Photo tips for the 4th of July

Friday is the day you get off work to grill meat and watch fireworks explode (oh, and celebrate Independence Day), and that means the camera shutters will be snapping like crazy.

But taking a good picture of your BBQ ribs or a girandole isn't quite as simple as just pointing your camera and pushing the button. Here are five sites full of tips for taking perfect pictures on the Fourth of July and throughout the summer.

Digital Photography 101 with Ritz - Use Natural Outdoor Light to Your Advantage - Best tip: People (especially kids) squint when the sun is in their eyes. To keep eyes open, keep the sun behind your subject (though I'll add that it can be difficult to keep faces out of shadow this way), or better yet, shoot in the morning or evening when the sun isn't as harsh.

Digital Photography School - How to Photograph Fireworks Displays - Best tip: Use a tripod, and set the aperture setting to somewhere in the range of f/8 to f/16 for the best results.

Your Photo Tips - How to Photograph Amazing Fireworks - Best tip: If you're near water, include the surface of the lake/pool/ocean in the shot to capture some cool reflections.

Kodak - Photographing Fireworks - Best tip: Film a sequence of shots using burst mode, so you capture a series of pictures encompassing an explosion from start to finish.

National Geographic - Action and Adventure Photography Tips - Best tip: When photographing action shots (like the annual three-legged race), planning is everything. Stake out a good position to frame your shot properly well in advance so you don't end up with a technically great and perfectly-exposed shot... of everyone's backside as they run away from you.

See also: How to Photograph Fireworks

Photo credit: Stuck in Customs