Chicago 4th (3rd) July Fireworks

[BoySpot]

The big Chicago display is always done on the 3rd. This year, rather than fight it out along the shore by Grant Park, I joined the large but less crowded group out by the planetarium. I was hoping to include the skyline more in the shots and it is a great location for that (for any of you thinking about Venetian Night to come).

Here are a few samples. From the point of view of enjoying the display, for some reason I found it far more enjoyable out there. The display with the city behind it looked somehow more impressive.

http://i20.photobucket.com/albums/b227/boyspot/Chicago/4th%20July%20Fireworks/QB5Y0958.jpg
http://i20.photobucket.com/albums/b227/boyspot/Chicago/4th%20July%20Fireworks/QB5Y0966.jpg
http://i20.photobucket.com/albums/b227/boyspot/Chicago/4th%20July%20Fireworks/QB5Y1032.jpg
http://i20.photobucket.com/albums/b227/boyspot/Chicago/4th%20July%20Fireworks/QB5Y1059.jpg
http://i20.photobucket.com/albums/b227/boyspot/Chicago/4th%20July%20Fireworks/QB5Y1062.jpg
http://i20.photobucket.com/albums/b227/boyspot/Chicago/4th%20July%20Fireworks/QB5Y1075.jpg

[GeneMan88]

All of them... Excellent shots!!! Please share your EXIF info. I love seeing firework photos with something in the background/foreground (such as a cityscape or people) instead of just the fireworks. Great view!

[joayne]

You did Good! Those are some early and wonderful shots. Well Done. Thanks for sharing these. The skyline really adds something that one rarely sees in this type of photography.

[arizona85224]

very nice, you had a good spot. I was planning on heading out there to be with family, but didn't have enough vacation time. Next year I must get over there, hold me aspot at the planetarium. :)

[JACOB&LOLO]

I am hoping to get some pics tonight, these are incredible. Could you post your settings to help a beginner out. Thanks and great shots.

[arizona85224]

I am hoping to get some pics tonight, these are incredible. Could you post your settings to help a beginner out. Thanks and great shots.

do you have a remote and tripod?

[dekalbSTEEL]

The exif is there, y'all just need an exif viewer

http://www.opanda.com/en/iexif/index.html

[BoySpot]

Thanks everyone. This location made for a lot more interesting shot than the previous shots I have done. The shots were all taken on bulb mode. I had the aperture set to 7.1 (I think) and I opened and closed the shutter based on how much activity there was on the sky. Too much stuff and it blows out. I used a cable release and tripod (in answer to your question) and just kept triggering and releasing as I saw things happening. Apart from occasionally re-composing the shot, though, the important thing was to enjoy the display. If you don't see it for what it is, the photos are a poor second place. The shots are a satisfying reminder but they can't reproduce the impression that watching something that cool gives.

[Stefan A]

Those are among the best fireworks shots I have seen. Mainly due to your choice of location. I have seen many fireworks shots (including mine) where the fireworks look fine, but there is no other interesting element. These are frame-worthy. Great job!

Stefan

[BenJammin]

They look extremely good. I like the first one a lot.

[kuma1212]

Nice shots.
I was going to go to that same location for some shots, but the crowds scared me away. And I'm walking distance from the planetarium.

[Kraig C]

amazing scene, nice work.

[90blackcrx]

Whats the secret in getting the good color with fire works ?

[stoph]

I've gotta go there!! Were you able to park along the road that leads to the planetarium or was it too crowded?

[Mullins]

Awesome shots!

[Lowbyte]

1, 2, 4 are my favorites- having a great background makes all the difference.

Good job.

[mumbles]

I spy a tower crane in the back... interesting. Know the address or name of that building?

oh yeha, and nice captures...

[tpatana]

I took huge amount of shots in Kirkland WA.

My PC crashed so can't access the pictures yet, but here's one of the best shots I already had stored elsewhere:

Only resize, no other editings.

[shannyD]

WOW... those are amazing!

[shannyD]

BEAUTIFUL!! i just got jealous at how beautiful yours came out. this was the first time i ever did anything, and they arent nearly as beautiful as yours.
:D

[BoySpot]

Thanks for all of the nice comments. I walked to the planterium rather than try and drive there. There was parkign out there but it seemed pretty busy. Getting out again was probably pretty tricky. I saw a lot of the cars coming out of parking lots by Grant Park being held until the crowds had moved off.

As for getting the colors, there are a couple of things to play with. Firstly, the white balance can have quite an effect on how the shots appear. That can be quite a subjective choice and auto certainly won't be right. Also, there are some types of fireworks that are much more subdued in their brightness and they reproduce better from a color perspective. I found that a lot of them bleached out and left you with white trails. Others had a far nicer color appearance and at around f8 they seemed to record nicely on the images.

As for the crane, there are so many around the city at the moment, I'm afraid I have no idea which one that would be. From the angle, it looks like it is Streeterville but there is a lot of building going on over there right now. Sorry I can't be more helpful.

[fulldeck]

Those pictures are outstanding. It makes me regret my decision to stay away from the downtown fireworks that night due to crowds.