Posted by Joey Grant on August 31, 2007 at 11:50 AM
I wanted to see if anyone could help me. I have seen some incredible images here and other places of flowing water that is silky and the surrounding areas is perfect as well. The times i have tried to take a picture like that at a lower shutter speed, I usually will blow out the water or sky or trees, ect. I have seen a few talk about using 2 photos combining into one. How exactly do you do that.
I do use a tripod, use a polarizer on my 28 - 135 IS lens. But I can't get everything to come out right. Can anybody give me some tips on how to take the best waterfall, water shots including the surounding landscapes and such. With fall coming I am sure I will want to try for some water shots with fall colors around it.
thanks
Posted by Leann Greene on August 31, 2007 at 12:24 PM
Joey,
I personally stick with a single exposure and you have to judge the scene by how much light is around and also the volume of water flowing. Alot of personal preferences also come into play-I am a sucker for cotton candy blur in some cases and also like a bit of texture in other cases. Capturing texture means a shorter exposure of 1/2 sec or less. Capturing a smoother flow and possible swirls is longer. I have made many low light exposures of 3 secs or more with a tripod,polarizer and mostly my 18-55mm kit lens -oh and a remote shutter release can also help so you only wait 2 seconds instead of 10 secs (on camera timer).
The key is to avoid bright sunshine. Overcast days are best...if you have bright sunlight hitting the water you will have overexposed highlights. Try early in the morning or late in the afternoon too, when the sun is not too bright. I would avoid including the sky as much as possible, depending on the composition and what you want to achieve, of course. If you are shooting digital, pay attention to your histogram to be sure the whites are not blown. then keep practicing!
Discussion
5 repliesI do use a tripod, use a polarizer on my 28 - 135 IS lens. But I can't get everything to come out right. Can anybody give me some tips on how to take the best waterfall, water shots including the surounding landscapes and such. With fall coming I am sure I will want to try for some water shots with fall colors around it.
thanks
I personally stick with a single exposure and you have to judge the scene by how much light is around and also the volume of water flowing. Alot of personal preferences also come into play-I am a sucker for cotton candy blur in some cases and also like a bit of texture in other cases. Capturing texture means a shorter exposure of 1/2 sec or less. Capturing a smoother flow and possible swirls is longer. I have made many low light exposures of 3 secs or more with a tripod,polarizer and mostly my 18-55mm kit lens -oh and a remote shutter release can also help so you only wait 2 seconds instead of 10 secs (on camera timer).
As was mentioned, try some of these shots again in soft, diffused light. Come back and show us some of your results!
Wade