I had the exciting opportunity to shoot the largest 4th of July fireworks display in the country for Time Out New York. I set up a tripod near the banks of the Hudson, grabbed my remote release (to prevent camera shake) and shot away. Here are a few tips in shooting fireworks. To get the full light trails effect, you have to use a long shutter speed – anywhere from 1 to 10 seconds, depending on the speed at which the fireworks are being launched. (So this is why a tripod and remote release are necessary.) Use a low 1SO (100-200), a wide angle lens, and set the manual focus to infinity. Then I tried to time it so just as the first burst is about to happen, I pressed the remote release button and held until the bursts started fading.

Here is a selection of shots from the set.

The full set is here.

Other galleries?

For one night, Times Square was transformed into an art gallery, with graffiti and pop art being displayed from billboards, including the Nasdaq sign.

Also, here is a set from the U.S. debut show of legendary reggae DJ Earl Gateshead. Caron Wheeler of Soul II Soul was in the audience.

Finally, get ready for my NYC Pride recap in AfterEllen, and I’ll be taking over Real L Word recapping duties from seasoned TV junkie Dara Nai aka Bad Machine. Yes, three years of writing has led to recapping a trashy reality TV show, where an explicit shower sex scene happens in the first two minutes and a New York cast member suggests getting it on in the bathroom of a grungy dive bar. One can only be so lucky!