The MasterClass Series #10

Shooting Flowing Water – At Dawn, Dusk, and Day

Equipment

Canon EOS 5D Mark III & Fujifilm X-T10
Canon EF 24-70mm f/2.8 L USM (President’s House Fountain)
Fujifilm XF18-55mm f/2.8-4 R LM OIS (Thiruvalluvar Statue)
Canon TS-E 24mm f/3.5 L II (Vagator, Goa)
Canon EF 17-40mm f/4 L USM (Pahalgam Waterfall, Pahalgam Betaab Valley)

EXIF #1

President’s House Fountain (New Delhi)
Focal length: 30mm
Aperture: f/6.3
Shutter speed: 2 seconds
ISO: 100

EXIF #2

Thiruvalluvar Statue (Kanyakumari, India)
Focal length: 18mm
Aperture: f/4.5
Shutter speed: 0.8 seconds
ISO: 200

EXIF #3

Vagator, Goa (India)
Focal length: 24mm
Aperture: f/13
Shutter speed: 1.6 seconds
ISO: 100

EXIF #4

Pahalgam Waterfall (Kashmir, India)
Focal length: 23mm
Aperture: f/16
Shutter speed: 2 seconds
ISO: 50

EXIF #5

Pahalgam Betaab Valley (Kashmir, India)
Focal length: 17mm
Aperture: f/16
Shutter speed: 1.3 seconds
ISO: 50

Editing

Adobe Lightroom Classic CC

After the magic of the grand ceilings, let’s now capture the charm of flowing water.

The story

As travellers, we find water bodies everywhere. While the static ones like hotel pools may add to the scene with their crystal blues, the flowing waters of rivers, seas, fountains, or waterfalls offer a photo opportunity that brings liveliness to the destination.

Shooting flowing water challenge

Any image of flowing water must bring out its dynamism and show movement for the viewer. While shooting it in low-light conditions poses a slow shutter speed challenge, during the day, it presents a converse challenge – how to slow the shutter speed!

President's House Fountain - Shooting Flowing Water - At Dawn, Dusk, and Day - Travelure ©
Shot #1: President’s House Fountain, New Delhi, India

The shots

Shot #1 is a night shot. For a foreground-to-infinity focus, I ensured the aperture was narrow enough and the foreground focus was on hyperfocal distance. Once the basics were out of the way, the next challenge was to steady the camera and find the right shutter speed to avoid any chance of burnout of illuminated parts of the frame. Few test shots with the camera mounted on a tripod and I settled for a 2 seconds shutter speed. The fountain water came through like silken strands.

Thiruvalluvar Statue, Kanyakumari, India - Shooting Flowing Water - At Dawn, Dusk, and Day - Travelure ©
Shot #2: Thiruvalluvar Statue, Kanyakumari, India

For shot #2, a longer shutter speed would burn out the part where the dawn sun was hiding behind the clouds. But as the sea was rough, faster shutter speed (0.8 seconds) was enough to give a fluffy-cloud look to the turbulent waves.

Vagator Beach, Goa, India - Shooting Flowing Water - At Dawn, Dusk, and Day - Travelure ©
Shot #3: Vagator Beach, Goa, India

The shot (Part-2)

In shot #3, sunset posed a strange challenge. The sky was too bright to slow the shutter speed while the sea was much darker, needing a slow shutter speed. Using a variable ND (Neutral Density) filter (2-400) on the lens, I slowed the shutter speed enough (1.6 seconds) to get the dark-area details and avoiding burnout in the bright-area. While many photographers may propagate the use of Half ND filter, I don’t use it as the horizon line is never straight, but is jagged. Also, it is preferable the horizon line is closer to the one-third level rather than at the exact middle of the frame.

Waterfall at Pahalgam, Kashmir, India - Shooting Flowing Water - At Dawn, Dusk, and Day - Travelure ©
Shot #4: Waterfall at Pahalgam, Kashmir, India – Shooting Flowing Water
Betaab Valley, Pahalgam, Kashmir, India - Shooting Flowing Water - At Dawn, Dusk, and Day - Travelure ©
Shot #5: Betaab Valley, Pahalgam, Kashmir, India

I clicked shots #4 & #5 with a variable ND filter (2-400). This filter helps me stop-down a remarkable 8.66 stops. It was bright sunlight. With ISO at 50, I still slowed the shutter speed to 2 seconds in shot #4 and 1.3 seconds in shot #5. The results were dreamy.

Click HERE to see another usual capture of flowing water.

Try these tips the next time you shoot flowing water. And delight your senses!

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