For All Those Who've Never Seen Fireworks Pictures (and one extra-terrestrial shot!)

Here's a few shots from the fireworks display in Culver City, CA - across the street from where I live. It was the first time I used the "Fireworks" shooting option on my digital. Fireworks are tough to take, so I set my camera to "Continuous" and ripped off one shot after another, never releasing the shoot button. It's a crapshoot because it all hinges on the button pressing, the flash and the moment the firework explodes. I took between 60 and 80 and salvaged about 15. Of the ones below there's really only 2-3 decent shots. Also, no cropping or "zoom and crop" was done to these pictures (meaning zooming in once the picture is already taken, then cropping - I think I just made that term up). This is the way they turned out - au natural. #1 and #3 are the best.

Now, that above shot is NOT fireworks. No sir-ee. This is a view into space as seen through my very high-powered telescope with a 2nd telescopic lens attached - and outfitted with a camera. I set this up a couple hours before the fireworks to take interval shots of whatever I might catch flying by (long, technical story). What I've captured here, I assume, is a nebula or some type of star system, solar system - whatever. Pretty cool, if you ask me. I have no explanation for what the red coloring is - could be a reflection or gases or something. I wonder if there's a name for it? "The Nebulus of the Ircink". Hmmm...sounds appropriate.

All photos © Copyright Jeffrey James Ircink.