Tips for Photographing Water

Water is quite a photogenic element: it doesn't matter if you photograph it in the vastness of an ocean or in a small drop that falls from a leaf, it always looks good in one shot, and perhaps that is why we love photographing water. With a little creativity, you can get to create really spectacular and surprising images.

Next, we leave you a series of tips to easily photograph the water in its different slopes.

Silk effect

The "silk" effect is one that makes the moving water acquire a smooth and translucent texture. Achieving this effect is very simple, you will only need a tripod and shoot with your camera at a slow shutter speed.

Freeze Water

If you want to freeze the movement of the water you will have to use fast shutter speeds. You can use the manual mode to configure your parameters, but remember that you can also use the semi-automatic mode that gives priority to the shutter speed. This mode is the most used for taking motion pictures, but it will be different depending on the camera you use. For example, on Canon cameras it is 'Tv' Mode and on Nikon and Sony it is 'S' Mode.

Drops of Water

Another task for which you will need to be patient but with which you can achieve very cool results is to photograph a drop of water. The drops can be in motion (a drop that falls or bounces, the ripple effect that it produces in a puddle ...) and static on surfaces (branches, leaves, spider webs ...).

Photographing them in static is easier, since the water is not moving, which always reduces the complexity of photographing. However, you should have a lens that is capable of capturing these small details (ie a macro lens).

If you want to capture it in motion, you should use a high shutter speed (from 1/2000 seconds).

Reflections

The reflections in the water act practically like a mirror, resulting in an image full of harmony and very pleasing to the eye. Some calm lakes can be real mirrors and give us incredible symmetrical images.

Reflections produced by the water and the sun, the atmospheric conditions, the time of day, how rough the water is, etc. will have a decisive influence on the effect of the image. We recommend working with wide-open diaphragm.

In addition, if you want to get more striking reflections photos without glare that ruin their sharpness, you can help yourself with polarizing filters, such as the ND2-ND400 variable neutral density filters from K&F Concept. Not only will they eliminate possible flares that may appear due to reflection, but they will also improve the contrast and saturation of the scene.

Finally, let your imagination run wild. Water is very present in our lives, so the possibilities in this field are innumerable, just take your camera and start photographing.