be stressful and this is one of those rare opportunities to just break all the rules while you enjoy the show.

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Best Way to Photograph Fireworks

We all love to see fireworks displays with the bright colors displayed against the night sky. Some of the displays can be quite spectacular. If you like taking pictures, there is no doubt that you will see the fireworks display as a great photo opportunity.

However, if you just pick up your camera and point and shoot, you might be a little disappointed with the results.

The reason I say that is because each individual fireworks burst only lasts a couple of seconds at best in its fullest brightness and shape. By the time you see exactly where the burst is, and then try to frame it in your viewfinder and press the shutter to take the picture, it is probably already fading away.

The best way to photograph fireworks is to use a longer exposure time. By that I mean your camera shutter will need to stay open for a longer period of time than usual.

With a longer exposure time, your camera shutter can be open for the full time (or most of it) when the fireworks burst is visible in the sky. This will yield a much better picture than if you catch the display when it is already fading and losing its shape.

How do you set your camera for longer exposure times? If you are using a basic compact camera you will not be able to manually adjust the length of the exposure time on your camera. (I'll talk about Digital SLR cameras next) When using a compact camera, set your camera scene mode setting to fireworks.

In the fireworks mode, the focusing will be set to infinity and the shutter speed will be set to a few seconds or so. This way the shutter will remain open long enough to record the light from the fireworks display properly.

Using a Digital SLR: If you are using a Digital SLR camera, you will be able to manually choose the length of time the shutter will be open. Even better, if you use the "B" setting, you can open and close the shutter for any indefinite length of time you desire. Start off by trying exposure times of 1-4 seconds and adjust them as you see fit.

Digital SLR users should also manually set their aperture somewhere between F8 and F16. Even though the sky will be dark, the fireworks displays are quite bright and using a larger aperture opening like F3.5 will probably over expose the picture.

Use a Tripod! It is best to use a tripod to photograph fireworks displays. Since the camera shutter will be open for longer time periods, you must realize that it is almost impossible to hold a camera steady for more than 1/30 of a second. Even the slightest camera shake will result in blurred pictures.

If you don't have a tripod when you photograph fireworks, try placing the camera on a firm, steady surface when taking the pictures. If you can't do that, then try bracing yourself against something steady, with your arms held firmly against your body.

Be alert and Ready! The fireworks bursts happen quickly once the show begins. Try to press the shutter release just before the actual burst of the fireworks. This way you will record the full effect of the lights and colors.

Plan Ahead: Try to locate the area where the fireworks display will be most visible if possible. Try to stake out an area for yourself with a clear view of the show.

Also, try to determine if you want any landmarks or people visible in the pictures in addition to the fireworks display.

It takes good timing, planning, and practice to photograph fireworks. Use the above mentioned tips as a starting point and hopefully you will be able to get some great shots you can brag about or share with others. Good Luck!

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