'chelle - Really good for being new to shooting fire. It really is one of the hardest things you can try to shoot. You can't trust a meter, it's usually dark so it's hard to judge focus and for the most part, you really don't see what the fire looks like until after the image is taken; which I think is what makes it so much fun and so wonderous - it's like long shutter night cityscapes. I wish I could give you a secret recipe, but I don't have one. :) I think one of the greatest things I ever did was to get into night street photography. It had the side benefit of teaching me to shoot under adverse conditions with slow shutter speeds. Hmmm ... pointers: - I guess I'd say most important is that you have a good, solid base to shoot from. Your shooting form is really important. If you are near something you can brace on, use it (wall, lamp post, whatever). - In the dim light, your instincts will be to really open up your aperture, but fight it until you are really comfortable with night shooting. Yea, you'll get your shutter speed up and reduce motion blur, but your DOF will be so shallow it'll drive you crazy. - Realize that most fire performance starts out with the brightest fire, most light. As the performance progresses (and this happens fast) the light dims as the fuel is used up. Adjust your exposure accordingly - Prefocus and go manual. Lock on with auto-focus if you have to, but then switch to manual. Fire can screw with autofocus. - Anticipate what they are going to do. Watch for changes in movement and points where they'll slow or freeze their own motion. Hope that helps. -=>Donald