There are three things you can change about the fireworks. First
how bright the fireworks are, second how dark the sky is, and third
how long the fireworks trails are.
You determine how bright the fireworks are, and how dark the sky is
with your aperture. Because each element of "fire" is in a
different location at each fraction of a second, using a longer
shutter does not make the fireworks any brighter...it can make the
sky a little brighter which usually is bad. I use an aperture of
between 4.5 and 5.6....I start at 4.5 and after about a third of
the show I switch to 5.0 and after another third switch to 5.6.
(the biggest brightest fireworks are at the end of the show)
I've seen a lot of recommendations for shutter speed as long as 8
seconds...I've never had a fireworks pic turn out past 4. I've had
great success at 1 and 2 seconds. The longer the exposure the
longer the trails, but soooo much depends on the fireworks company
and what kind of display they are doing, that the best idea is to
try several times.
Next, put your camera in manual focus and twist to infinity! Your
subject is a half mile away or more, thats infinity.
My last advice is enjoy the show....you can't "guess" the right
time to pull the trigger, you just can't. Frame up the area of the
sky, put your finger on the button, and every 5 seconds hit it,
while you watch the show. Take a lot of memory. Also, save your
self future grief and at home immediately delete all but your
favorite 20-25 pics!
For examples of how well this system works, see:
http://www.bcballoons.com/fireworks2.htm
good luck,
and post your results!
dave
Hello all:
Can any kind soul, please tell me what are the settings to shoot
fireworks? I have a Sony V1.
Many kind thank yous,
Andrew
--
Amazing what we can do with just three crayons, red green and blue!
http://yourbattlecreek.com/dave/
