Waterscape, #18, Rupit, Catalunya, 2025 (1/13s, f/9, ISO 1600, 200mm)
“Water is the driving force of all Nature.”
–Leonarda da Vinci (1452-1519)
Some Basic Tips To Get You Started
I’m assuming you might want to make large, sharp prints… or, at least, maximize the picture quality…
–A solid tripod is petty much a necessity. (Unless you are good at propping your camera up with sticks and stones.)
–If you are using a DSLR, use mirror lock up and then you will need a remote trigger release (or you can simply set the camera’s shutter delay mode for, say, 3 seconds to allow any vibrations to dissipate, and use the normal shutter button).
–Shoot in RAW and at the lowest ISO possible so as to have as much flexibility as possible in post.
–Experiment with different shutter speeds, from 1/3 sec to even 5 or 10 seconds, and everything in between. The water will look quite different in each case. Faster shutter = more water detail; slower shutter = more silky effect. Depending on the lighting, you may have to adjust ISO and/or f-stop, or use a dark filter to achieve your desired shutter speed. Neutral density filters are very useful.
–You could shoot two identically framed images, one at a fast shutter speed to make sure none of the surrounding leaves or branches are moving, and a second at the slower shutter speed you want for the water. Then, combine them in post.
–It should be obvious but, for similar effects, fast running water close to you doesn’t need as slow a shutter speed as slower running water far away. Again, experiment with different shutter speeds.
–Composing to include the entire panorama, or waterfall, is a good place to start, but don’t fail to zoom in on small mini-portraits of the water. Sometimes you can discover some really interesting patterns when seen with a slow shutter speed versus what you see with your eyeball.
–Before shooting, check the scene for odd distracting sticks, twigs, leaves, rocks, bits of watery foam, and even litter. I’m not above removing them to “enhance Nature” a tad bit.
–It all depends on the effect you are after, but a massive rush of water flowing down a creek or over a cliff isn’t necessarily ideal as it could lead to nothing but lots of white and very little detail when shooting at slow shutter speeds. Often, less flow will yield more interesting contrasts and details.
–Bring some sort of soft rag or lens cloth with you to wipe the spray off of your lens. You can use a a plastic bag or shower cap over the camera to shield it from rain and general wetness as you manuever into position. Don’t forget to check your lens regularly for water drops.
–Again, to repeat: Experiment with different shutter speeds, varying compositions, lenses from wide to tele, alternative angles, and so on. You might be surprised by how different the scene looks on your camera’s screen versus what your naked eye is seeing.
–In post, try both color and B&W versions.
–Wear water-proof outer garments to keep yourself dry. If raining, even consider an umbrella to cover you and your camera/tripod.
Sample Images
Gear: Mark I Eyeball, and a Nikon D850 on a tripod with mirror lock up and 3-second exposure delay mode on. Lenses were Nikkors 24-70 f/2.8 and the 70-200 f/4. Post: Adobe Photoshop Elements and Nik Silver Efex Pro.
I generally start with a photograph of the entire scene, then I’ll try different perspectives before finally moving in to focus on details. With this one I was looking for the milky effect so, to get the slowest shutter speed I could given the lighting (and no dark filter) I stopped way down to f/22 (not ideal for sharpness), and set the ISO in Lo mode at ISO 40 thus giving me a shutter speed of 2.5 seconds…
Salt d’Aigua de la Foradada, #6, Cantonigrós, Catalunya
Another attempt to show the entire scene along with the milky effect on water that was very far away but also fast moving…
Salt de Sallent, #3, Rupit, Catalunya, 2025 (f/22, 1.6 seconds, ISO 64, 52mm)
Alternatively, you could photograph the entire main subject as I did above, but hide it behind other interesting elements…
Waterscape, #1, Rupit, Catalunya, 2025 (f/22, 1.6 sec, ISO 64, 44mm)
The watery subject doesn’t have to be huge and grandiose to be interesting. Even small seeps and springs can reveal mysteries. In this case, a longer exposure (5 seconds) gave some areas a ghost-like feel…
Waterscape, #2, Rupit, Catalunya, 2025 (f/11, 5 sec, ISO 64, 70mm)
Another anonymous ghost cascade…
Waterscape, #3, Rupit, Catalunya, 2025 (f/8, 2 sec, ISO 64, 70mm)
Now we start moving in closer to our subject, and experimenting with slightly faster shutter speeds to bring out details in the water…
Waterscape, #5, Rupit, Catalunya, 2025 (f/8, 1/3 sec, ISO 64, 150mm)
Not sure why I shot this one at f/29, unless I wanted the close foreground and the far reaches to all be in focus…
Waterscape, #14, Rupit, Catalunya, 2025 (f/29, 1/3sec, ISO 64, 200mm)
Now you see the effect of a relatively “fast” shutter speed of 1/13 second–more detail of the water comes out. Note that I bumped up the ISO to get this shutter speed (which required a bit of noise reduction in post). It also helps that the subject water in this case is not one big white jet but rather spread out and shallow…
Waterscape, #18, Rupit, Catalunya, 2025 (f/9, 1/13 sec, ISO 1600, 200mm)
And even closer…
Waterscape, #20, Rupit, Catalunya, 2025 (f/8, 1/10 sec, ISO 1600, 70mm)
And, finally, an even more intimate portrait…
Waterscape, #22, Rupit, Catalunya, 2025 (f/8, 1/8 sec, ISO 1600, 200mm)
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