Fireworks are one of my favourite types of photo opp.
I've never been to Blackpool (don't drive
) but I've seen some excellent pictures from there over the years especially from the beach.
I'm looking forward to the
British Musical Fireworks Championships in Southport at the end of the month. I've been going for 8 or more years and it is an excellent opportunity to refine your Fireworks technique over the 3 days of the Championships.
Don't do what I did last year though and forget your tripod plate. :bonk:
A tripod, a camera, and no way to put them together. Ended up with some wonky picture after resting the camera on my bag.
Here are the settings I use.
What you will need -
Camera - batteries charged memory cards empty
Tripod
Remote Control (should you have one)
Torch
Wear warm clothes.
Camera Settings
Lowest ISO
Manual Mode
5 - 6 second exposure; I find 5-6 seconds gives time for a firework to rise into the air and explode. You can sometimes see the faint trail of the fireworks rising, and if set to music can anticipate the larger fireworks.
f11-f16 maybe higher. Including any interesting scenery such as buildings, bridges etc can add interest, and it is a good idea to set your exposure for the object before the start if it is lit.
White Balance - Tungsten/Incandescent or set for any artificial light in your scene
Flash set to off
The remote control setting on your camera or the Self Timer setting
Get there early to find a location. Be aware that when the crowds arrive you may have trouble with people knocking your tripod, so find somewhere with space if possible. Make note of the wind direction, you don't want the smoke going into your face.
Try to be familiar with how to change your camera settings before the event as trying to change things in the dark can be stressful, which is why the torch can be useful.
I focus on the 1st explosion, or any practise explosions. Some say set the lens to infinity but I've had soft results when the fireworks were quite a distance away. I normally leave a bit of space at the top of the frame for the higher explosions they tend to throw in, but then most of your fireworks will only cover a small part of your image, it's up to you to decide how you want to frame the explosions. If you zoom in or out, I'd focus again. Check your exposure after the first few explosions using the aperture to let more or less light in. If you are under exposing set a wider Aperture (lower f number). If you are over exposing set a smaller Aperture (higher f number).
If it is a timed display and you know it is coming to an end, maybe because it is set to music, then shut the aperture down 2-3 stops or reduce the shutter length as they tend to throw everything up into the air at the end and you may end up with a big white blob as too many explosions over expose.
Here's a few of mine from last year in Southport.
