Photographing Water

Whether you’re a seasoned photographer or a novice venturing into the world of photography, taking your time to research the best viewpoint to photograph something is one of the first and most important steps.

If it’s a body of water you want to capture, Ontario has the benefit of being close to the largest body of fresh water in the world, one-fifth of the world's fresh surface water and has close to 10,000 miles of shoreline and rivers. Needless to say, there are lots of locations to choose from.

My personal preference is to take my waterscape images during early morning or later evening. This will reduce the amount of glare and reflections on the waters surface and allow you to play with shutter speeds and create emotion… something that I promise will separates your image from the novice photographer.

My method is to scope out a location ahead of time, identify sun and moon locations using “photographers ephemeris” and then show up two hours before a sun rise or sunset. My personal preference is to show up in the morning, shoot the blue hour before the sun comes up. You will bear the solar winds and boat traffic before they kick up the waves.

When I am choosing a viewpoint for photographing water, I first look for a focal point of interest. This can be a lighthouse, rock formation, an interesting structure or high tide. Any interesting landmark or formations of nature are great to use as focal points. I sometimes follow the rule of thirds and place the focal point to either the left or right side of the image. But then again, sometimes the balance of the image demands that a focal point is in the foreground, smack center in the lower half of the image.

Simple adjustments to your position can also change the viewpoint and increase the beauty of the image. Experiment with moving the camera a few inches up by standing on a rock or chair. Try kneeling down for another viewpoint. You can also alter your position by taking steps to the side of steps forward or backwards.

Don’t accept that the image that you see before you is the image you should be taking. Most of us are shooting digital, take numerous shots from different angles and watch how the subtle change can have a huge impact of the composition.

Tips for photographing water
Water seems like such a simple thing to photograph. We see images everywhere that depict incredible photographic scenes. It has many faces; it can be as large as an ocean, a river or a waterfall to as small as a droplet on a flower petal. Frozen or free flowing, it can be both dramatic and interesting.

The following are some tips and thoughts to get you thinking of capturing water. Not only out in nature, but in your kitchen or bathroom too.

Long Exposure waterscapes
This generally is taken early in the morning or later in the day. The time of day therefore demands a long shutter speed. The result will be flattened water of glass that will give off some reflections.

I suggest that you use a tripod, shutter release cable and set your camera on aperture priority and let the shutter speed be determined by the camera. The smaller the iris opening (larger the f-stop number) the longer the shutter speed will be.

Stopping the motion of water
Some examples are when your kids are splashing in the water or a wave is hitting the rocks. My suggestion here is to use fairly fast shutter speed and/or flash in order to freeze the action. Use a tripod and a multi/continuous shot mode is advised as you will want to capture a series of shots of the water moving before selecting your favorite one when you see them on a larger screen at home.

Water drops
Water drops can be extremely hard to photograph. The best way to capture droplets is to put your camera on a tripod and attach a shutter release cable or use a remote control to eliminate camera shake. I would set my camera to burst mode so you can take a series of images at once. Use a macro lens, a cable release and have a light source handy to light the drop as it rests or rolls.

Another way to photograph a droplet of water is to do it indoors. You capture the water dropping in a pool of water. What you do is fill a bowl with water then let a droplet fall into the water. At the same time, let the shutter start so it takes a series of images and one should capture the moment the droplet hits the surface. With this technique, practice makes perfect! I make it sound simple here, but its rather difficult. Some people go as far as using a set up with multiple lights, colored dye and a contraption to fix the water collision point. Google the process and get some ideas.

Reflections
Look out for interesting details when you are shooting reflections. There’s no point shooting something dull and uninteresting. I like to capture people or animals in reflections on the other side of the body of water.

I would not use a flash as this will leave a ‘hot spot’ in the water, I would rater see you use a polarizer filter as this reduces glare from the sun that may be present in the water. Choose a reasonable shutter speed so there is no blurring, especially if the water is moving a little.

You will want to wait for fairly calm conditions when shooting reflections in the water.

Waterfalls
In order to capture silky smooth water flows use a long shutter speed. You will need to experiment to find the perfect timing but starting from two seconds is a good point. You must place your camera on a tripod and never use flash. You can also choose a small depth of field of f/16 to f/22 so that the image looks sharp.

Moving water on bright days?
On a bright day, you may find choosing a long shutter speed problematic. So what you need to do is to use a neutral density filter. This is attached on the end of your lens and blocks out the amount of light entering it, meaning you can choose a longer shutter speed. You can also use a polarizer at the same time. Another option is to choose a low ISO of 100 or even 50 if your camera allows it. The lower the ISO the more light the camera needs to capture an image so this may force the camera to give you a slower shutter speed and as a bonus, you will have a very fine grained image.

Pull up Google, look at some images, and get inspired. Then, get out and enjoy what water can offer… and keep the camera dry. :-)

Kev

Photographing in the Fog

So, I was on my way into work this morning and the fields and ponds were covered in a veil of fog. The clouds above were pink from the morning sun, the fall colours evident in the trees, and the landscape covered in a layer of white.

For those that have seen my images know that I love to be out with my camera on these mornings, especially in the fall and early winter. The lure of the atmosphere and diffused light really draws me out of the house. I love to exploit the landscape while it is covered in fog to evoke mood.

But be warned, fog is that one element that can either set the tone for a beautiful atmosphere in your photos or it can very easily make your photos look white washed and dull, void of color and have no definition.

If fog photography is something you want to get better at, let’s learn what fog is and how to shoot it. There are varying types of fog that you will encounter out on a photo shoot. Some will be visible over water, some will form when the sun heats up a surface, and other only comes out at night. Some fog will be simple to photograph because it has minimal impact on exposure, while some will engulf a scene and be a nightmare to photograph. I found some simple definitions of what the different types of fog are and thought I should run through a simple illustration versus reinventing the wheel and giving you the technical gobbledegook.

Fog can happen at any time of year and is classified according to how it is formed. Here is a rundown on the types of fog...

Radiation and Advection Fog

Sometimes referred to as simply ground fog, radiation fog and advection fog form because of the change in temperature between the earth and the air above it. It occurs when the winds are too calm to mix the layers of air near the ground. During the night the cold layers of air will sit on top of the earth’s surface. As the warm earth surface begins to cool, it also cools the shallow, moist air near the ground to its dew point. And voila... this will condense the layers of air above and fog droplets will form.

Radiation fog occurs frequently in hilly and mountainous areas. This type of fog is formed by the cooling of land after sunset by thermal radiation in calm conditions with clear sky.

Advection fog is different as it is sometimes referred to as sea fog. This fog forms when warm air over the water condenses as it drifts over colder air currents. It also causes fog in coastal areas as it flows over colder air lying on the ground that has cooled down due to radiation.

These types of fog can be very dense and make visibility extremely poor. Radiation fog will usually evaporate during the day when the heat of the sun brings the air above the dew point temperature. Advection fog however, may form at any time. Sometimes in the winter, advection fog may not evaporate for several days because the sun may not be warm enough to heat the air. It will only disperse when a stronger wind stirs up the stagnant air.

Photographing this type of fog usually will have you immersed in the bank of fog. It will engulf a scene. Taking photographs can be tricky. But finding the outer layers, or breaks inside the fog bank are the key to success here.

Evaporation Fog

This fog occurs when cold, dry air travels over warm water or land that is moist and warm. When water in the warm and moist water or land evaporates, it rises and mixes with the cold air layer. The evaporated water then cools down and condenses to form fog.

In the autumn, evaporation, or steam fog may form over a body of water. This is caused by cool air mixing with the warmer, moist air that is being heated from the water. The warm air cools down and reaches 100% humidity.

This type of fog can be either be extremely thick and can contain characteristics that allow it to remain as a defined cloud over a surface, or, on a minor scale, can appear as strands of raising smoke coming off a still pond.

Whether on a large or small scale this type of fog can move fairly fast and using slightly faster shutter speeds are needed. I live near a larger, fast flowing river. This fog will appear over the river and the dense fog will move above the moving water, slightly spilling over the banks at times.

Upslope Fog

This fog usually happens during the winter in the mountains. Light winds push the moist air lying on the ground up the slopes until it reaches a saturation point and condenses. In most cases, the fog forms on the lower slopes of the mountains and leaves the peaks exposed. This can create awe inspiring images that make mountain peaks rise out of nowhere.











Freezing and Ice Fog

With freezing fog, the water droplets contained in the fog become super cooled. As a result, the droplets remain as a liquid until they come into contact with an object. It then it freezes on contact. It is similar to freezing rain but there is no obvious precipitation.

Ice fog is only found in the Arctic. In the extremely cold air, small ice crystals become suspended.

There is a danger here for photographers. The cold temperatures and condensation freezing on your gear has a high probability. Take precautions and protect your gear.






So now that you know the most encountered types of fog... how the heck do we capture it?

If you are planning on shooting in the fog, the best time to capture this natural occurrence is during the evening or very early in the morning, just prior to sunrise and after sunrise. To increase your chances of finding fog, note that it is a lot more common near water.

Shooting photos while in fog is obviously a lot different than going for a day time stroll in the park with your camera to photograph the kids. Your subject matters are not as clear or defined and the all colour is minimized. The benefit of shooting in the fog is that it can diffuse the light source and appear that the light is coming from all angles. The bad thing about this is that is reduces the contrast of photos dramatically.

Fog can be used as a very powerful effect if you can emphasize the lighting, depth and outline of subject matters. It's these things that I search for. They can make the whole scene feel beautifully mysterious and give your photos a professional edge.

Emphasizing Depth

There are no set rules when shooting during dense fog. Remember, you're the photographer and photography is a creative form or art; so how you use the fog is entirely up to you. It is however a good practice to try and get some of the subject matter closer to your camera. This will give the image a pop of colour, and create a focal point because of the contrast and definition.

Shapes and Silhouettes

Sometimes the subject matter can be made into nothing but a husk of a silhouette. When taking photographs in the fog, I always ensure I first expose for the fog itself is rather than the subject. I then reverse that and expose for a subject. When at home I compare the two images to see what form of artistic message I wish to convey. Heck, sometimes I combine the images in Photoshop and use the exposure on the subject and the one on the fog to create one single image. (But that’s a Photoshop tutorial and an article unto itself)

Emphasizing Light

With fog, the light source is much more diffused than normal. This is due to the water droplets which have formed the fog. This softens the light and at the same time makes streaks of light noticeable from the intensity of many light sources. A good example for you to think of is a photograph of a forest in early morning light where the picture is taken in the course of the light and the light is streaking through the trees.

When taking photos in the fog, you want to make the light rays show off a varying quality to it that will give your finished photo the atmosphere you want. To do this, you need to plan out your shooting point. The rays of light will become most visible when you’re shooting near, although not directly at the source. This will ensure the abundant lights will be bright, streaking and split off from all the dark scenes.

Patience and Practice Make the Difference

When shooting in the fog, timing is essential to capture a great photo. Envisioning, moving or waiting for the perfect light will greatly impact the appearance of the light in the final photo. The layer of the fog tends to naturally adjust with time so being prepared at all times is a must. You must always understand your position in relation to the light source and be prepared to take photos of the ever changing landscape. A scene that may present itself one moment will be covered in fog the next.

There are two trains of thought. Know the scene you want to capture and wait for the fog to adjust to get the photo you want. Or, physically move with the breaks in the fog and photograph what that break in the fog presents as it moves across the landscape.

Another thing to remember is that fog may reflect light towards the camera. This will fool the light meter causing your images to be underexposed. To overcome this, use the camera’s built-in exposure compensation with a value of +1/2 to a +2. When you are out you can experiment until you get the proper value, or bracket your images and take 3 or 5 images of different exposures. This will ensure you get the proper exposure.

Another way to overcome this issue is to use manual exposure, but remember to keep in mind that longer exposures can result in a blurry image. Fast shutter speeds will give you a clearer, more realistic image, while longer shutter speeds will give you slightly blurry images, useful if you want to create a more mysterious fog photography effect.

Watch out for rain

When photographing in the fog, you need to watch out for condensation. Why? Well, condensation is small water droplets and this can cause the lens of your camera to become blurred. It will form on your lens, your image sensor and your LCD screen.

It is a good idea to bring an absorbent cloth along with you to wipe away any condensation that forms. Thankfully, there are ways to prevent this from happening though. Before leaving the warmth of your home to the cold outside, you should carry it in a sealed and airtight plastic bag. You can only open the bag once the camera inside is at the equal temperature as it is outside. This will generally take about 30 minutes to an hour for the temperatures to match. This will greatly reduce condensation forming inside and outside of your camera.

Sometimes, condensation can be unavoidable though, so again; it's advised that you bring an absorbent cloth along to wipe the lens clean and do not forget the protective gear for you and the camera. I will go as far as using my LCD screen for exposing versus looking through the viewfinder. Your breath on the back of the camera will immediately cause condensation, and it if freezes and gets into the electronics... well, let’s not dwell on that.

I hope I gave you some information that will be useful to your next fog outing. As with any photography, practice makes perfect. Just get out there and try it... you might be amazed at what you capture.

Happy Shooting!