How to capture all the action of Firework Night

As Firework Night approaches, the excitement of amazing colours scattering across the sky starts to build, but capturing these fast moving and bright moments can be tricky. With so many types of firework, moving in so many different ways, it’s hard to know how to position your camera and which settings to choose. It’s also a great time to get experimental with filters and modes, so we’ve put together some top tips to help you shoot the annual displays.

Planning: make sure you’ve got all the kit you’ll need ready before hand. There’s nothing worse than running out of battery just as you’re about to take your perfect shot!

• Use a tripod – this will reduce camera shake
• Take an extra battery – you may be outside for a while and some filters and modes will drain your battery quicker than normal. You could also use this for long exposures.
• Use a wide angle lens (try to get a sense of scale by including a building or person too)

Camera settings: preparing your camera before you leave can be a big help – you don’t want to be adjusting settings you’ve never used before in the pitch black!

• Set your sensitivity low and use a low ISO, such as 200 or less
• See your camera to manual mode with an aperture of around F8 to F16
• Use manual focus if you can, and focus just beyond infinity
• Turn on noise reduction but turn off long exposure reduction

Burst mode with a really slow shutter speed is the best. Depending on how dark it is, try 10 seconds per firework or 4K Photo for longer displays.

• Turn your flash off!

When you arrive: getting a good viewpoint may sound obvious but it’s important and can easily be overlooked. If it’s going to get busy, maybe look for higher ground and stay away from bonfires!

• Do a walk round of the site – where looks best? Have you considered wind direction?
• You want to avoid smoke, so shoot most of your shots at the beginning of the show, before the smoke builds

Finally…

The best tip is to practice and experiment! Why not try a long exposure shot of writing your name in sparklers, or practising with a few garden fireworks first! There may be more than one display locally to you, so look around and try to get as much practice as you can! For more information on the Lumix and Lumix G range and how 4K Photo can help you capture the perfect moment, click here.

© 'Lumix' firework image copyright belongs to Michael Topham, Amateur Photographer. To visit their website, please click here.