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Photographing Fireworks in Your
Backyard

The firework photographs contemplated by the other two
articles in our 4th of July Special
Report require photographers to point their cameras skyward.

But there's another type of firework display that you may be able
to photograph - the one that takes place in your backyard or your
neighbor's. Let us point out right now, that in virtually every paragraph
of this article, we will repeat cautions about the need for extreme safety
around fireworks, and the need for adults to be responsible for all
backyard firework displays.

The fireworks that are launched by professionals - who,
by the way, are called pyrotechnicians - are classified as
Display Fireworks, and are sometimes known as "Class B" fireworks.
How to photograph display fireworks is the subject of the other two
articles in our Fourth of July Special Report. Chances are you'll
never come too close to Display Fireworks, but you may well encounter
Consumer Fireworks (also known as "Class C" fireworks). These are
the fireworks you can purchase at roadside stands in many parts of the
country.

Consumer Fireworks Are Readily
Available

According to records compiled by the American
Pyrotechnics Association, only 8 states completely ban consumer fireworks.
Of the other 42, 4 allow only sparklers and novelties, 20 allow "safe and
sane" fireworks, and 18 allow nearly all consumer fireworks. Bear in mind
that within each state, local counties or cities may have more restrictive
laws. Researching this article, we found two very good Web sites - http://www.pyrouniverse.com/
created by a fireworks enthusiast, and http://www.americanpyro.com/, the
official site of the American Pyrotechnics Association, the trade
association for fireworks that has been around since 1948. You can find
out the applicable statewide laws for your state, and lots more about
fireworks, their history, and important safety tips by visiting these two
sites.

We're not sure of the precise definitions of "novelties" or
"safe and sane" fireworks. But we do know that no fireworks are "safe"
unless they're used "sanely." We're certainly not advocating the use of
fireworks that are not legal in your area.

Note: We also must point out that large explosive
fireworks - so-called cherry bombs, M-80s and the like -- have been
outlawed by Federal Law for over thirty years. These are not fireworks.
They are explosives and should not be used by individuals under any
circumstances.

So, unless you're in one of the eight states
than ban consumer fireworks, and if you are going to enjoy backyard
fireworks show this 4th of July, and as long as the show is conducted by
safety-conscious adults - you can take several different types of cool
photographs. Let's look at each.

Sparkler
Art

Even the most restrictive states allow sparklers. These
are usually thin metal rods coated with a combination of fuel, an
oxidizer, powdered metal - usually iron, steel, or aluminum that creates
the sparks, and a binder to hold all this stuff onto the rod. Sparklers
produce a continuously burning trail of bright yellow or colored sparks.
Since the burn time of a sparkler may be 30 seconds or more, this gives us
the opportunity to do what photographers call "painting with light."

Painting with light is usually done with a flashlight or some
other movable light source. In that case, the light source itself isn't
usually visible; it is only used to illuminate the subject. With
sparklers, the light source becomes part of the subject matter as well.

Before we get to our "How To" tips, let us interject a safety note
- sparklers, while they are widely available, are among the leading causes
of fireworks injuries. Perhaps that is in part because they are so widely
available, that they lead the list. Typically, the danger to avoid is
burns from a sparkler while it is sparkling, or from the super hot metal
rod that remains after the sparkler has burned out. As Colin Bradley, the
author of http://www.pyrouniverse.com/ so
eloquently puts it: "I don't get why . anyone would hand their toddler
a 1000 degree rod of burning hot metal in the first place. Think about
it.... Would you let your kid play with a stove? A clothes iron? A
blowtorch? Of course not. As with any other consumer product, if someone
uses it THE WRONG WAY, they'll get hurt."

Let's look at some simple
examples of sparkler photographs first.

Here we see a child
twirling a sparkler. This picture was taken in late twilight - near
darkness. The camera was mounted on a tripod to keep it steady during a
long exposure, and auto focus was turned off. The child is asked to stay
in one place and the photographer focuses on the child before the sparkler
is lit. An adult lights the sparkler, and kids, doing what they do best,
start to experiment.

If the child just moves the sparkler around
in front of his/her face, as in the photograph on the right, the result is
not too interesting. We see the trails of the burning sparkler, but the
child's face has been obliterated.

With a little direction, the child
sweeps her arm to create an arc that fills more of the frame. As you can
see, the child is watching the sparkler, so while the sparkler illuminates
her face, it is blurred because she moved her head. With more
experimentation, you can create a wide variety of effects. For example,
you can write your name, or another word using the sparkler as a pen.
However, this requires some thought because if you just spell out your
name, it will appear backwards to the camera.

How to overcome
this? The hard way is to write your name in mirror form. The easier trick
is to turn your back to the camera and write your name the regular way,
but if you do that, make sure to hold the sparkler high over your head, so
that your body does not block any of the letters.

As with all
photographs of this sort, the key is experimentation and taking several
photographs to see which ones work out.

Here we've added a second
sparkler and asked the subject to twirl both.

These pictures were
made using auto exposure with a film-based camera. They can be
accomplished just as easily with a digital camera and you have the benefit
of being able to delete the unsuccessful experiments.

As we've
discussed, to make these pictures you need a tripod and someone to handle
the sparkler. Now, if you can add another person to help, you can make a
photo like this:

In this interesting photo, the woman that we see
outlined by the sparkler is standing still. That's why she appears to be
in sharp focus. The sparkler is being held by a third person who is
standing behind the subject and who carefully outlines her torso. This was
very precisely executed: the assistant moving the sparkler can't be seen
at all. The illumination was made in a single pass, starting with the
sparkler close to the ground, moving up to outline the figure and then
back down the other leg to the ground. There was probably some additional
burn time left on the sparker so the assistant held the sparkler close to
the ground until it burned out. That would explain the very bright area we
see between the subject's legs. During this entire period, the subject
held her scarecrow-like pose.

Again, safety is very important
here. That's why the assistant stands behind the subject and keeps the
burning sparkler well away from the subject's body. Remember, safety is
paramount.

For the record, NYI Student Christa Rose made this
photo using a Nikon N-80 with a 28-80mm zoom lens and Kodak 400 ISO Color
Negative film.

Photographs of Light
Showers

Other types of consumer fireworks, such as those
that make small pops, like bottle rockets, or slender backyard Roman
Candles will probably not make interesting-looking photographs. But the
type of fountain display that is fired on the ground can provide some
excellent opportunities for making very interesting pictures.

Once
again, these photographs can be taken using automatic exposure with the
camera mounted on a tripod. Keep at least 8 to 10 feet away from the
shower and use your zoom to fill the frame with the colorful eruptions.

If you like, you can use your camera's pop-up flash to toss a
little light on the scene.

Here you can see two similar photographs, the
one on the left was taken without using the on-camera flash; the one on
the right was taken using the camera's flash. You can see the cardboard
tube of the display is clearly visible on the right-hand photo.

These photographs are interesting to look at on their own, but
they can also be scanned into digital form and used with the addition of
type for party invitations, or combined with other images to make photo
illustrations. For example, our digital expert Jim Barthman combined some
firework photos with a saxophone to come up with this interesting image
(below left.)

Here's another illustration (above right) that Jim
created from three separate photographs.

Once you collect some
interesting looking images, what you can create is limited only by your
imagination.

Enjoy the Fourth of July, and if you take some
interesting photos, don't hesitate to send low resolution versions to us
at [email-masked]. Have
a safe and sane holiday.

And, let us close as we began, with
safety uppermost. To help you celebrate safely this Fourth of July, the Consumer Product Safety Commission and the
National Council on Fireworks
Safety offer the following safety tips:

•
Always read and follow label directions
• Always have
an adult present
• Only buy from reliable fireworks
sellers
• Only ignite fireworks
outdoors
• Be sure to have water
handy
• Never experiment or attempt to make your own
fireworks
• Light only one at a
time
• Never re-ignite malfunctioning
fireworks
• Never give fireworks to small
children
• Store fireworks in a cool, dry
place
• Dispose of fireworks
properly
• Never throw fireworks at another
person
• Never carry fireworks in your
pocket
• Never shoot fireworks in metal or glass
containers

Be sure to read these new fireworks
photography articles!
Go to NYI's "How to Photograph
Fireworks"

Go to NYI's "Shooting Fireworks
with a Digital Camera"

–Chuck DeLaney

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