Fireworks Day 2! [ Northern Virginia Photographer ]

The last post showed my fireworks pictures from our first round on Saturday.  I didn’t expect to go to a fireworks showing that evening so I had my old camera and no tripod – essentially “winging” it!  Still – I really enjoyed a couple of the photos which I posted here yesterday.  That’s the great thing about photography is that a single picture can capture not only the beauty of the moment – but can encapsulate the emotions felt during that moment surrounded by family and excitement.

Last night, during our second round of fireworks displays, I decided to be a bit more serious in my pursuit for good fireworks photography.  That meant lugging out the tripod and the newer equipment.  It also meant I had to get over my fears of feeling silly carrying around a big camera and tripod among the group of friends and family.  Luckily, many of them already knew me and were not surprised a bit!

This time I set up the camera with a low ISO (to capture great color), high f-stop setting and slow shutter speed (many between 8 and 10 seconds). The slow shutter also allowed multiple fireworks to overlap one another in the same frame.

I was so pleased with the results.  It was a different feel than the shots the night before – less silhouetting of the crowd, more color, longer streaks of light.  I like both sets for different reasons, regardless of which are more technically correct…a testament to not being afraid to experiment.  Know the basics and then experiment a bit to really learn the type of control you have over the results.  This was so fun!

I’d love to see your fireworks shots!  If you’ve got a blog and posted some shots of  your own please feel free to link in the comments section and share what you captured on this amazing night in celebration of our freedom!

Happy Independence Day!