Randy Sartin, Knoxville Photographer » knoxville photographer

How to Photograph Fireworks

admin — Thu, 01 Jul 2010 12:41:22 +0000

Last year I went to the Boomsday event here in Knoxville and had my first serious go at photographing fireworks, and thought I might share a few tips with anyone wanting to try this on July 4th!

The key to this is long exposures (shutter stays open) and a stable camera (tripod).
With a DSLR, I would start with these settings…ISO 200, f/16.0, set the focus to manual and infinity, and use the bulb exposure mode. Once you get everything setup and are ready to try a shot, press the shutter button and then place your hand over the lens (this blocks any light from getting to the camera). As soon as the fireworks are shot, move your hand and you should capture the launch, explosion, and the falling streamers until you cover the lens or press the shutter again. In bulb exposure mode, the shutter opens when you press the shutter button and will stay open until you press it again.
With a point and shoot your mileage will vary. Some have a “fireworks” setting which is a long exposure, some have a manual mode where you can set a long exposure of 4 or 5 seconds. Might want to check your owner’s manual, what you are wanting is a 4 or 5 second long exposure.
Other things to consider include being downwind will cause the firework smoke to drift towards you and will cause all sorts of problems. Streetlights are a pain, the more time you spend picking your spot the happier you will be!

Ken Rockwell has some very detailed info on photographing fireworks, and of course I’ll be happy to help anyone I can.

Here are a few from Boomsday, Thanks and Have Fun!

Netbook’s and Photographer’s, Do They Play Nice?

admin — Thu, 06 May 2010 01:30:27 +0000

So after having a few small problems with my big bad trusty HP Laptop, I decided two things…1) I needed a backup laptop, and 2) I really wanted to try something smaller.

I did a bit of research and it looked like one of the better Netbooks in town was being carried by Verizon, and with the 2 year broadband agreement it was a really sweet deal. I was able to drop the tethering option off of my Blackberry, signed up for another deal, and the difference to me was just $9 a month. I feel like I’ve been a big part of Verizon’s success for a long time .

My big concern was with how well the Netbook would handle Photo Mechanic and some version of Photoshop, and I installed the latest version of PM along with an old version of Photoshop (7.0). So far I’m thrilled with the results! The netbook is a HP 311 with 2 GB of RAM, 160 GB hard drive, and Windows 7.0 home premium. It ingests fast, edits fast, and is speedy on the internet. Battery life is silly, much longer than any “real” laptop I’ve had. It’s big workout will come this weekend at a wedding in Florida, so far I’m thinking it’s a good choice and I’ll keep this thread updated…comments welcomed!

Knoxville Baby Photographer Giving Away $500!!!

admin — Sat, 13 Mar 2010 05:00:36 +0000

Well here we are, time to let the voting begin! For the next 72 hours simply go to Baby Contest Voting and pick your favorite baby. The grand prize is a $500 photo session with Randy Sartin Photography, second and third place each receive $100. For those of you not awake when voting ends (midnight Monday 3-15-2010), we will announce the winner here first thing Tuesday morning.

Remember that a vote can be placed from a specific IP number only once every 6 hours, and the results will be displayed as percentages. Good Luck!!!

Knoxville’s Cutest Baby Contest Voting

admin — Fri, 12 Mar 2010 00:15:07 +0000

It’s almost here! Tomorrow (Friday 3-12-10) at midnight you will be able to go to Vote Here and make your pick for Knoxville’s cutest baby. The winner receives a $500 Photo Session with us, and second and third get $100 towards a session (or prints).

The poll will be open for 72 hours (ends at midnight on Monday 3-15-10) and the image myself and the parents chose will be displayed next to the child’s name. Voting is restricted to one vote per IP number every 6 hours and the results automatically update as percentages.

I wish everyone could win, this contest has been a blast and I want to thank everyone who participated! If anyone has any problems or questions just send an email to randy@sartinphoto.com

UT Photography Class

admin — Sun, 07 Mar 2010 03:27:52 +0000

As a lot of you may know, I’m a big fan of UT’s Photography Certificate Program, so here’s what I’ve been doing with the program. Here is a complete list of courses.

I’m really excited about the class I’m taking this spring, Adam Brimer’s Introduction to Photojournalism class. Adam is a staff photographer with the Knoxville News Sentinel and this should be a very interesting class.

Last week I spoke at Tom Geisler’s Fundamentals II class and today I tagged along on his Fundamentals I class on their downtown field trip. I always come away from these a little energized, it does one good to be around people so eager to learn. I got a few good images on the trip, but I wanted to share this Flip Video I put together…enjoy!

Knoxville Baby Contest Update

admin — Tue, 26 Jan 2010 01:32:19 +0000

We’ve had a rash of rescheduling today due to some sick babies and have several appointments open this week. Just click on this Online Schedule to set an appointment (once there, you will have to click on the “sign up” tab to actually make the appointment) and Thanks for the great response so far, this contest is a BLAST! To see all of the wonderful contestants go to our FaceBook Fan Page.

More information on the contest (the grand prize is valued at $500) go to the Baby Contest Page.

OpLove Homecoming in Knoxville

admin — Sat, 19 Dec 2009 19:42:50 +0000

Yesterday we were able to cover the big homecoming for the unit we’ve been covering through OpLove the past year. I was very happy to be a part of this, and I owe a big thanks to Julie Poole for coming out to help cover it. And Selena did a great job with the video, so THANKS Julie and Selena!!! And even more importantly, we owe a HUGE thanks to the Soldiers, we really appreciate what you have been doing for us!

Here’s the first Animoto I ever tried with video and text….oh yeah, I about forgot….“The photos and other content of this publication do not constitute or imply any endorsement or recommendation from the Department of Defense.”

Hoopfest Image on Sports Illustrated

admin — Tue, 15 Dec 2009 21:43:40 +0000

Wow…this was my main goal for covering the Hoopfest and I had about given up on it….

I pulled the link, it rotated out after a day or so

Image is of Cory Joseph from Findlay Prep. And yes, I’m very pleased and excited. Look fast, I’m sure it will rotate out pretty quick

Loudon County at Alcoa Football Playoffs

admin — Tue, 24 Nov 2009 04:31:22 +0000

Images from the Loudon County at Alcoa football game are now online with MaxPreps Here . All of the nine games I shot this year for MaxPreps are located HERE and includes White County, Anderson County, Halls, Bearden, Farragut, Clinton, Alcoa, Loudon, and CAK.

I’ve really had a great time covering High School Football this year! MaxPreps has been great to work with and I also need to give special thanks to all of the great people at Anderson County High School, they allowed me to have pretty unlimited access while I learned how to shoot football in the dark

Maryville at Farragut Football

admin — Sun, 18 Oct 2009 01:57:24 +0000

The Maryville at Farragut game is now up with MaxPreps. HUGE game, Maryville won, 35-32. The direct link to the gallery is located HERE.