CAMERA SETTING for Firework - Your thoughts???

[awinphoto]

Great shots chuck and @lex.  My luck wasn't so hot... not because of storms per-se, but winds...  high winds delayed the fireworks over an hour and after 10:15 give or take, it was time to pack it in, get kids to bed, etc...  Of course right after we got home, got everyone to bed, I could hear the fireworks in the distance... Oh well... 

[westr70]

Awesome shots!  Thanks for sharing and the information.

[scottkinfw]

I used f11 or so, iso 100 and 3 to 6 second exposures and got way different results.

I'll post a few.

Bulb is waaaaaay too long. You want an exposure in the range of a few to several seconds. Just as with lightning and with flash, aperture controls exposure; shutter speed controls the length of the tracks. Base ISO is good.

The challenge for exposure with fireworks comes when you try to shoot more than just the fireworks themselves, like including upturned faces or the city skyline. There's even going to be a full moon low in the sky on the Fourth...if you can shoot the moon and the fireworks, fantastic, but good luck getting the exposure right....

Cheers,

b&

[scottkinfw]

Here is one in about the 4 second range

I used f11 or so, iso 100 and 3 to 6 second exposures and got way different results.

I'll post a few.

Bulb is waaaaaay too long. You want an exposure in the range of a few to several seconds. Just as with lightning and with flash, aperture controls exposure; shutter speed controls the length of the tracks. Base ISO is good.

The challenge for exposure with fireworks comes when you try to shoot more than just the fireworks themselves, like including upturned faces or the city skyline. There's even going to be a full moon low in the sky on the Fourth...if you can shoot the moon and the fireworks, fantastic, but good luck getting the exposure right....

Cheers,

b&

[scottkinfw]

Here is one where I adjusted  temp to left.

Here is one in about the 4 second range

I used f11 or so, iso 100 and 3 to 6 second exposures and got way different results.

I'll post a few.

Bulb is waaaaaay too long. You want an exposure in the range of a few to several seconds. Just as with lightning and with flash, aperture controls exposure; shutter speed controls the length of the tracks. Base ISO is good.

The challenge for exposure with fireworks comes when you try to shoot more than just the fireworks themselves, like including upturned faces or the city skyline. There's even going to be a full moon low in the sky on the Fourth...if you can shoot the moon and the fireworks, fantastic, but good luck getting the exposure right....

Cheers,

b&

[scottkinfw]

Long exposure ~ 4-6 sec

Here is one where I adjusted  temp to left.

Here is one in about the 4 second range

I used f11 or so, iso 100 and 3 to 6 second exposures and got way different results.

I'll post a few.

Bulb is waaaaaay too long. You want an exposure in the range of a few to several seconds. Just as with lightning and with flash, aperture controls exposure; shutter speed controls the length of the tracks. Base ISO is good.

The challenge for exposure with fireworks comes when you try to shoot more than just the fireworks themselves, like including upturned faces or the city skyline. There's even going to be a full moon low in the sky on the Fourth...if you can shoot the moon and the fireworks, fantastic, but good luck getting the exposure right....

Cheers,

b&

[scottkinfw]

this is a 2-3 second range exposure.

All quite different results.

Long exposure ~ 4-6 sec

Here is one where I adjusted  temp to left.

Here is one in about the 4 second range

I used f11 or so, iso 100 and 3 to 6 second exposures and got way different results.

I'll post a few.

Bulb is waaaaaay too long. You want an exposure in the range of a few to several seconds. Just as with lightning and with flash, aperture controls exposure; shutter speed controls the length of the tracks. Base ISO is good.

The challenge for exposure with fireworks comes when you try to shoot more than just the fireworks themselves, like including upturned faces or the city skyline. There's even going to be a full moon low in the sky on the Fourth...if you can shoot the moon and the fireworks, fantastic, but good luck getting the exposure right....

Cheers,

b&

[Chuck Alaimo]

This was my first real attempt at shooting fireworks (with a camera).  I think it came out pretty good.  This was about 6-7+ exposures of anywhere from .5 sec to 15 sec.  I stacked them up, and like what I was able to get.  I applied what I have been learning from star trail photography to this process, and it gave me a bit more creative freedom.  It is especially challenging if you want to get the right exposure on the foreground as well as the fireworks, but taking multiple exposures really is the only way to get it right.


Diamonds of Independence by @!ex, on Flickr

Very nice work!  I am just learning the art of composite blending.  Spent a while doing mainly HDR work, and I do love it but want to get away from that overly surreal look and the halos.  I sense composite blending may be my next big learning assignment (along with really mastering off cam lighting)

[bdunbar79]

Here is what I came up with tonight.  Also, there is another thread Revup started that may be a better place to post...

http://www.canonrumors.com/forum/index.php?topic=7823.0


Mile High 'Merica by @!ex, on Flickr

That is really cool.

[@!ex]

Here is what I came up with tonight.  Also, there is another thread Revup started that may be a better place to post...

http://www.canonrumors.com/forum/index.php?topic=7823.0


Mile High 'Merica by @!ex, on Flickr

Thanks, I appreciate it.

That is really cool.

[@!ex]

This was my first real attempt at shooting fireworks (with a camera).  I think it came out pretty good.  This was about 6-7+ exposures of anywhere from .5 sec to 15 sec.  I stacked them up, and like what I was able to get.  I applied what I have been learning from star trail photography to this process, and it gave me a bit more creative freedom.  It is especially challenging if you want to get the right exposure on the foreground as well as the fireworks, but taking multiple exposures really is the only way to get it right.


Diamonds of Independence by @!ex, on Flickr

Very nice work!  I am just learning the art of composite blending.  Spent a while doing mainly HDR work, and I do love it but want to get away from that overly surreal look and the halos.  I sense composite blending may be my next big learning assignment (along with really mastering off cam lighting)

Ya blending is really important, and can actually really add to HDR when the two are combined.  Also if you do HDR right and really learn how the settings in your tone mapping software work, it can be done without any halos and surreality. 

[revup67]

TC106 wrote: 

Mark Wallace from AdoramaTV has great video for shooting fireworks. He recommends the following:

Use Tripod
Use Cable Release
Manual or Bulb Mode
Aperture - f10 (start from there and play with it).
Manual Focus (Just shy of Infinity)
ISO 100

I have used these before and got great results. Good Luck.

I just caught this posting this evening 7/7/12..that is precisely what I had used to the "T" (BULB) especially the just shy of inifinity..most valuable tip..my posts are in the 5D MKIII thread

[picturesbyme]

Just a few from Ocean City, MD.
(more here http://atlanticpicture.com/p466404080 )
From 5 to 10 sec, ISO 100, at F 11 to 16.

[revup67]

Here's another - just getting around to post processing the batch.  Settings were F10, ISO 100, 11 seconds, 83mm, BULB, tripod (Y), TR cable. Adobe Light Room 4 post processed (JPG from RAW)


Lake Mission Viejo, CA 4th of July by Revup67, on Flickr

[squarebox]

2nd time posting a picture to the forums... But this was my first attempt at fireworks with all the tips gathered from this thread.

It was a small festival with only 3000 fireworks launched lasting only 90 min, and they were all launched form the same area as they all exploded in the exact same spot, so no way to layer the images.  In the future i'd probably try shorter exposures as I was sitting at 4-8secs for the most part.

650D 10mm f/14 2 secs exposure.

Btw, if you love fireworks you really should come to Japan.  There is a fireworks festival every weekend until Oct. in towns within an hours train ride from me.