Fireworks Photos

[VickynMickey]

Both of these were taken with a compact, resting on a railing. I adjusted the exposure slightly (the firework mode was next to useless) and they came out OK for a little camera (Canon Ixus 800) - well I was quite pleased anyway!

You just gave me hope. What did you have your ISO set on. And what was the exp. you set the camera on. I have a Canon Power Shot SD800IS and I am hoping to get some nice Firework shots. Thanks

 

[nbodyhome]

I have quite a few fireworks shots here: http://www.denisesfitnessblog.com/disney/84/pirates-and-princess-party

From the Pirates and Princess party. I just used my Canon digital camera, no tripod. I thought they came out great still!

 

[allie5]

Both were taken on an exposure of 1.6 sec (this and ISO are the only manual adjustments you can with this camera). I left the ISO on auto which was probably 400 for a shot like this?? Be warned I found using too high an ISO gives a noisy image - here is one of Wishes that looks OK on a first glance but suffers badly from noise. I found Wishes harder to shoot as you have to get the settings on the castle right (which changes colour!) as well as your exposure on the fireworks!

This was a (hand held) half second exposure on a high ISO setting. Ideally, I should have had a tripod, used a longer exposure and a lower ISO.

 

[nbodyhome]

I've tried many times to post a picture or two here, and I never seem to be able to. How does that work? Thanks!

 

[allie5]

I've tried many times to post a picture or two here, and I never seem to be able to. How does that work? Thanks!

Its pretty easy. First you need to post your pictures onto a webhosting service. Many people use photobucket, as its free, fast and reliable.

Simply register, then click "browse" to find your photos on your PC. Upload the picture you wish (or more than one if you want to) by clicking open then upload. When your photo is uploaded it will appear as a thumbnail with several options of code underneath - choose the bottom one with the

tags - copy it then paste into a post here and when you submit, Bob's yer preverbial uncle, and your photo will appear!

 

[Groucho]

Ok, so here is my question about this. I will try my hand on the 4th of July (if my town can afford fireworks) with fireworks photos before going to WDW in Nov. I have a cheaper tripod. I say cheaper because I have seen alot better and alot worse. It is fairly stable but not great. Is it worth dragging this into the park, or would I just be better to keep the camera placed on a hard surface of some sort?

Also, is there a real dependable tripod that won't break the bank? In a perfect world, I would want one that is very portable and stable. The one I have now only folds up to about 20" or so making it not so fun to lug around.

Andy

What kind of camera are we talking about here? Most point-n-shoots are pretty lightweight and will do OK on most any tripod. A DSLR will really benefit from a better tripod. Another option that most owners seem really happy with is a Gorillapod.

Now, back to the original thread - my talk of tripods doesn't mean that you shouldn't bother at all if you don't - you can still get a decent result with hand-holding. Here's a couple that I took with my old point-n-shoot Minolta Z5, 12x zoom, IS, 5mp.

I don't think they're too bad for just aiming and pressing the button (the camera didn't really "inspire" me so I wasn't trying very hard)... but I do think that a tripod can easily make the difference between a good fireworks photo and a great one. You'll also probably get a lot more "keepers".

 

[handicap18]

Ok, so here is my question about this. I will try my hand on the 4th of July (if my town can afford fireworks) with fireworks photos before going to WDW in Nov. I have a cheaper tripod. I say cheaper because I have seen alot better and alot worse. It is fairly stable but not great. Is it worth dragging this into the park, or would I just be better to keep the camera placed on a hard surface of some sort?

Also, is there a real dependable tripod that won't break the bank? In a perfect world, I would want one that is very portable and stable. The one I have now only folds up to about 20" or so making it not so fun to lug around.

Andy

Andy, I think with your S2 that you'll be fine for now with the tripod you have. For my Disney fireworks shots I carried around an $18 travel tripod I got at amazon. It folded down to about 14" and fit perfectly in my backpack and it held my D50 fine. Granted it only expanded to about 42" high when fully extended so its not really a bit one, but it works. They do have lockers you can rent for the day at all the parks. Just drop your tripod in a locker when you get to the park and go get it a few hours prior to wishes so you can get yourself a good spot.

As for the local fireworks. I got some good shots of the show in Onset last summer. Didn't have the best of spots as I didn't notice the 2 big trees infront of us right away and by the time I did realize it, it was too late. Our spot was just across the back end of Marc's on the grass near the gazabo. (sorry to everyone else reading this, but Andy and I are from the same town, though I don't live there anymore I still do visit)

Here are a few of the good ones. I didn't use the travel tripod, but the tripod I did use isn't an expensive one either. Probably similar to the one you have.

I think the best spot here would be on the hill just behind the Beachcomber in front of the Indian statue.

Just as an FYI to others reading. Here are 2 pics of the area I'm referring to in my home town. The fireworks are shot off from the far right of these pics.

Hope the info helps.

 

[Donald is #1]

Everyone who posted pictures:
Those are awesome shots! You have me convinced to spend every night taking fireworks photos during my trip!

 

[nbodyhome]

Its pretty easy. First you need to post your pictures onto a webhosting service. Many people use photobucket, as its free, fast and reliable.

Thank you!!!!!!! I have my photos online (on our site), but haven't figured it all out yet as far as posting here. But I'll try Photobucket and see how that works.

 

[AndrewWG]

Kyle,

Thanks. Good info for sure. We have a real good spot for the fireworks that I will be able to set up real nicely with a tripod. I bought a new one today anyways. It isn't an expensive super good one, but it is MUCH nicer than the one I had. In particular, it has the removable head (and came with a free extra one too) and is alot lighter and a little shorter when packed up (19.5" or so). It is a SUNPAK 200I UT. Seems like it will do the trick just fine as it takes cameras up to 4 lbs. The S2 with all accessories isn't near that. Real easy to use too. Overall, I am very pleased with the purchase. It was $20 on sale from $30 at the New England Flower Show. I'm sure I could get it for $20 online too, but hey, I was there and it was there, so I snagged it!

Looking forward to trying it out on those fireworks and other photos soon. Now, if this snow would just melt.... again!

Andy

 

[nbodyhome]

Yay, thank you for telling me about Photobucket!

I took these with my S2, no tripod or anything. These are from my site, I have others too that came out well (for a digital camera hand-held).

 

[jann1033]

best advertisement for using a tripod i know... Old film photo from our last trip when i didn't feel like getting my tripod out of the locker so no tripod, no IS or any fancy gadgets..this might be one where the kid by me kept kicking the fence i was resting my camera on..really helpful little kid I call this one..Snakes On Caffine

someone asked about none "breaking the bank" tripods..i just got one from giotto that so far i love and they have a huge variety of prices and some nice features i didn't see with some others for the same prices.

 

[sharon78]

Great thread.Fantastic photos.

DH brought a Cannon 400D just after christmas, (his first ever camera).
So he's very new to photography. He also hasnt had a chance to take any photos of fireworks yet, were going to WDW next month so this thread and the links will be very useful. He also brought a trypod to take with us. I dont think he'll be confident enough to use the camera on manual settings, however after he's read all this info and the links he might suprise me.