With the New Year coming up I’m sure that most of us will see some kind of firework on New Year’s Eve. Firework displays can have the capacity to woo or disappoint your audience depending on a few things.
1. Composition
2. Light
3. Focus
As in all photos, these elements assist in making a great photo possible. Here is a breakdown

Composition – Composing a fireworks display image is usually not as easy as you think. Questions you need to think about are:
1. How high will they go? - Get yourself a nice perspective of the show. This includes the background and foreground composition as well. Wide angles on a landmark work wonderfully in this situation.
2. Have I got foreground distractions? - Watch out for people in front of you, if you have a chance to get higher get higher to rid people from your foreground (unless you want them).

Light – Fireworks are bright! They amaze you when one of those big rockets goes off. The light balance that you have, between ambient and the fireworks display can make or break an image. Know how much light you have to deal with otherwise you won’t be able to set your shutter settings. Remember that fireworks let off light too so subjects close to the fireworks will get a glow from them.

Focus – Don't go into this with a handheld camera, you won’t capture anything. It's imperative that you grab the tripod as you walk out the door.
What do I need?
1. A camera with manual control
2. A tripod
3. A range of lenses depending on your “artistic flare”
4. A remote shutter release cable (optional)
Remember to get there a little earlier than others to get your-self a good spot. An overview location is best as you don’t want a photo of black sky with a little bit of firework in it.

Ok I’m here, what next?
Get setup! The earlier you are setup the less you have to rush. Remember that the fireworks aren’t going to wait for you!
1. Get your camera on the tripod and connect your cable release
2. Ensure that your camera is secure and free from wobbly legs, drunken yobbos’ (antsan) or kids running around; we don't want a broken camera do we?
3. Check your cameras settings and set it to mirror lockup. This locks the mirror up so that the mirror slap (when the mirror hits the focus screen) won’t shake your photos about.
4. Set your camera to manual.
5. Set your focus to infinity and to manual.

What settings do I use?
The age old question… the answer is “Whatever you want!” I personally like a shortish exposure with fewer fireworks so I would use:
  • 4-8 seconds depending on the frequency of the bursts.
  • f5.6-f11 aperture
  • ISO 100-200


If it’s too dark, reduce your aperture or increase your shutter. This means from F11 to F8 to F5.6 or 4 seconds to 8 seconds to 10 seconds... etc. If it’s too light do the opposite.



Taking photos of fireworks can be rewarding and fun! The kids will love it and you get yourself some photos too!