Can you believe this Saturday is the 4th of July?! Time to brush up on my picture-taking skills and to prove to David that, YES, I can take AMAZING firework photos! Ever wonder how photographers capture those amazing fireworks and sparkler photos? Well, wonder no more because here are my fool-proof tips!
Here is a little photo magic for your festive day to celebrate our country’s freedom!
WHAT YOU’LL NEED:
- Sparklers & lighter or matches
- DSLR camera or point-and-shoot camera
- Tripod or a flat, sturdy surface
- Friends & Family
WHAT TO DO:
- For Point & Shoot set camera to “night-scene” so you won’t have to make any f-stop or shutter adjustments. That’s WAY too fancy for me!
- For fancy people using DSLRs, set the camera to “manual” and if you are adventurous…
- Adjust your aperture to 16 and your ISO to 1000.
- Your shutter speed (non-flash photo) should be about 3 seconds to capture the sparkler’s light and your friends.
- Or… you can use S for “Shutter Preferred” mode – allows you to tell the camera to set everything else…except the shutter speed.
- Ok once settings are set, place your camera on a tripod or flat surface as any movement of the camera will affect the outcome of your picture. Trust me on this one!
- Now for some sparklin’ fun! Make a design or spell something out like USA (need to spell backwards!) then push down the shutter release and have your friends & family start drawing (slow-thicker line vs. quick-thinner line) their desired design in the air with their sparkler and do it as many times while the shutter stays open.
- If the exposure doesn’t look right, then try adjusting the shutter speed—specifically, increase it if the pictures are too bright; conversely, decrease it if the pictures are too dark.” Note: here’s hoping David agrees to this photo—let love shine as we celebrate 18 wonderful years this Sunday!
