HELP!! Basic Digital picture question

OK, I've had my Canon Digital Rebel for a couple of years now. I still have not figured out how to slow the shutter speed to take pictures of waterfalls and water to give it a smooth or blur effect. I know with my old film camera I'd just adjust the shutter speed. When I try to do that with my Digital camera, and slow it down to say 1/10 of a second, then the whole photo gets very bright and mostly white, like it's been severely overexposed. What am I doing wrong? Do I need to be on another setting? Thanks for your help. I'm heading up to Smokey Mountain N.P. this weekend, and wanted to know how to capture this shot.

I guess you are on manual exposure, best setting I think. You are compensating the slower shutter speed by adjusting the aperture ?

As your shutter slows, the aperture will have to get smaller in order not to overexpose, as you describe. That's not happening. I'm guessing you aren't shooting on Manual, and that there may be a metering problem too. This situation isn't unique to digital, so I can't imagine that the controls to accomplish this are missing from the Rebel (I don't shoot Canon). When I'm shooting for water streaks, I choose my shutter speed first, then adjust the aperture for proper exposure.

Check to make sure that your ISO is at its lowest setting (100 on the DR I think). Set your lens to its smallest apperature (something around f/22 or smaller). Try a shutter speed of around half a second. If all that doesn't work, it may be that the conditions you are shooting in are too bright for long shutter speeds. You may need to put on a ND filter or polarizing filter to cut down on the amount of light coming in through the lens. Good luck.

Thank you all for the posts. very helpful. I will go home from work today and try these suggestions.

One posible solution on the Rebel is to use the TV mode. This allows you to set the shutter speed. The camera will attempt to set the aperature for you to get the correct exposure. It also allows exposure compensation. You will need to set the correct ISO though as this mode does not automatically adjust ISO. It will display something if the aperature cannot be closed down enough to get a proper exposure, I think the meter bar in the viefinder will blink. I don't use TV much so I'm not sure.

The other option is to use M mode and set the aperature and shutter combination. The dial works to change the shutter. You need to press a button and turn the dial to adjust the aperature in this mode. Then you just need to pay attention to the meter.

The lens apparently can't stop down enough to allow such a "long" shutter speed to be used. Use lower ISO and a ND filter to cut down the amount of light that goes through the lens.

Basil

I use a circular polarizer spun to its darkest, as well as the lowest iso available and do these types of images on cloudy days, which offer less light and also less challenge for silky water shots (fewer distracting reflections). It also helps to have a lens that will stop down well below f22, which the 100-400L IS does, and that's the go-to lens for silky water for me. That whole combo has allowed exposures up to 8 seconds. I generally go to Av mode (aperature priority) and stop the lens down until I get a shutter speed I like. If that auto setting delivers too many shadows or blown-out highlights, I'll switch to manual and tweak from there. I did a fair amount of this experimentation with the original D-Rebel.