Shooting fireworks — 4th of July
The 4th of July is Independence Day here in the US. But maybe it should be canceled, since the folks in DC are worse than the British overlords. Fireworks represent (apparently) the “rockets’ red glare”.
See my July 5, 2007 comments for some handheld examples.
Some lenses I’ve found that work really well:
- Zeiss 35/2 Distagon
- Zeiss 50mm f/2 Makro-Planar
- Leica 90mm f/2 APO-Summicron-R (on Canon with adapter)
- Zeiss 100mm f/2 Makro-Planar
Of course, choice of focal length depends greatly on your proximity. You want a lens with as flat a field as possible with good resolution out to the corners, and low aberrations, to keep those pinpoints of light crisp. Shoot at f/2.8 or f/4 if conditions allow, but even f/8 has its uses, depending on the brightness of the sky and fireworks, how much “glow” you want, etc. Handheld can be fun, experiment for effect.
