FYI - Photographing Fireworks on July 4th

[bmattock]

July 4th, as most everybody knows, is the annual US Independence Day celebration. Usually celebrated with hamburgers, hot dogs, lots of beer, live bands, face-painting, carnival rides, setting off a variety of small fireworks and in the evening, big aerial fireworks displays.

Fireworks displays are usually put on by citys and towns across the US, some of the bigger ones are televised. But watching televised fireworks are like the difference between watching a cooking show and eating food yourself - very different things! There is nothing like being in a crowd and watching the skies, hearing the dull thump as the morters fire, tracing the thin line in the sky, and then seeing what chemical concoction unfolds for your eyes. Very exciting!

Many people try to photograph these events - and why not? It's a great place to get good photos of friends, family, people having fun at various public events, and so on. But to get photos of the fireworks themselves, it is a bit more difficult than just pointing your camera at the sky and pressing the shutter release.

It's not too difficult, but there are a few things you should know before you go. If you follow the steps in the articles I'm linking below, you should be fine.

New York Institute of Photography Tips for Digital Cameras & Fireworks

New York Institute of Photography Tips for Photographing Fireworks with Film

New York Institute of Photography - Tips for Photographing Backyard Fireworks

Incidentally - this is one type of photography where you could definitely say that it is better to have a rangefinder camera over an SLR and film over digital, and manual settings over automatic.

With digital cameras, long exposures increase digital 'noise' on the frame.
With auto-focus cameras, the auto-focus mechanism can become confused.
With auto-exposure cameras, the auto-exposure mechanism can also become confused.
With SLRs, it may be hard to see through the viewfinder to see what you're shooting.

With a good manual rangefinder camera (even a fixed-lens) on a tripod, with a cable release and vivid slide film, you should be able to get masterful fireworks displays recorded on film - and bonus - you won't have to fight the camera and override what it wants to do for you. F8, infinity focus, one-second exposure (depending on film speed, etc) and you're pretty much there.

Just don't do what I did last year - I used a Yashica GSN and left a red filter on from some B&W shooting I had done earlier that day. D'Oh!

And have a HAPPY AND SAFE Independence Day!

Best Regards,

Bill Mattocks

 

[QuillianSW]

It's surprisingly simple. This was taken with Agfa RSX II, iso 50, on a Nikon F100 using a 28mm on a tripod at f/16. All you do is hold the shutter open for 5 or so seconds - the Kodak web site has additional tips as well. After watching a few rockets, I aimed the camera where they'd been exploding, and hit the remote release when I heard the launching "whoosh," counted "one potato" through "five potato" then let the shutter close. Simple. Kodak's link is at http://www.kodak.com/eknec/PageQuerier.jhtml?pq-path=44/184&pq-locale=en_US

 

[dmr]

It's surprisingly simple. This was taken with Agfa RSX II, iso 50, on a Nikon F100 using a 28mm on a tripod at f/16. All you do is hold the shutter open for 5 or so seconds - the Kodak web site has additional tips as well. After watching a few rockets, I aimed the camera where they'd been exploding, and hit the remote release when I heard the launching "whoosh," counted "one potato" through "five potato" then let the shutter close. Simple.

You had much better luck than I had a few years ago. 🙁 Mine are so bad that I'm embarrassed to show them, and I used about the same technique, but Fuji 100 and the 28-135 zoom. I got a lot of smoke and a lot of internal lens reflections which I SWEAR I did not see when I composed. 🙁 I do admit that I was probably not in the best shape, since it was a party atmosphere. 🙂 This was at a Pre-4th thing at a local casino and everybody was out on the top level of the parking structure.

I'm attaching one, but I'm not admitting to taking it. 🙂

 

[bmattock]

You had much better luck than I had a few years ago. 🙁 Mine are so bad that I'm embarrassed to show them, and I used about the same technique, but Fuji 100 and the 28-135 zoom. I got a lot of smoke and a lot of internal lens reflections which I SWEAR I did not see when I composed. 🙁 I do admit that I was probably not in the best shape, since it was a party atmosphere. 🙂 This was at a Pre-4th thing at a local casino and everybody was out on the top level of the parking structure.

I'm attaching one, but I'm not admitting to taking it. 🙂

Hey, it can't be worse than mine with the red filter left over the lens. I didn't even save that mess.

Yours shows camera movement - no tripod? I don't know anybody who can hold a camera still enough to avoid camera shake for 1 to 5 seconds, even with focusing fluid added. You probably didn't see the lens flare because it is a cumulative effect on your film - your eye was 'refreshing' about 60+ times per second and so the flare doesn't 'add up' to anything the way it does on one single frame of film. Possibly focus was a bit wonky too, but I suspect camera movement more.

We who know the basics of photography can say that it is simple - but the fact is, many will try and fail this year. Unlike many other events, you can't just point and shoot, the electronics of most modern cameras will fail due to being confused.

1) Tripod
2) Remote Shutter Release (or self-timer and manual 1-second exposure setting)
3) Infinity focus
4) f8 and 1 second (usually)

Lens hoods can be a good thing to combat flare - again, long exposure, lots of things creep in, and film exposure is cumulative.

Best of luck this year!

Best Regards,

Bill Mattocks

 

[dmr]

Hey, it can't be worse than mine with the red filter left over the lens. I didn't even save that mess.

LOL (sorry) 🙂 I guess it could have been worse.

Yours shows camera movement - no tripod?

Well, sortakinda, one of those clamp quasi-tripod things. I did press the release manually.

You probably didn't see the lens flare because it is a cumulative effect on your film - your eye was 'refreshing' about 60+ times per second and so the flare doesn't 'add up' to anything the way it does on one single frame of film. Possibly focus was a bit wonky too, but I suspect camera movement more.

Oh, I definitely didn't notice the flare. I know I had it at infinity.

I'm supposed to be going to a concert and fireworks thing tonite, but I don't think I'll try that again. 🙂 Thanks for the pointers. 🙂

Best of luck this year!

May the 4th. be with you! 🙂

 

[BJ Bignell]

Bill, thanks for the fireworks links.

Do you think they'll work for me on Canada Day? Or are they Independence Day tips, only? 😛

 

[bmattock]

Bill, thanks for the fireworks links.

Do you think they'll work for me on Canada Day? Or are they Independence Day tips, only? 😛

Is there someplace in the world that is not the USA? Oh. Imagine my surprise.

GRIN!

Best Regards,

Bill Mattocks

 

[WDG]

Great article. I'd like to add a couple of things. First, usually, about 30-45 seconds is plenty with fireworks. I try to catch maybe two or three bursts.

Second, for aperture, I set to approximately the square root of the film speed. I don't know where I saw this recommended, but it has worked quite well for me.

Love the shots over water in that article. I'd like to position myself to do that, sometime.

 

[QuillianSW]

Great article. I'd like to add a couple of things. First, usually, about 30-45 seconds is plenty with fireworks. I try to catch maybe two or three bursts.

Second, for aperture, I set to approximately the square root of the film speed. I don't know where I saw this recommended, but it has worked quite well for me.

Love the shots over water in that article. I'd like to position myself to do that, sometime.

Remember, depends on the film - my recommendation is a slow film with longer exposure and smaller f-stop - again, iso 50 with f/11 or f/16 at five seconds gives you pretty good trails. If you're using iso 100, obviously cut back a stop either on app. or shutter - depending on whether you like the trails from the rockets. D - that shot looks my "overseas vacation" photos...

 

[bmattock]

Square root of the film speed? Cool, interesting.

ISO 64 - f8
ISO 100 - f10 (actual f8)
ISO 160 - f12 (actual f11)
ISO 200 - f14 (actual f16)
ISO 400 - f20 (actual f22)

I'm guessing that this would work if the shutter speed was always constant and you were looking for something else to use to control exposure. Most lenses have sufficient quality at f8 and smaller for good shots at infinity. However, by f22, some lenses are moving out of their 'best quality' zone or 'sweet spot'.

I was planning to use f8 and one second with ISO 50 Fuji Velvia and f16 and one second with Kodak Ultra 400. Your thoughts?

Best Regards,

Bill Mattocks

 

[Fedzilla_Bob]

Excellent timing Bill! I was thinking about this topic yesterday in between sweating details over a job negotiation I am going through. The thought of photographing fireworks was a relaxing counterpoint.

One trick I have heard of is to carefully cover the lens with a hat or a black card in between bursts of fireworks for multiple exposure effects.

Do you think anyone will mind if I use my FED 3 to photo Independance day fireworks? 🙂

 

[bmattock]

Do you think anyone will mind if I use my FED 3 to photo Independance day fireworks? 🙂

Not in the slightest! If they did, everybody would have to bring ancient Kodaks and Polaroids and Argo's and such - there aren't any high-end American cameras anymore...sniff.

Besides, freedom is for everybody! We like to celebrate ours, but we'd like everyone to have some!

Best Regards,

Bill Mattocks

 

[bmattock]

Cool thread on the topic here:

http://www.phototalk.net/forum/showthread.php?t=7138&goto=nextnewest