Waterfall photography is one of the most stunning styles of photos we can create. Knowing how to take pictures of waterfalls not only allows us to become great panorama photographers but also assists us to attempt to become better photographers generally. There is one problem with capturing photos of waterfalls that many photo enthusiasts have difficulty with. That is the daylight. Sometimes waterfalls can be too dark or overexposed. It seems to be a challenge to get the precise exposure. Lets inspect some ways we can take tack sharp and clear images of waterfalls.
In this waterfall photography tutorial I will be showing you how to solve the foremost challenges with exposure. Exposure is a photographic term to describe how much general lighting there is within a photo. This means that the brightness of your falls must be just right; not overexposed and not underexposed. This can be difficult when you are taking photos of your waterfall on a bright day.
One of my earlier photos of a waterfall was photographed using automatic mode over ten years ago when I knew very little about photography. It's a pretty bad photo but at least I have learned through experience.
The trouble with this shot is that the camera exposed for light off the shadow areas of the photo and missed the top section. As a result the top of the waterfall is not detected because it's overexposed.
Years later when I invested in Lightroom 4 I decided that would try and fix some of my earlier photos.
When waterfalls are captured on a bright day in the automatic function we get one of two things. The waterfall is perfectly exposed and all the surrounding elements, like your mountain range and cliff face is underexposed. (Too dark.) We might also be faced with the surrounding things being just right and our waterfall being overexposed (too bright.) How do we get the waterfall and the surrounds both appearing perfectly exposed?
When waterfalls are captured on a bright day in the auto function we get one of two things. The waterfall is perfectly exposed and all the surrounding elements, like your mountain range and cliff face is underexposed. (Too dark.) We possibly will also be confronted by the surrounding things being just right and our waterfall having too much light (too bright.) How do we get the waterfall and the surrounds both appearing ideally exposed?
The initial thing I can advocate is to shoot in filtered light. A smooth grey light from cloud cover will not only highlight your green leaves and trees surrounding the waterfall, but it will not over saturate anything too much. You will still need to meter off the white water however.
You will notice that when shooting your falls in gentle light, it's simpler and easier to get improved exposure. The highlights are reduced and the shadowed areas are not as intense. Light is not as strong due to the overcast day and hence we get a gentle look in our photos.
This photo was a 3 shot panorama. Water is tough when you shoot panoramas. You have to have your shutter speed on super fast. I'll talk about this in a different photography tutorial.
This photo was a 3 shot panorama. Water is tricky when you shoot panoramas. You have to have your shutter on extremely fast. I'll talk about this in a different photography tutorial.
Let's observe this photo a little more thoroughly. The light is coming from the top and we make out shadows in the rock face underneath. To be able to create this waterfall photo I made sure that I had the right exposure. I metered off the flowing water. You see your waterfall will be the most luminescent thing in the image so it is vital to tell the camera to meter off that. This works particularly well if you are spot metering.
How to shoot waterfalls depends on your brightness, where you stand and getting the true exposure. Once you have all three then you can take pleasure ingoing to the next level; editing. Sometimes bringing up the whites and dark by a little bit will help smooth out the light even more.
You may want to increase the vibrancy, or enhance one colour only. Take your time and find the right method that works for you. Soon your waterfalls will be looking like works of art you will want to hang on your wall.
In this waterfall photography tutorial I will be showing you how to solve the foremost challenges with exposure. Exposure is a photographic term to describe how much general lighting there is within a photo. This means that the brightness of your falls must be just right; not overexposed and not underexposed. This can be difficult when you are taking photos of your waterfall on a bright day.
One of my earlier photos of a waterfall was photographed using automatic mode over ten years ago when I knew very little about photography. It's a pretty bad photo but at least I have learned through experience.
The trouble with this shot is that the camera exposed for light off the shadow areas of the photo and missed the top section. As a result the top of the waterfall is not detected because it's overexposed.
Years later when I invested in Lightroom 4 I decided that would try and fix some of my earlier photos.
When waterfalls are captured on a bright day in the automatic function we get one of two things. The waterfall is perfectly exposed and all the surrounding elements, like your mountain range and cliff face is underexposed. (Too dark.) We might also be faced with the surrounding things being just right and our waterfall being overexposed (too bright.) How do we get the waterfall and the surrounds both appearing perfectly exposed?
When waterfalls are captured on a bright day in the auto function we get one of two things. The waterfall is perfectly exposed and all the surrounding elements, like your mountain range and cliff face is underexposed. (Too dark.) We possibly will also be confronted by the surrounding things being just right and our waterfall having too much light (too bright.) How do we get the waterfall and the surrounds both appearing ideally exposed?
The initial thing I can advocate is to shoot in filtered light. A smooth grey light from cloud cover will not only highlight your green leaves and trees surrounding the waterfall, but it will not over saturate anything too much. You will still need to meter off the white water however.
You will notice that when shooting your falls in gentle light, it's simpler and easier to get improved exposure. The highlights are reduced and the shadowed areas are not as intense. Light is not as strong due to the overcast day and hence we get a gentle look in our photos.
This photo was a 3 shot panorama. Water is tough when you shoot panoramas. You have to have your shutter speed on super fast. I'll talk about this in a different photography tutorial.
This photo was a 3 shot panorama. Water is tricky when you shoot panoramas. You have to have your shutter on extremely fast. I'll talk about this in a different photography tutorial.
Let's observe this photo a little more thoroughly. The light is coming from the top and we make out shadows in the rock face underneath. To be able to create this waterfall photo I made sure that I had the right exposure. I metered off the flowing water. You see your waterfall will be the most luminescent thing in the image so it is vital to tell the camera to meter off that. This works particularly well if you are spot metering.
How to shoot waterfalls depends on your brightness, where you stand and getting the true exposure. Once you have all three then you can take pleasure ingoing to the next level; editing. Sometimes bringing up the whites and dark by a little bit will help smooth out the light even more.
You may want to increase the vibrancy, or enhance one colour only. Take your time and find the right method that works for you. Soon your waterfalls will be looking like works of art you will want to hang on your wall.
About the Author:
Amy Renfrey is a professional photography teacher. She is the author of several photography ebooks and a monthly photography emagazine. She shows you how to take stunning photos every single time, even if you have never used a digital camera before. Click here to learn photography the easy way.
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