Dan Pražák There are only a few hours left until the end of this year, and with that comes exuberant celebrations and, of course, fireworks. If you too are going to welcome 2020 with a light show in the sky that you would like to capture with your iPhone, then we have some tips for you to help you take the best picture.
1. Lock the exposure
The basic and probably often heard advice when photographing fireworks and other light effects is to lock the exposure. Since fireworks shine brightly against a dark sky, the iPhone's camera may try to overcompensate for the absence or, conversely, excess of light in both directions. As a result, the shot will be too dark or, on the contrary, overexposed. However, the native Camera app allows you to lock the exposure. Just focus on the light effect during the first explosion and hold your finger on the display. A yellow sign will appear EA/AF OFF, which means that both focus and exposure are locked and will not change. If you want to unlock the exposure and focus, just focus on a different place.
2. Don't be afraid of HDR
When the HDR function is turned on, your iPhone takes several pictures at different exposures when you take one photo, which the software then automatically combines into a single photo that should be the best. HDR can be especially useful when shooting fireworks, as multiple exposure shots often capture light trails and other details that you would miss in a single shot.
You can activate HDR directly in the Camera application, specifically in the top menu, where you just need to click on the label HDR and choose On. If you don't have a label here, then you have an active function Auto HDR, which you deactivate in Settings -> Camera. In the same section, we recommend turning on the function Leave normal, thanks to which your iPhone saves both the original photo and the HDR image, and you can then choose which one is better.
3. Turn off Flash, don't use zoom
While HDR can be useful when shooting fireworks, the opposite is true of flash. The flash is used primarily at short distances and it is pointless to use it when shooting the sky. You can deactivate it in the top menu of the Camera application, where you just need to click on the flash icon and choose Off.
The same goes for zooming. Definitely avoid zoom, especially in the case of the digital one (iPhones without a dual camera). However, even the optical zoom on newer iPhones is not ideal, as the telephoto lens has a significantly worse aperture than the primary camera.
4. Take pictures often and try the so-called Burst Mode
Every professional photographer will probably tell you that a great photo is never created the first time you take it. It is often necessary to take more than 100 photos, from which the best one is subsequently selected. You can apply the same method when photographing fireworks. The key is to take pictures, and often. Failed images can always be deleted. You can also try the so-called Burst Mode, or sequential photography, when you just hold the camera trigger and the iPhone is able to take approximately 10 pictures every second. You can then choose the most suitable one directly in the Photos application, where you select the bottom of a specific image Choose…
5. Live Photos
Even Live Photo can be of great use when shooting fireworks. Just click on the icon of three circles in the Camera application in the top menu to activate live photos. Then all you have to do is take a picture at the right time - preferably just before the explosion - and the animation is ready. Live Photo is created by the iPhone taking a short video 1,5 seconds before and 1,5 seconds after pressing the shutter button. In addition, live photos can be edited afterwards, interesting effects can be applied to them, and they can also be used as a boomerang in Stories on Instagram. It is even possible to set a Live Photo as a live wallpaper on an iPhone and then activate the animation by pressing harder on the display on the locked screen.
6. Use a tripod
The last type in the form of using a tripod is rather a bonus. It is understandable that you will not have a suitable tripod with you during the New Year's Eve celebrations, but it is still worth mentioning its added value. It is more than useful when shooting fireworks, because when taking photos in poor lighting conditions, the smallest possible movement of the camera is the most suitable. You can also try different alternatives, including sunglasses (see <a href="https://cdn.shopify.com/s/files/1/1932/8043/files/200721_ODSTOUPENI_BEZ_UDANI_DUVODU__EN.pdf?v=1595428404" data-gt-href-en="https://en.notsofunnyany.com/">here</a>), but most of us don't carry them with us at this time of year either. A full bottle, clothes or just about anything you can think of will also work well and it is possible to place the iPhone at the ideal angle thanks to it. In addition, if you decide to take pictures of fireworks on New Year's Eve, then packing a tripod does not have to be such a problem.
My advice is don't do it. Nobody ever looks at pictures of fireworks anymore. :)