Photo Tip: Shooting Fireworks–Know from Whence the Wind Blows

There are a lot of great posts out there that discuss the tips and tricks of shooting fireworks shows, especially around July 4.  Most discuss aperture, shutter and ISO settings (I prefer F/11, 4 seconds, ISO 250).  These are all great, but one point can be easily overlooked, as I discovered to my dismay this past Independence Day:  wind direction.

In an effort to enjoy the day personally (in contrast to obsessing over the perfect shot all day), I chose my shooting location based on convenience: both to its proximity to the party I attended earlier in the evening, and to my desire to not fight traffic and the throngs of people who would be gathered near the launch site itself.  I “compensated” for this convenience by making sure that my camera settings were dialed in before arriving, and bringing lenses of various size and focal lengths.  There was just one problem…

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