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Drone’s Eye View of Anti-Aircraft Fire from Fireworks

May 22, 2015 by JP Danko 2 Comments

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drones eye view of anti-aircraft fire from fireworks

In my review of the Seaport Digital MegaMast, I mentioned a few projects that I was just dying to try…well this was one of them.

Stick $4k worth of camera gear up on a three story high pole and shoot fireworks at it.

Ya – simply because I though it would be amazing…and because amazing sells.

Here’s how I did it…

But You Didn’t Really Use A Drone

Well…no.  No I didn’t use a drone.  No, its not real anti-aircraft fire either.  Yes, I suppose I did write the title to get you to click on the article – thank you.

Yes, that was supposed to be a little funny.

By the way, I’m pretty sure that if I was using a drone, I would have successfully shot it down – you can be surprisingly accurate with a roman candle and drones are surprisingly fragile.

drones eye view of anti-aircraft fire from fireworks drone

Setup and Camera Settings

I setup the MegaMast on enough of an angle that the top was almost directly overtop of the bucket of sand that I was launching the fireworks from, and the bottom of the mast wasn’t in the frame.  I used a bunch of rocks from the beach and guy wires to keep it in place.

My camera was positioned to look nearly straight down with a Sigma ART 35mm lens.

I used the DSLR Controller App and a TP-LINK TL-MR3040 router (follow this link for full details on this setup) for live view and remote control of the camera.

Before it got dark, I hoisted the camera up to the top of the mast and focused – then I turned auto-focus off.  Using DSLR controller – I set the camera to take a 10 photo burst – so for every set of fireworks I would get at least 10 images.

I tried quite a few camera settings before I stumbled on an exposure that worked.  As it turns out, a good exposure for the kids playing around on the beach with sparklers was much much different than the proper exposure for fireworks exploding right in front of the camera.

drones eye view of anti-aircraft fire from fireworks drone

Nikon D800, Sigma ART 35mm | 8 seconds, f/8, ISO 400

drones eye view of anti-aircraft fire from fireworks drone

Nikon D800, Sigma ART 35mm | 1 second, f/11, ISO 200

What About The Camera?

I initially thought that it would be pretty unlikely for the fireworks to actually hit the camera – but as it turned out, they did hit it – a few times.

Fortunately, Nikon apparently builds bombproof cameras – because the only damage was a little soot that melted itself into the plastic LCD screen protector on the back.

drones eye view of anti-aircraft fire from fireworks drone

I the future, I think it would probably be wise to put some kind of protective cover over the camera and lens to minimize the risk.

I also want to get some bigger fireworks and an ultra-wide angle lens…

drones eye view of anti-aircraft fire from fireworks drone

What Do You Think?

Was the risk worth the reward?

(I know someone probably already left a comment about what an idiot I am…but I’m pretty happy with the results.)

drones eye view of anti-aircraft fire from fireworks drone

 

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Filed Under: Tutorials Tagged With: aerial, aerial photography, drone, fireworks, fireworks photography, photographing fireworks

JP Danko: from diyphotography.net

About JP Danko

JP Danko is a commercial photographer based in Toronto, Canada. JP
can change a lens mid-rappel, swap a memory card while treading water, or use a camel as a light stand.

To see more of his work please visit his studio website blurMEDIAphotography, or follow him on Twitter, 500px, Google Plus or YouTube.

JP’s photography is available for licensing at Stocksy United.

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