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Re: [OM] Olympics Update, fireworks questions & suggested get together.

Subject: Re: [OM] Olympics Update, fireworks questions & suggested get together.
From: "John A. Lind" <jlind@xxxxxxxxxxx>
Date: Sat, 30 Sep 2000 12:40:34 +0000
At 10:28 9/30/00 , you wrote:
>Set the 2sp on auto, use exposure compensation to underexpose between 1 and
>2 stops. Closer to 1. The amount you select depends upon the amount of black
>background sky there is. I used this for our local fireworks. Make sure the
>batteries are good, as long exposures can eat batteries. Those should be
>fine.
>
>Foxy
>
>----- Original Message -----
>Tomorrow it all ends with a big bang, a bigger bang than was put on for
>the millenium NYE celebrations last year. Which leads to a question
>(which I'm sure is answered in the archives somewhere, but danged if I
>can find a summary): what do our expert firworks photographers prefer in
>terms of film, and what is a suggested starting point in terms of
>exposure?

The "standard" method for shooting night fireworks against a dark sky is
done manually and doesn't worry much about shutter speed.  Basic exposure
is set by aperture.  Use a sturdy tripod, cable release, and put the
shutter speed on "B."  Focal lengths between a modest wide-angle to a
modest telephoto (between 35mm and 70mm) usually work best.  My favorites
are the 35mm and the 50mm.  Whether you aim upward to rid yourself of
bright ground lighting is up to you.  I generally aim to eliminate bright
ground lighting, especially close ones (street lights, etc.).

Set aperture based on film speed:
   ISO          Aperture
   64-100       f/8
  125-200       f/11
  250-400       f/16
I don't recommend anything faster than ISO 200.  ISO 64-100 seems to work best.

Hold the shutter open during no more than several bursts, and no longer
than about 8-10 seconds.  If you get too many in a single frame it will be
cluttered.  There is an element of luck in this as sky rockets are somewhat
unpredictable, even if you know in advance what they will use.

These are based on Kodak's recommended methods, those used by others, and
what has worked well for me in the past.

-- John

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