Every Independence Day, dogs cower as the neighborhood erupts with pops and bangs--but the rest of us look forward to days like July 4 for the bright, joyous fireworks. There's nothing quite like the thrill of fireworks. Done right, fireworks photos convey the action and excitement of the real thing. Read on for tips about capturing breathtaking fireworks photos this summer.
1. Use a camera with manual controls or a fireworks mode
You can use almost any digital camera to capture fireworks, as long as it offers either some manual exposure control (so that you can dial in the right ISO, aperture, and shutter speed settings) or a Fireworks mode.
2. Use some sort of camera support
It's essential to use some sort of support for fireworks photos. Since you need to set the exposure for at least a second (and more likely several seconds), it's just not practical to get good photos without locking your camera onto the top of a tripod or setting it up somewhere that it won't get disturbed. No matter what type of camera you use, you'll need some sort of support to capture a sharp image. An inexpensive tripod or monopod,or even a ledge will do--nothing fancy. Keep the tripod head loose so that you can move the camera around to frame the exploding fireworks.
3. Use the right exposure setting
The most important rule for shooting fireworks: Use a slow shutter speed so that you can record those colorful light trails. If you have a point-and-shoot camera, you might want to dial in the Fireworks mode. This setting gives you a somewhat slow shutter speed (probably about 1/2 second). Even better than Fireworks mode, though, is a compact camera's manual exposure mode, or a digital SLR. You can experiment with shutter speeds and aperture settings, and you can try longer shutter speeds for more-dramatic photos.
4. Use the shutter to control light trails
You can make the light trails longer by increasing the shutter speed. You might want to start small (around a second), but you can shoot really long exposures (8 seconds or more) to fill the sky with multiple fireworks
5. Use the aperture to control exposure
If you're new to manual mode, you might feel overwhelmed by all the settings--ISO, shutter speed, and aperture--and not know where to start. Here's what you should do: Set the ISO at 100 ) and the shutter speed at about 1 or 2 seconds. Then take some pictures, varying the aperture setting. The smaller the f-number you dial in, the brighter your fireworks will be. If your photos are getting overexposed (too bright), increase the f-number. If the photos are too dark, shoot at a smaller f-number.
6. Set Your Focus to Infinity
Don't forget about the focus. If your camera is in Fireworks mode, it will automatically set the lens to focus on infinity. But if you're handling the exposure details manually, set the focus at infinity and leave it there. The fireworks will all be far enough away that infinity is the right setting. If you leave the camera in autofocus, you'll no doubt find yourself missing shots while the camera "searches" for the right focus.
Have a safe and happy 4th!
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