What camera setting should I use for....?
I have a brand new Nikon D3000 and I'm taking pictures of the fireworks tonight.
It's a private family show, so I can get really close.
What setting on the camera should I use to get a good picture of sparklers and fireworks without them being too dark or over-flashed?
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a few examples:
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Go here: [URL Truncated] and choose Fireworks (open shutter), Christmas lights, choose ISO 100 and when you click on Calculate you'll get a list of f-stop/shutter speed combinations such as these:
ISO 100
f4 @ 2 sec.
f5.6 @ 4 sec.
f8 @ 8 sec.
f11 @ 15 sec.
f16 @ 30 sec.
Of course you aren't limited to ISO 100, its just the one I chose.
Needless to say you'll need a tripod and you'll want to be in Manual Mode with the AF turned OFF. Just focus your lens to infinity. Use the camera's self-timer to release the shutter.
It may take a bit of experimenting. Some of the photos you supplied were taken at a very high ISO (at least from the amount of grain it appeared to be).
The trick is holding the shutter open long enough to get the effect you want, but not so long as to over do it (which it can be easy to over do with fireworks).
The best place to start would to select the aperture priority mode and open the Fstop as wide as possible (smallest number). Then take a few test shots and see what you like. From there raise or lower the ISO to open the shutter longer or shorter. The trick is, the longer the shutter is open, the more you will need/want a tripod to get a really crisp shot. Also the higher you raise the ISO (to get a faster shutter) the grainier the shot will come out.
If on Aperture you still aren't getting the desired effect your next option is Shutter (Tv).
The hardest part about fireworks is getting your meter to expose for the firework and not the darkness around it. If you can set your metering to "spot" or "center weighted" then this will help. Once you find what you like, you may change it to Manuel mode. (i.e. I want the Fstop wide open and the shutter a 3"...that seems to expose the sparklers how I want it) - but use the Aperture and Shutter modes to find the sweet spot.
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