Many of us will be heading out to 4th of July celebrations this weekend and the big highlight of the evening will be a massive fireworks display with bombs of color bursting in air.

And just like everything else in our lives, we implore ourselves that these moments must be captured and preserved for generations to come. (Or for us to look at the next day and never view it again.)

If you have ever tried to photograph fireworks, you probably know how difficult it can be to get a clear picture at night.

Fear not, we've got tips from a professional photographer. Here are four pointers on how to get better photos of fireworks this weekend.

  1. Turn your flash off. If you don't, everything over 10 feet away will be overexposed. And if you do want a photo of someone with fireworks behind them, set it up so their face is lit up by a light behind you.
  2. Don't just photograph the sky. Photos of fireworks with nothing in the foreground tend to be boring after a while. For example, try to capture your kid from behind while they're watching the fireworks.
  3. Turn off the HDR feature. (In case you were wondering, it stands for "high dynamic range".) It makes your camera take three quick photos at different exposures, then combines them into one image to make the lighting look more natural. It looks better though with still images.
  4. Take photos with a long exposure. That's where the shutter stays open a few seconds longer and lets in more light. Unfortunately, not all camera phones do that and you pretty much have to use a tripod to make it work.

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