Photographing fire is always appealing and very easy if you know how to use your camera…

Firstly you need to decide what you want to accomplish with these photos, neat abstracts which you can use a zoom lens for, or are you more the “all or nothing” kind of photographer?  This will help you make a decision on what kind of lens to use.  Secondly I would try and steer away from using your flash when photographing fire as you “lose the essence” of what the dancing flames are all about.  It’s always a good idea to carry your tripod with you so that you can do low-light photos without having camera shake.

I would try alternating shutter speeds to capture different visual effects.  A faster shutter speed like 1/125^th of a second will freeze the motion of the flames and a slower shutter speed like 1/25^th of a second will allow your camera to capture the movement of the fire for something a little bit more interesting looking.

Oh and you can never have too many… So have a go at it and enjoy the wonderful results!!!

Riani Labuschagne

Professional Photography