Fireworks display at USC Nov. 21, 2009
The setup went smoothly and the fireworks were beautiful. Due to extenuating circumstances I had to split my attention between shooting some video and stills. My lens on the 30D got quite dewy after sitting atop the tripod in the hour beffore launch. I should have kept the lens cap on until the fireworks were ready, better luck next time.
Even though the lens didn't clean up completely I was pleased with many of the photos. It was my first time shooting stills of fireworks. Due to the extreme angle of tilt I had to shoot blind and evaluate shots on the camera's tiny screen which was also covered in dew. At first I thought the photos were all garbage because they appeared so blurry on the preview. Turns out they were largely acceptable. Some over exposure and under exposure as I dialed in the settings. I also had to dial in the tilt as I started out too low and for a while was shooting with too much space at the top of the frame.
I'm planning to buy a remote trigger so that I won't have to touch the carmera body during exposure, that should result in even sharper shots. This time I was just happy to get results. Next time I'll be a bit more creative with angles and framing.
