Fireworks from the SONY

[DonSchap]

Okay ... the base image of the piece (below) was taken with the SONY A100 and the TAMRON 18-250mm f/3.5-6.3 lens, last year. The A700 had not been released, at the time (that occured in September, 2007), so even with just a 10.2 MP sensor ... you can have some fun. :D

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July 3rd and July 4th, the fun begins, again ... as we all set up the ol' tripod, release cables and 1-second exposures.

Good luck and let's see what you get.

[Rooz]

some funny stuff going on in that photo on my monitor.

[lukeap69]

in my monitor too.

[Viky]

mine too:confused:

[dr4gon]

Oh great, you posted your fireworks! I was going to ask for some suggestions.

You think the 70-300mm would be better for some tight close up pictures or the 17-50mm?

And should I use something like f/8 and use a shutter release and open the lens when it starts and close it when it finishes?

the original picture is in the official fireworks 2007 thread, lol.....

[DonSchap]

Well ... that was a "solarized" or "black light" version of a shot I snapped, so ... "there is nothing wrong with your Television. Do not attempt to adjust the picture. We are now controlling the transmission. We control the horizontal ... and the vertical. We can delude you with a thousand channels, or expand one single image to crystal clarity ... and beyond. We can shape your vision to anything our imagination can conceive. We will control all that you see and hear ..." (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2I7vPbthvWo)(<- click on link)

@ dr4gon: the wider lens assures you will have gotten it all, because otherwise, you will be trying to steer your telephoto lens in all different directions, trying to keep up with the show. There's no time for that. You have to hold still, usually for a 1/2 second, to get the expansion. Longer and it tends to look a little strange, shorter ... and it closes prematurely. Tripod is the best way, in my experience. The best you can get out of a stabilized anything is around 1/15th second. That won't cut it with fireworks.

Tonight, wide-shooting is in vogue ... and left on the tripod, depending on your distance, about 18mm-35mm should do fine. Cropping will be key, afterwards.

Here's 28mm, at 1/3-mile away ... that I monkeyed around with ...

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EXIF: 28mm - f/4.5 - 1/2 sec - ISO-200 - Manual - Fireworks lighting (Remember, this is an incenduary. A lot more yellow in it ... so Kelvin will be lower.)

[DonSchap]

Then a crop ... can be cool, too ... because, you cannot control where in the sky it will fly!

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[DonSchap]

This year, just for fun, I'm going to try a couple with the Cokin Filter System, like the "starburst", "cosmos", "radial zoom", "diffusion" and, of course, the "multi-image" optical filters, on the front of the cameras (A100 and A700). I took this from the monitor ... to kind of see what might happen ...

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Should be a real mess. LOL You folks put up the normal stuff.

I 've also got twin releases and two tripods, so I can trip both cameras at the same time, for a kind of unnatural stereoscopic side-by-side exposure. That should give it some depth.

Again, it is all about field of view ... and timing! The shots I took, last year, were from about 1/3 mile - 1/2 mile away. As a show, most people would have hated it ... but, from the camera's vantage point ... it was awesome ... at 28mm. Had I been closer ... it would have tilted the camera higher ... and I would have needed to go wider, so 17mm or 18mm might have been the order of the day.

I am bringing the SIGMA 10-20mm f/4.5-5.6, just to see what I can see ... and who knows, depending on where we wind up (she wants to be a lot closer, this year - LOL), it may just be a "sky-filler."

[DonSchap]

In fact ... since I'm on a roll ... LOL

Here's a relatively cheap "fixed" wide-angle solution I have employed in the past. It takes a Minolta 28mm f/2.8 standard wide-angle lens ... and adds a Phoenix x0.45 digital lens to the front of it, thereby making the 28mm an UWA 13mm f/3.3 (effectively a 21mm w/ the APS-C sensor's crop factored in)

Park that combo atop a tripod and half the sky is your playground. Distortion? Who cares? It's fireworks! The prevailing wind gives you more distortion than the darn lens does!

The "wide" 0.45x digital lens (effectively a filter) is only around $75 ... which just beats the snot out of having to spring for a $500 UWA. It's base aperature (f/3.3 when mounted on a f/2.8) is also wider than 90% of the zoom UWAs available. So lots-o-light gathering capability (psst, better ISO for color saturation)

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There isn't a P&S out there that can compete with what this can do.

If you are not making money at this ... believe me, this is the way to go. ;)

[seanhoxx]

Thanks Don for the Outer Limits flashback, now the question is who all is old enough to remember watching it on a black and white T.V. ?
Sometime when you have a moment "I know it's a busy weekend for lots of folks" would you tell me how you do the "solarized" shots, is it in P.P. ? I haven't even begain to play around with that yet.
and what about a I/R photo could that then be "solarized? what would the effect be?
Sean

[DonSchap]

Okay ... this is done with Photoshop ... under menu bar selection "Filter" > "Stylize" > "Solarize"

Enjoy.

[cdifoto]

some funny stuff going on in that photo on my monitor.

in my monitor too.

mine too:confused:
I think it's the radiation from that UFO taking off just above the bottom right tree.

[dr4gon]

Thanks for all that advice, one last question, what should I set the focus to and what should I focus on? Infinity?

And you think DRO on or off for these? (probably won't matter?)

I'll have to mess with it I'm sure, but just want to be as close as possible.

[DonSchap]

I recommend you go with Manual Focus (MF), because you do not want the camera trying to focus while you are snapping the shot.

Initially, during the shoot, focus to near infinity ... then check the resulting exposure with your magnification button for sharpness. Adjust as necessary ... very very slightly. After a few detonations, you should be ranged in.

Once you have it set ... refrain from touching the lens at all. Even a small piece of electrical or gaffer's tape on the focus ring and zoom ring might be a good idea to limit "lens creep" from any vibration to the tripod or from the camera's shutter. Don't forget to take your release with you. You probably should shut off "SSS" (Super SteadyShot) while on the tripod, to avoid feedback shutter since there is no movement to correct from your hand.

DRO probably won't make any difference unless there is something else in the shot. Personally, I'd shut it off.

Most of this will be automatic, once you get those settings locked in. Just get your timing right and have fun.

Good luck on your shoot.

[dr4gon]

Sweet thanks, there's a show nearby tonight, but it's supposed to be a big one, so we'll see how close I can get.

[DonSchap]

With all the beautiful colors that the fireworks display provided ...

http://i147.photobucket.com/albums/r289/donschap/holiday%20images/_DSC5677-sRGB.jpg


I decided to throw in a few dozen ice cubettes ... stir them in and see what fell out.

Well, here it is:
http://i147.photobucket.com/albums/r289/donschap/strange%20art/twirl-extrude-acented-edges--firewo.jpg

[DonSchap]

I wound up taking this image and making it my background ... it does display the colors really nicely.


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But, as nice as it looks ... the monitor just doesn't have the power to be really tightly color-managed. Soooo, what do you say ... off to CDW to get the $1000 beauty, the NEC MultiSync 2490WUXI 24" LCD (CDW # 1132162) (http://www.cdw.com/shop/products/default.aspx?EDC=1132162), to get some "professional" looking results?

[re.ac.tor]

stole it for my wallpaper too!! 'ppreciate that!

re.ac.tor :D