Why I do what I do and why I still do it.
I’ve been setting off fireworks longer than I’ve been using a camera. Those that know me, know I used to shoot commercial fireworks in Alaska. Photographing fireworks was a natural progression.
Shooting fireworks is simpler than you think.
No, you cannot get good shots of fireworks by hand holding the camera. You need a tripod. Most exposures will be a few seconds or more. I have a method where I accumulate ‘several sets’ of several seconds onto a single frame which I will explain in a moment.
Because of the long exposures, you will need a camera capable of being left ‘open’ until you decide to end the exposure. Many cheap digital cameras do not have a ‘manual exposure mode’ allowing you to do this.
Most digital cameras have a ‘fireworks’ exposure setting and that will work in a crunch.
Exposure
If you are leaving the shutter open the entire time, the only variable left to control expose IS the F Stop on the lens. It determines how much light strikes the film or sensor during an ‘open’ exposure. The F Stop is directly related to the ISO (or film speed) set on the camera.
This is a critical point. High ISO numbers are NOT needed. They actually work against you by reducing color saturation and induce heavy grain on a digital camera.
Fireworks by their vary nature are a ‘spectral’ light source. To render them as brightly as you see them with your naked eye, they need a black or very dark background. Most light meters try to set an average exposure to record an average scene. Fireworks are NOT average.
I never use a light meter to set exposure.
It’s not needed and will simply get in the way. Bright fireworks will almost always force your light meter to underexpose the scene. The only exception IS the Fireworks exposure mode available on some digital cameras. You could play with that, but I find it problematic.
Another point about most digital cameras- Very long, extended exposures will often produce pixel ‘hot spots’. A few pixels will always be more sensitive than the rest (as well as a few dark ones). This issue with digital sensors only shows up with very long time exposures.
To compensate for these issues, most cameras will take a second ‘dark’ compensation exposure and subtract it from the main exposure to assist in eliminating artifacts. 
Unfortunately, this happens while you are trying to shoot fireworks which seldom lasts more than a few minutes. Obviously, you will miss quite a bit of the show while the camera is running this second exposure, plus the time it takes for the camera’s little computer to subtract the two before it ‘frees-up’ your camera to take the next shot.
Not a good thing!
More advanced cameras have the ability to turn this second ‘dark’ compensation exposure ‘off or on’. It’s your call. It is possible to get very beautiful fireworks shots from a digital camera, if you take the time to learn your gear.
Did I mention long time exposures eat up your battery as does the 2nd compensation exposure? It IS on the whole time you are shooting so start with a fresh one.
Basically, the correct exposure for fireworks is a balance between the ISO (or film speed) and the F Stop setting on the lens. I have a very basic set of values I committed to memory, depending on the ambient or ‘junk’ light on the ground.
A second issue with fireworks is with the Finale of the show. A typical American style fireworks show starts with aerial shells going off sporadically for several minutes building to a barrage of shells at the end, whether the show is set to music or not. Because of the huge number of aerial shells going off near the end, I always cut the F Stop back by at least 1 stop, sometimes 2. Plus at this point, I only allow a second or 2 for each frame.
This chart is for shooting color negative film like you would buy at drug store.
Drop it by an F stop if you are shooting slide film or digital. Results will vary with digital. Not all image sensors are created the same. Tested ISO numbers for a few digital camera models are some times ‘hotter’ than stated by the manufacturer. You would need to set the F stop even lower under those conditions.
⦁ ISO 100– 1st part of show- F 5.6
Finale– F8.0 to F11
⦁ ISO 200– 1st part of show- F 8.0
Finale– F11.0 to F16
⦁ ISO 400– 1st part of show- F 11.0
Finale– F16.0 to F22
These values are predicated on shooting from ‘normal’ safe spectator distances. If you find yourself standing off at a greater distance, bump the exposure ‘UP’ (via the F stop) by about 1/2 to a full stop. The brightness does not change with distance, but you will not see any of the more subtle fireworks details either.
As mentioned earlier, most shows in the US start off slow. Too slow.
What I like to do is open the shutter, but hold a black card in front of the lens to prevent any exposure until I see a shell shot into the air. I pull the card away and count one thousand one, one thousand two.. until the aerial shells stop coming and put the card back in front of the lens. Then when I see another shell shot pop from the mortar, I remove the card and continue to count until I have accumulated about 10 to 20 seconds or half a dozen shell bursts. If the exposure starts to ‘feel’ too long, like I might be getting too much ambient light accumulation, I’ll close the shutter by releasing the cable release set-screw and advance to the next frame.
The black card is not needed once the Finale starts.
My favorite material for the card is a piece of matte black foam sheet like they sell in craft departments, but anything black will work.
All of my fireworks images were created this way.
Lens choices-
Because of public safety issues, most fireworks are viewed at a distance so a moderately wide angle lens works best. On a full frame or 35mm camera that works out to 28mm or 24mm (my favorite focal length). On an APS/C digital camera, that would be somewhere between 19mm and 16mm. The closer you get, the wider the lens needs to be. Especially if you want any of the ground in the frame.
I like to include a little of the foreground in my shot if I can. It helps to establish scale. Something that is usually missing from amateur shots.
Focus issues- This is also when you want to lock the focus at infinity and forget it.
The last thing you want is for your camera to spend time hunting for a focus point in the dark. I typically set focus a ‘smidge’ back from infinity and tape it so it won’t creep. Not something I want to be fiddling with in near total darkness.
You did bring a tiny flashlight, right?
Over the years, I mostly used an Olympus OM-1 with a 24mm lens taped to infinity like the one in the photo. These can be had for under $100 on eBay or CraigsList. A good used 28mm lens will set you back about $60 or $100 for a 24mm. There are many other manual exposure capable cameras out there, but make sure it has a mechanical shutter or you will still find you need batteries to make it work.
You will also need a cable release so you can hold the camera shutter ‘open’ and release its little set-screw when it’s time to close the shutter and advance to the next frame.
The set of three shots was taken with a Fuji 690 GSW III roll film camera. It shoots a 6cm by 9cm frame. It is strictly a mechanical camera with no light meter built in. But it has a fantastic 65mm lens F5.6… basically the equivalent of a 28mm on the 35mm format. The large image of downtown Anchorage was shot in February of the Anchorage Fur Rendezvous fireworks show on a very old 4 by 5 monorail view camera equipped with a 90mm Super Angulon lens. It was damned cold that night and I only pulled about 6 frames before my hands turned numb. I did add the 4×5 mask in Photoshop but it was shot on 4×5 film with only minor cropping.
To summarize:
Fireworks are best photographed with a camera mounted to a tripod where the shutter can be left open (using a cable release). Exposure is adjusted via the F Stop versus the ISO setting (or film speed). High ISO is a bad idea. An exposure accumulation of 2 to 30 seconds is needed, depending on the number of shells shot and allowing for any ambient light that might be present. A wide-angle lens set to infinity works very well. All done from a sturdy tripod. Oh… don’t forget a little flashlight too.
Barring the above recommendations, use the ‘Fireworks’ setting on your digital camera if all else fails.
These methods have served me well for over 30 years. Best of luck!
Update: Minor tweaks to F stop info were suggested by JL Whedbee, Thanx.
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