Wednesday is my FAVORITE holiday, the Fourth of July!  This means firework displays!  Fireworks are beautiful, but its very challenging to capture that beauty and feeling in a photograph.  I've listed a few tips below to help you get great firework images this Independence Day.  I'd love to see your images, so please send me your favorite shots and I'll share them on my Facebook Page!

Turn of Your Flash - The goal of photographing fireworks is to capture the color and sparkle.  Using a flash just adds more light and will take away the brilliance of the firework, so make sure that flash is off.  

Use a Tripod - a tripod will keep your camera steady and allow you to use longer exposures which allows more light to enter the camera, and capturing more of that sparkle and light from the firework.

Manual Settings of Scene Selector - You should change your settings to Manual, if your camera has the capability.  A good place to start is ISO 100, f11, and 1/2 of a second (make sure you have a tripod).  Now you can adjust your aperture until you are happy with the exposure.  If your camera does not have manual settings it may have a firework setting under the scene selector.  For the best results you should still use a tripod.

Anticipate the Explosion - The goal is to capture the firework at it's peak explosion.  To do this you'll need to push that shutter button before the firework explodes.  If using a point and shoot camera you may need to allow for a little extra time for the camera to focus and pull the shutter.

Composition - Don't just take close up photographs, be sure to also include the foreground and scenery in the setting where you're watching.

I hope these tips help you capture some amazing images!  Please leave any questions you have in the comments section and I'll respond for others to read and learn.  If you have any images you'd like to share on my Facebook page please email them to me at jnico[email protected] I can't wait to see your amazing photographs!