Taking photographs of fireworks is fun and relatively simple.

Last night I brought my camera, 70-200 lens and a tripod out to see the fireworks from South Hampton Middle school in Bel Air, with my family. I setup my camera to shoot in “bulb” mode (which means the shutter stays open for as long as my finger is depressing the shutter, and shuts as soon as I let off), ISO 100 and f/11. Set the lens to manual focus and waited for the show to start.

Once the first few projectiles hit the sky, I could then point the camera in the right direction and get my focus set. At that point, it was just a matter of holding down the shutter for as long as one, two, or several explosions appear in the sky. If your camera doesn’t have “bulb” mode, set your exposure time long (4-10 seconds).

I know there are many cities and towns shooting fireworks off tonight, Saturday, July 5th — so there is still time for you to try this out for yourself, rather than having to wait a whole year.

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