The 4th of July and Fireworks.

[gpaai]

Well Independence Day is just around the corner for everyone living in America.

I thought it would be a great time to talk about what goes into shooting great firework shots. That is anything it takes to create an awesome end product, exposure, technique, background/foreground, and anything you have found that makes for a nice image.

This discussion isn't limited to us here in the U.S.A. as I have seen some nice work from photographers all around the world.

Thanks in advance.

Gary

[jypsee]

someone has a pbase gallery to teach you

http://www.pbase.com/mikealex/shootfireworks

as for my technique, I use a tripod and a shutter release and a mid range zoom lens (28-75) because I want the option of wide angles

so that I can include the locale in the scene (in this photo I had to overexpose the bright bursts to get the bridge and trees)


this one without the overexposed bursts is cropped for effect
the shutter was open 20 to 30 seconds at f/8 and ISO200

and also it depends how close you are to the fireworks going off. If you're really close you might want a really wide angle so that you can be sure to have the fireworks in your frame since the bursts don't go off in the same place. Using a shutter release and holding the lens open as the burst begins gives those layered photos.

[gpaai]

Thanks for the link and info Mary.