New Years Fireworks

To celebrate the New Year, I set up my 40D on my tripod, set the exposure for a 30s shutter, and then had my girlfriend trigger the shutter while I set off some fireworks. We captured a few images, and this was our favorite. I wish I was able to get further away from the subject for better composition, but we like the scraggly trees in the frame.

One thing I want to do is to select just the sky, and darken it, leaving the fireworks and trees unaffected. What do you think would be the best approach to selecting and creating that mask in PS CS3 Extended? Also, any other feedback is welcomed. Thanks for your time.

f/3.5 is way too much light for fireworks & these are blown out. Look at Firebirds! On shooting fireworks...

What are you using for PP? If you have Blend modes, it's easy to darken the sky without selecting anything.

PhotosGuy wrote in post #17841991
f/3.5 is way too much light for fireworks & these are blown out. Look at Firebirds! On shooting fireworks...

What are you using for PP? If you have Blend modes, it's easy to darken the sky without selecting anything.

Yup, I was quite tipsy when shooting this, and that was the first thing I said to myself when looking at the results. Why oh why didn't I have it stopped down. I knew better than that, and that's what makes me angry about it. If I didn't know better, then it's a learning experience, this was just a beer induced stupid mistake. The DOF is stupid shallow too... I definitely wanted to have a bigger DOF. This compares nothing to the fireworks "self-portrait" I made back in 2012. In that photo I got exactly what I wanted, only one frame taken. I call that one a self-portrait because in addition to setting off the fireworks, I triggered the shutter with a wireless remote. I don't think I have posted that one on the forums yet, but I will soon.

I also wish I hadn't shot this at 30s either. But was just trying to make the timing of getting the shot easy for my girlfriend, as I was across the street and it was her first time working my camera ever. There is certainly much to be done to correct the capture of the image in future attempts.

I'm using Photoshop CS3 Extended for my post processing. Thanks for the link and feedback. I will definitely be reading that thread. I'll shoot you a PM when I post my "self-portrait" so you can see how much better that one came out. I am not very pleased with these but trying to squeeze the best that I can out of it.

PS - I used blend modes for a slight contrast bump (a Curves layer with no curves adjustment made), blend mode multiply and opacity set to 14%. And I slightly lightened the image with a levels layer, no layers adjustment made, blend mode set to screen and opacity set to 22%. I have also made two other adjustments. I used USM for a local contrast enhancement with 10, 50, 0. And in Shadows & Highlights I have done - Shadows Amount 5%, Tonal Width 15%, Radius 51 px, Highlights Amount 42%, Tonal Width 50%, Radius 51 px. All my edits are nondestructive and can be changed. I also did a little work in Camera Raw before opening in PS.

I was shooting fireworks this year at F/11 or F/8, ISO 320. That gave me 1,5 to 2,5 seconds of shutter speed.

I am kinda wondering why you went to 30 seconds at f/3.5?

Good fireworks shots require you to get the exposure right with ISO and aperture. Once you get that dialed in, shutter speed takes care of how much or how little you capture with each frame. I start at ISO 100 & f/11, and usually end really close to that. Shutter is set to BULB and managed with a wired remote. This series has shutters from 1 second to 23 seconds. Tripod is a given for these shutter speeds.

I am not sure what you guys are referring to as 'blended'. This, and all the other shots in this series, are single exposures, SOOC, except for cropping and such.

Bassat wrote in post #17849551
I am not sure what you guys are referring to as 'blended'. This, and all the other shots in this series, are single exposures, SOOC, except for cropping and such.

Photoshop Blend Modes. About 1/2 way down the 1st post in the fireworks link above I suggest the Lighten Mode to assemble two/more shots together.

PhotosGuy wrote in post #17849672
Photoshop Blend Modes. About 1/2 way down the 1st post in the fireworks link above I suggest the Lighten Mode to assemble two/more shots together.

Thanks. I don't uses PS. I did assume that 'blend' meant combining exposures. What I'm not clear on is why do that at all. If you want more in the shot, why not just leave the shutter open longer? Shutter speed has no effect on exposure with these types of photos. I guess I'm being a 'get it right in-camera' nut, here. I'm not sure that matters in this instance.

Bassat wrote in post #17849675
If you want more in the shot, why not just leave the shutter open longer? ... I guess I'm being a 'get it right in-camera' nut, here.

I kind of agree, but after shooting them for years, I wanted to tweak where each burst was in the frame, which also allowed me to adjust the exposures between the bright white ones & the underexposed blue ones. Chalk it up to boredom & a compulsion to fiddle with the images, just because I could. ; )

PhotosGuy wrote in post #17849685
I kind of agree, but after shooting them for years, I wanted to tweak where each burst was in the frame, which also allowed me to adjust the exposures between the bright white ones & the underexposed blue ones. Chalk it up to boredom & a compulsion to fiddle with the images, just because I could. ; )

That would give me something to do with all the single (boring) shots from the middle of the show! I usually get most of my shots in the last few minutes of a show, when they are launching multiples, and in the finale.

DoughnutPhoto wrote in post #17849538
I was shooting fireworks this year at F/11 or F/8, ISO 320. That gave me 1,5 to 2,5 seconds of shutter speed.

I am kinda wondering why you went to 30 seconds at f/3.5?

30 seconds because it's not like I was sitting at a fireworks show where explosions are repeatedly happening in the sky and I can trigger the shutter at will. I was standing across a dip, on one hill, my girlfriend on the other hill. I signaled to her that I was getting ready to light the fuses for the two charges I had, and she would trigger the shutter and it would capture both charges exploding.

f/3.5 cuz I wasn't paying attention. It was 1am and New Year's Day. We had been celebrating and I was focused more on not catching fire.

heldGaze wrote in post #17850150
30 seconds because it's not like I was sitting at a fireworks show where explosions are repeatedly happening in the sky and I can trigger the shutter at will. I was standing across a dip, on one hill, my girlfriend on the other hill. I signaled to her that I was getting ready to light the fuses for the two charges I had, and she would trigger the shutter and it would capture both charges exploding.

f/3.5 cuz I wasn't paying attention. It was 1am and New Year's Day. We had been celebrating and I was focused more on not catching fire.

Very good plan.

Bassat wrote in post #17849675
Thanks. I don't uses PS. I did assume that 'blend' meant combining exposures. What I'm not clear on is why do that at all. If you want more in the shot, why not just leave the shutter open longer? Shutter speed has no effect on exposure with these types of photos. I guess I'm being a 'get it right in-camera' nut, here. I'm not sure that matters in this instance.

Blend does not mean combining exposures. Blend modes are how two layers in Photoshop are combined, how the pixels are chosen. Is it a simple Overlay taking the top pixel (unless you have a mask to choose the bottom pixel), do you do some math with the pixels to come up with a new pixel different from either layer? That math is controlled by the blend mode.

You can use blend modes in PS to use an image to "edit itself". Creating an adjustment layer, even making no changes at all in the adjustments dialog, and then changing the way that layer is blended you can increase contrast, darken the image, lighten the image, etc. You use the opacity of that layer to control the intensity of the effect. So blend modes has nothing necessarily to do with combining exposures, and is just a way that a layer is applied in Photoshop. Now, if you were to combine two exposures, using layers is the probably the best way to do it. And setting the correct blend mode is important when doing that.

That is what I did here. I just created a Curves and Level adjustment layer, used different blends mode to control contrast and lightness. I did not combine two exposures.

Bassat wrote in post #17850152
Very good plan.

I separated the launch tubes by quite a lot of distance, on a flat open concrete surface, away from all houses, in a clearing. And I book it out of there as soon as the fuse is lit. I do not like the way many other people set off fireworks. 4th of July was stupid dangerous, I hate people who hand hold anything other than a camera.

When I get a chance, I'll upload my good fireworks shot from several years ago and give you guys a link. With the family celebrating second Christmas this week.

As promised, my self portrait fireworks image is posted in this thread: https://photography-on-the.net …/showthread.php​?t=1451725