Picture Perfect Pyrotechnics By Linda Ray Waco’s annual Fourth on the Brazos celebration attracts more than 15,000 people to the downtown area. The free event features live music, patriotic ceremonies and the HEB Fireworks Extravaganza. Most of the 15,000 spectators will not only enjoy the fireworks with family and friends, but will attempt to capture the moment on film... okay, not film, but “capture the moment on memory card” does not have the same ring to it. Before you go rushing onto the lawn of Indian Springs Park with family and camera in tow, there are a few tips and tricks that will help your photographs go from “what happened” to “Wow!” There are three categories to keep in mind. First: location, location, location. Second: camera and equipment. Third: camera settings. Location. That grassy knoll where a majority of the 15,000 is camped is NOT the best spot for fabulous photographs. Gazing up at a 60 to 90 degree angle is not the optimum position for pyrotechnic viewing or photographing for posterity. So, where do you go? Spend some time before the show scoping out locations that would pro-
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vide the best perspective of the fireworks; the bursts should be about 30 degrees from the ground. You do NOT want to be exactly below them. Several excellent locations might include the parking lot of Buzzard Billy’s, or a spot along Martin Luther King Boulevard, or along the river walk. A reasonable telephoto lens (28mm to 80mm) can capture the burst against the background of the Brazos and the Suspension Bridge. The reflection of the fireworks in the water will add an extra dimension to your photograph. If you are not interested in adding scenic backgrounds in your shots and you only want to capture the fireworks in the night sky, then the top of the water building is another good spot. Keep in mind that where ever you chose to camp, it will be crowded, so get there early. If you don’t have the time to pick a spot beforehand, then get out your binoculars (yes, they are included in the section on equipment) and find the group of people standing away from the crowd with cameras mounted on tripods with very long lenses. These are the professional photographers who know what they are doing and they probably have the best vantage point. Once you know where you will park your gear, you need to know what gear
to take along. First, don’t forget the camera. I hate it when that happens. Aside from the camera, the most important piece of equipment is a tripod. Because of the long exposures you will be taking under the night sky (we’ll cover that later), there are five additional pieces of critical equipment to have. 1. An external shutter release 2. A piece of black cardboard 3. A small flashlight 4. Extra batteries 5. A pair of binoculars The best fireworks are always at the end of the show, so if you run out of batteries too early, the loud explosions you’ll be hearing will more than likely be from hitting yourself over the head with your own tripod. Let’s talk about the camera and settings. The optimum choice is a digital SLR (single lens reflex) camera (one where the lens can be removed) that allows for manually adjusting the shutter speed. If you have a film SLR and a digital camera that cannot be manually adjusted, take the film camera. You won’t be able to see if you “got the shot” but you will have a better chance of getting it. Here are the critical settings: ISO The ISO number relates to how sensitive your camera is to capturing light.
For example, if you are on the beach at noon in July in Texas, then you would set your ISO to the smallest number your camera will allow (probably 100). If you are in the gym at a basketball game. It may look like enough light, but it won’t be without a flash and you can’t use a flash because it will blind the players if you are on the floor and it won’t do you any good if you are in the stands. The ISO should be set to the largest number your camera will allow. (like 800 or 1600). I know what you’re thinking. “The fireworks extravaganza is at night so I want to set my ISO to 1600.” Well, here’s where it gets tricky with fireworks. The fireworks themselves are actually very bright, so you need to set your ISO at 100 or 200, even though it is night. You want to capture the fireworks against a black sky. Setting your ISO at its highest number does allow you to take pictures without a flash in dimly lit surroundings, but it also creates “noise” or grain in the picture. We don’t want that here. Using a flash is not the answer either. First, shooting with a flash will only trick your camera into thinking it needs a short exposure time. You need a LONG exposure time (we’ll get to that in a minute). The flash will only reach about 10 feet, so you’ll be lighting what you don’t want in your picture and miss-
ing what you do want (those fireworks). SHUTTER SPEED Shutter speed is how long the len’s shutter stays open to allow light to come in. Let’s go back to the beach in July in Texas at high noon. There is a lot of light out there, so your lens is going to open and shut very quickly in order to capture just the amount that it needs, probably 1/1000 of a second. In the gym at the basketball game, with no flash, the shutter will stay open longer in order to let in more light. If you are holding the camera, the slowest shutter speed possible to produce a picture without blur is 1/60 of a second. If your shutter stays open longer than that, you must have your camera on a tripod. I did tell you to bring a tripod, didn’t I? You will want to set your shutter speed to “bulb.” A bulb exposure keeps the shutter open for as long as you hold down the shutter button (preferably using a remote shutter release of some type). Using this technique, you open the shutter as the firework is about to explode and hold it down until it’s finished exploding, usually a few seconds. Keep several things in mind. First, the camera MUST be on a tripod, and second, it must remain perfectly still while the shutter is open. If you want to capture multiple bursts on the same frame, keep the
shutter open between explosions but cover the lens with the black cardboard you brought along. Again, try not to jiggle the camera. The idea is to experiment with different kinds of shots and have fun at the same time. APERTURE The len’s aperture is how wide the shutter opens. Here the numbers are the opposite of what makes sense. For example, an aperture of f-22 means that the shutter is opening only a small amount, like looking through a straw’s opening. An aperture of f-3.5 or f-5.6 means the shutter is opening wide, like looking through a paper towel roll. Our pupils work the same as a camera len’s aperture. When we are at the beach, we have very small pupils (don’t want to burn those retina’s with that bright sun.) When we are at the basketball game, our pupils open up to let in more light. So, what setting do we use for fireworks? Try f8 to f16. Remember, those fireworks are bright. Finally, set your focus to manual and focus on infinity. If you try auto-focus at night, one of several things will happen, none of them good. One way or another, your camera will tell you there is not enough light for auto-focus to work and it won’t take the picture. Up to this point, we have talked about how to set your Digital SLR camera. What happens if you don’t have a digital single lens reflex camera? Can you still get the shot? Of course you BIG BLUE
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can, you’ll just have to work harder for it. To photograph fireworks requires long exposures. If your particular camera does not allow for manually adjusting the shutter speed, what are your alternatives? Check the owner’s manual and see what it says about the following: • Nighttime Mode • Low-Light Settings or Mode • Maximum Exposure Length • Bulb Setting If you find any information on any of these, read up on it to find out what your camera can and cannot do. What if your manual has nothing about any of these topics and an examination of your camera doesn’t reveal anything hopeful either? Well, you’ll have to trick your camera into performing for you. You have your camera aimed in the right direction with the focus set on infinity (look this up in your owner’s manual). The sky is pretty dark. You see a rocket streaking up, and before it explodes you press the shutter button. Your camera will be trying to figure out the correct shutter speed for the f-stop you are using. Whatever f-stop happens to be set, there won’t be enough light to take the picture. Therefore, the aperture will remain open until the firework explodes and your camera senses the light, it will then take the picture and close its shutter according to its electronic brain. In effect, you have outsmarted your camera’s brain and caused a longer exposure than your camera was designed for. I warned you it was a little more work. There are just a few last minute preparations that need to be made. That comfortable lawn chair that you originally planned to sit in before you decided to become the next Ansel Adams probably won’t do. You will be moving around A LOT if you plan to get good shots, so you need a chair that’s easy to get in and out of and that puts you closer to your camera. Or, you could stand like the professional photographers are doing over in that 10
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group you spotted with your binoculars. Once the chair decision is made and you’ve set up your tripod on level ground with your camera firmly attached, it’s time to quality control check your camera and other equipment. Make sure that: • The camera battery is charged or you have fresh batteries • an empty memory card of sufficient capacity is loaded in the camera • Your camera lens does not have any filters attached (except for a UV or skylight filter which basically is to protect the lens). • Your black cardboard square is
within arm’s reach The remote shutter release (if availble for your camera) is properly attached. • Your extra memory card and batteries are close by, in a spot where you can find them in the dark. • And finally, your small flashlight is close by and easily accessible. You’ll need this to change camera settings, if you want to experiment with different ISO and f-stop settings. Now, the only thing left to do is enjoy the show with your family and friends.. •
SUMMER RAIN Women’s Conference
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Tuesday, Aug. 4th 7 PM Tickets $6 Advance $10 at the Door
First Baptist Church Robinson 104 East Stegall at U.S. 77 Robinson, Texas