Fireworks
- Thread starter Walt
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Hoping to try shooting a firework display at at a ruined abbey at the weekend, it will be my first try at night time photography any tips gratefully accepted.
joxby
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Which ruined abbey ?
It's not really dark even at 10pm at the moment, its gonna be a long shutter whatever but the conditions aren't quite the same as in November.
I'd take a few shots of the sky pre-fireworks and see what the longest shutter time is before the sky starts getting too bright.
It won't hurt to have a dark blue backdrop though instead of pitch black, could be cool..
god, I just looked out the window, its not even slightly dark, what time is the display cos shutter speeds aren't going to be that long at all..
It's not really dark even at 10pm at the moment, its gonna be a long shutter whatever but the conditions aren't quite the same as in November.
I'd take a few shots of the sky pre-fireworks and see what the longest shutter time is before the sky starts getting too bright.
It won't hurt to have a dark blue backdrop though instead of pitch black, could be cool..
god, I just looked out the window, its not even slightly dark, what time is the display cos shutter speeds aren't going to be that long at all..
-RV-
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A tripod and shutter release is a good start.
Pre-focus beforehand and switch to manual focus (that will stop the focus hunting on each shot).
Set it on bulb and open and close shutter with the release.
Open the shutter before the firework explodes and then close it just after it has reached it maximum "spread"... That will keep it crisp.
Take some test shots beforehand and aim for anything from 2-5 seconds exposure length.
Pre-focus beforehand and switch to manual focus (that will stop the focus hunting on each shot).
Set it on bulb and open and close shutter with the release.
Open the shutter before the firework explodes and then close it just after it has reached it maximum "spread"... That will keep it crisp.
Take some test shots beforehand and aim for anything from 2-5 seconds exposure length.
StewartR
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This is all good stuff.
Here's another tip: Make sure that you know your way around the camera controls with your eyes closed. When it's dark and the camera's tilted back on a tripod, if you need to make any adjustments it's not going to be easy. (Yes, I do speak from experience! The first couple of times I tried shooting fireworks, the results were crap.)
