It's bonfire night, and without a doubt one of those occasions where we all take to our cameras and smartphones in search of the perfect photo to upload to the gram to show off to all of our friends. Let's be honest, if you didn't upload a photo of some pretty colours in the sky, were you even at a firework display?
Whilst smartphones aren't any replacement for high end cameras, you can still take what would have been a mediocre photo and push things to the next level just with a little bit of planning and a few accessories.
So this week, I wanted to let you all in to a few tricks of the trade, and some that I very much use myself, when it comes to photographing fireworks.
Just like any recipe you follow, you need to start off with a few ingredients, so let's start off with what you'll need...
A smartphone - duh!
Camera App: Your smartphone's default camera app is a good starting point. However, there are several third-party camera apps available that offer manual controls, which can be very handy for fireworks photography. Consider apps like Camera+ or ProCamera.
Fully Charged Battery: Fireworks shows can be longer than you might think, and you don't want your phone to run out of juice when the grand finale begins. Taking photos in any capacity on either a smartphone or a camera is quite battery intensive so make sure you're fully charged up!
Storage Space: Clear some space on your phone by offloading older photos or apps you no longer use. You'll want plenty of space to store those fireworks snapshots. You'll need even more space if you decide to throw a few videos into the mix too!
Tripod or Stabilization: While not essential, a mini tripod or smartphone tripod attachment can help keep your phone steady for those long-exposure shots.
Now you've got all the ingredients, it's time to start planning your shot and thinking like ahead like a photographer.
Let's start off by thinking about safety. Before you even start setting up, let's not forget fireworks are of course rockets, bonfires are incredibly hot and dangerous, and you want to be stood somewhere safe and out of harms way. You definitely don't want to get in the way of the person letting off the fireworks and if you are setting up a tripod, let's make sure its in a place where it isn't likely to be a trip hazard.
Sometimes its helpful to arrive a little earlier than everyone else, to make sure you get the perfect position. Ideally you want to be thinking about what's in the background of your shot and any obstructions that might get in the way. Yes it will be dark, but things like street lights, trees and of course other people can ruin the perfect shot. Plan ahead!
Now onto your phones camera settings...
Smartphone photography has come an incredibly long way and with every new generation of smartphone, generally the flagship feature that every manufacturer talks about is the camera. The difference between a good photographer and a poor one is knowing how to make the best of those features though, so there are a few things you can tweak to ramp up those pictures.
HDR (High Dynamic Range): Turn on HDR mode to capture more detail in your photos, especially if the fireworks are against a dark night sky! To put it simply, when your phone is in HDR mode, it will take several photos in rapid succession at various different exposures (Exposure being the measure of light which goes into your camera). Once the phone has taken those images, they're automatically merged together to create a photo with as much detail as possible.
Flash: Flash is a massive no no when it comes to photographing fireworks. Not only will it wind everyone up who is also in attendance by illuminating the area, it'll also do nothing for your photo. Flash can be brilliant to illuminate things close to the lens at night, but not when it comes to flashes of colour high up in the sky a good distance away from your camera. FLASH OFF!
Burst mode: It's no secret that fireworks are for want of a better word.... fast. So burst mode can give you the flexibility to chose from a number of photos taken in quick succession. Sometimes having HDR on can cause problems with this, so balance the pros and cons of having each setting enabled, as you may not be able to use both HDR and burst mode.
Avoid Zooming in! No matter if you're shooting with a phone or a proper camera, low light photography is incredibly challenging and difficult to master. Zooming in manually, amplifies the problem and can lead to noisy and grainy photos. It's always better to crop in your finished photo when editing, rather than zooming in directly!
Shoot RAW where possible! On some higher end smartphones in the settings you might have the option to shoot "RAW". Without going into too much detail, a RAW file is lossless, meaning it captures uncompressed data from your camera sensor. Sometimes referred to as a digital negative, you can think of a RAW file as the raw “ingredients” of a photo that will need to be processed in order to bring out the picture's full potential. You have a lot more control over the final photo when shooting in RAW, but it can be confusing to wrap your head around,
The fireworks have all gone, you're back home in the warm, and you've got a camera roll full of photos. Before we go any further though, there's still a few little tweaks we can make by editing the photo to really bring them to life. Most modern smartphones will have the option to edit your photo built in, so have a play with the following settings to really take things to the next level...
Brightness and Contrast: Adjust these settings to enhance the overall look of your picture. Playing with these settings help change the tone and mood of your photo to get the best mix of vibrancy and colour.
Filters: Some photo editing apps offer filters that can add a touch of magic to your firework images. Pre made filters are good if you feel a little daunted by making changes yourself, and if you don't feel like spending hours editing each and every photo.
Colour Correction: Tweak the colours to make those bursts even more vibrant. Playing with things like saturation and vibrancy in your chosen app are another simple change you can make to enhance your photo.
Sharpness: Use a sharpening tool to make the details of the fireworks pop, some photos might appear soft and lack detail, so bringing your sharpness up, can reveal parts of your photo you didn't even know were there!
So, there you have it! Armed with your smartphone and a few tips, you're ready to become a fireworks photography pro. Remember, the key to great fireworks photos is to have fun and enjoy the spectacle. Capture the magic, share your images, and relive those captivating bursts of light over and over again. Happy snapping, and may your photos sparkle as bright as the fireworks themselves!
Peace, Love and Photos.
Jono x
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