How to Photograph Fireworks
Use a tripod - Long exposures are needed to capture the fireworks. Trying to shoot without a tripod will result in blurry, unusable images.
Use a shutter cable - Using the shutter button on your camera body may cause very small vibrations, blurring your photo. Use a shutter cable to alleviate the potential problem.
Kill the flash - Using your flash will do nothing but kill your batteries..and possibly light up unwanted subjects (people, trees, animals, evil gnomes)
Shutter Speed - Use a shutter speed ranging from one to five seconds.
Aperture - Set your f/ stop to anywhere between f/8 and f/16.
ISO - Keep your ISO setting low. Ideally, ISO100 is perfect.
Focal Length - If you want to include the surrounding area in your shot (water, city skyline, etc), use a wider angle lens, somewhere between 18 and 50mm. If you just want the fireworks in your photo, I recommend at least a minimum of 100-200mm depending on your distance to the show.
Experiment - Try different settings until you find the ones that suit what you are looking for. Write them down or enter them into your smartphone just in case you accidentally change something.
Check the weather - You would think this is a no brainer. Not only do you need to check for rain, but also wind direction. Ideally you want to shoot up wind if possible. If the wind is calm, it is best to shoot the beginning of the show. As the display goes on, the smoke from the fireworks will hang in the air, making it difficult to get quality photos.
Focus - Remember to focus before the show. Nothing is more irritating than taking what you think are amazing photos only to get home and find out that they are all out of focus. Set you lens to infinity or find something close to where the fireworks will be shot from and focus on that. Then switch to manual focus so the lens won’t try to refocus after every shot.
Friday, August 9, 2013
Monday, September 15, 2008
GMA Whistle Stop Tour '08
ABC's Good Morning America kicked off their Whistle Stop Tour '08 on Sunday morning at Worcester's Union Station. Over the next week, GMA will make stops all throughout the northeast as part of their 50 States in 50 Days campaign.
I caught up with their train during one of the "Whistle Stops" at Amtrak's Springfield Station.
About thirty minutes after the train departed Springfield, train P954 rounded the curve at Williams Riding Way in Westfield.
Luckily, the sun came out from behind the low level clouds just as the train worked its way through the most scenic part of its journey. Here train 954 is seen following US 20 in Huntington
Unfortunately from Huntington, it is nearly impossible to keep up with a passenger train in the Berkshires. This final photo is from the Berkshire County Fair Grounds in Lenox.
I caught up with their train during one of the "Whistle Stops" at Amtrak's Springfield Station.
About thirty minutes after the train departed Springfield, train P954 rounded the curve at Williams Riding Way in Westfield.
Luckily, the sun came out from behind the low level clouds just as the train worked its way through the most scenic part of its journey. Here train 954 is seen following US 20 in Huntington
Unfortunately from Huntington, it is nearly impossible to keep up with a passenger train in the Berkshires. This final photo is from the Berkshire County Fair Grounds in Lenox.
Sunday, September 7, 2008
Great New England Air Show
This weekend was the much anticipated Great New England Air Show was Westover ARB in Chicopee. Saturday was a bust because of Tropical Storm Hanna. Sunday morning, a scare rocked the show as "Shockwave", a jet propelled truck crashed during its performance. Luckily the driver walked away.
I arrived just in time to catch the 2pm Thunderbirds show. As usual, they did not disappoint.
The Thunderbirds show went on for about an hour. The six Lockheed Martin F-16 fighter jets made several manuvers during the performance.
"The Diamond"
The kids in the audience, including my daughter, loved the thundering roar of these mighty fighter jets
All of the images for the 2008 Great New England Air Show can be find here.
I arrived just in time to catch the 2pm Thunderbirds show. As usual, they did not disappoint.
The Thunderbirds show went on for about an hour. The six Lockheed Martin F-16 fighter jets made several manuvers during the performance.
"The Diamond"
The kids in the audience, including my daughter, loved the thundering roar of these mighty fighter jets
All of the images for the 2008 Great New England Air Show can be find here.
Saturday, August 30, 2008
Holyoke Fireworks
Better late than never. Friday night, Holyoke finally had their Fourth of July fireworks display at Holyoke Community College. The festivities got underway promptly at 8:30pm.
About midway through the show, a light rain began to fall on the crowd of about 2,000.
The show lasted about thirty minutes and just in time as the skies opened up five minutes later.
The rest of the photos can be viewed at http://www.suspended-time-photo.com/gallery/5831172_RdNvX
About midway through the show, a light rain began to fall on the crowd of about 2,000.
The show lasted about thirty minutes and just in time as the skies opened up five minutes later.
The rest of the photos can be viewed at http://www.suspended-time-photo.com/gallery/5831172_RdNvX
Sunday, July 6, 2008
Springfield Fireworks
As usual, the Grucci Brothers did a fantastic job with the Springfield Fireworks. MassMutual sponsored this years festivities. I started off at the Bondi's Island boat ramp. After a few minutes I relocated to the pumping station on the south side of the Memorial Bridge. I was soon joined by a handful of families. We all had a fantastic view of the Memorial Bridge.
At about 9 o'clock not a soul could be seen on the Memorial Bridge. Exactly at 9:30, the fireworks were fired off.
Unfortunately, after this next shot, the smoke became too thick and I had to stop shooting. It had been windy most of the day and shortly before the show started, the wind died down.
Thursday, May 15, 2008
Bash Bish Falls
Today, I decided to take a much needed day off from work and the family and I took a trip to Bash Bish Falls. After a two hour drive, and a nice walk to the falls, we were greeted with the amazing waterfall
If you are considering taking a trip to Bash Bish Falls, it is well worth the trip. Lighting is best in the afternoon. I plan on taking another trip to the falls this fall.
If you are considering taking a trip to Bash Bish Falls, it is well worth the trip. Lighting is best in the afternoon. I plan on taking another trip to the falls this fall.
Sunday, April 27, 2008
Air Force One
On Friday, April 25, Bradley International Airport in Windsor Locks, CT was buzzing with activity. Air Force One was set to touch down at 10:30am.
I arrived at the airport around 9am and began looking for a location to shoot. Naturally Secret Service and the Connecticut State Police had a tight grip on everything. After searching for about 45 minutes, I finally found a spot to shoot on the northwest side of the runway. Perfect sun for a Runway 6 landing.
The first jet to land after I arrived was a Southwest Boeing 737.
A few more jets landed and took off. Finally around 10:10am, air traffic control began talking with "Air Force One". Five minutes later, they initiated a ground stop for "VIP traffic in the area". All planes were ordered to circle the airport, keeping a distance of 20 miles. Bradley International Airport Fire Department began lining the runway and the Secret Service made their way out.
At 10:25, Air Traffic Control said the magic words
The rest of the photos of Air Force One can be found on my website at http://www.suspended-time-photo.com/gallery/4798931_4VMzp
I arrived at the airport around 9am and began looking for a location to shoot. Naturally Secret Service and the Connecticut State Police had a tight grip on everything. After searching for about 45 minutes, I finally found a spot to shoot on the northwest side of the runway. Perfect sun for a Runway 6 landing.
The first jet to land after I arrived was a Southwest Boeing 737.
A few more jets landed and took off. Finally around 10:10am, air traffic control began talking with "Air Force One". Five minutes later, they initiated a ground stop for "VIP traffic in the area". All planes were ordered to circle the airport, keeping a distance of 20 miles. Bradley International Airport Fire Department began lining the runway and the Secret Service made their way out.
At 10:25, Air Traffic Control said the magic words
"Air Force One cleared to land Runway 6".Seconds later a Boeing 747 could be seen through my viewfinder. Just before 10:30, Air Force One touched down on Runway 6 and used the taxiway about 300' in front of me.
The rest of the photos of Air Force One can be found on my website at http://www.suspended-time-photo.com/gallery/4798931_4VMzp
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