Fireworks bring out the happy in almost everybody, (pets are the exception here). Usually symbolizing a momentous occasion or used in celebration on certain holidays, we all have great memories of watching fireworks.

Capturing fireworks isn’t that hard, but can still be tricky. It’s dark out, and your subject matter is literally fast streaks of light popping randomly in the sky. So we’re assembled this round up of our best free tutorials and tip sheets for photographing Fireworks for this 4th of July!

First, Remember These 3 Things

  1. Always use a tripod when shooting at night to eliminate blur and shakes
  2. Set a shutter delay or use a cable-release to avoid unwanted camera movement from pressing the shutter
    • Use M-up mode to additionally help reduce any shakes
  3. Experiment with Longer Exposures, (10+ Seconds) to capture multiple firework bursts
  4. Always shoot in RAW!

Next, The Basics

Here you’ll find a collection of the tools, settings, and things to keep in mind for your shot to capture some incredible fireworks bursting in the night sky.

Bonus 4th of July Tips

Creating Silhouettes

Here’s how to capture an image, and preferably video or timelapse footage, of fireworks on the horizon with the silhouette of viewers in the foreground.

Get Experimental

While we normally will seek to get a perfectly focused and exposed image, sometimes it’s fun to think a little outside of the box. Don’t be afraid to get a little experimental with these HDR, Prop, and Bokeh/focus pulling shots to get some truly unique looking Firework Photographs

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Creating Portraits with Fireworks

When everyone else is out there shooting just the sky, you can follow along with Pye in this post and video to learn how to setup your shot and capture incredible portraits with the added bonus of fireworks to completely up the ante this holiday weekend!

Conclusion

From just the fireworks explosion to creating stunning portraits with the fireworks in the background, in this article we’ve covered nearly everything you could want when learning about photographing fireworks on the 4th of July.