Cameras and Explosions!
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A very special day for men is right around the corner - the 4th of July! Who can’t take heart in the endless detonation opportunities we have for that wonderful day?
I wanted to dedicate this post to helping you get some great shots for this event. The techniques are really pretty simple! All you need is a camera that lets you set the shutter speed and ISO, and preferably a tripod if you can find one lying around.
The key to great fireworks shots (and we’re talking the controlled blasts happening in front of your house, not the big shows downtown) is setting a slow shutter speed. With that slower shutter, you give the camera a better ability to register all the light activity that’s going on in the scene.
Accordingly, you’ll need a tripod for those long exposures. You can still get some great light streaks going on without one, but you might not be able to see good definition in them.
Set the ISO to 100, because the fireworks are going to be so bright that you won’t need to go any higher than that. Set the camera mode to Shutter Priority (Tv). That’s it!
Here are a couple of example shots along with their shutter and aperture settings:
1/85th, f2.8
1 second, f8
1 second, f8
3 seconds, f8
The aperture really doesn’t matter for these shots - what the camera sets for you will probably be fine. You can see the difference between the first shot (handheld) and the subsequent images (on tripod). For autofocus, you might need to wait until the fireworks actually start before hitting the shutter button, because the camera won’t be able to focus if it’s too dark. Also, try to not end up downwind from the smoke coming from your fireworks - you don’t want that stuff messing up your camera!
So go forth and produce incredible fireworks images this 4th of July! And try not to blow your fingers off!
Eric Doggett is a photographer in Austin, Texas. He has a site specifically for baby photography tips at ShootTheBaby.com, as well as BoxOfficeBaby.com, a site where you can order custom birth/party announcement posters - a unique gift newborn children can keep forever. You can reach him at babydaddy -at- ShootTheBaby.com.
The Man Page is your home to get career advice, parenting tips, or just kick back and escape from the pressure of being a man. Join Derek Semmler - a working husband and father to two young boys, as we tackle the issues facing men today and have a good deal of fun in the process. He also blogs at 
These are great tips, but as a new father, your site on ShootTheBaby.com is really what I am interested in. That is my next stop.
I don’t know anything about photography, but with a new son in the house, it is the absolute time to start.
Thanks
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I agree with Kevin on this one… great shots and advice. I got some good shots last 4th of July and hope to be able to get similar ones this year by playing with the shutter speed!
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Very cool photos! I’d like to experiment with some photos this year but I am normally the one lighting off all of our exploding goodies. I’ll have to see if I can recruit someone to do it this year.
On the tripod, I’ve been wanting to pick one up for some time but don’t know what to get. Can you make any recommendations? I’ve got a Nikon D40x - will those little flexible type tripods work or should I spring for something larger and sturdier (and more money)? I’d love to hear your thoughts on that.
Thanks for the picture taking tips!!!
I am horrible at getting those difficult shots.
Derek - the small, flexible (’gorilla’) tripods (about 8 inches long) are great for grabbing onto something (an iron fence, for example) with the camera and taking a shot that way. I wouldn’t use it for these types of shots because:
a - you’d be too close to the ground and would have to lay down to take every shot.
b- since they are small, you might get some vibration from walking around it transferred into the camera resulting in some blurry shots.
You could easily spend $50 or so and get a decent starter tripod. You do want to get one that has the separate plate to attach to the bottom of the camera. Then, you just pop the camera on the tripod (vs. screwing it in directly into the tripod). Come to think of it, I’m not even sure if they make the latter anymore!
Eric
Great tips, Eric! I especially love the last photo; it’s really terrific.
This helps me a lot, because I’ve tried a number of different things for the past few 4th of July celebrations, trying to get that perfect fireworks shot. I’ll try these this year and see how they turn out! Most of them end up a blurry mess. I got a few good ones last year, like this one - http://www.flickr.com/photos/hayesandjenn/683502379/in/set-72157600585666957/
Anyway, great post and thanks for the tips!
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