Photographing a waterfall is more tedious than it looks. In this case, the physical aspects of the equipment you use greatly influence the success of each shot. Here are some important and useful tools to have in the field.
Landscape photography of waterfalls often requires a very different workflow than other types of landscape photography. In addition to coming up with a good composition and handling the ambient light, there are many different environmental factors that can significantly affect the output and success of your photo. That said, there are more beneficial physical aspects when it comes to the devices and accessories being used.
Weather cover and rain cover
The camera and lens selection is quite similar to other types of landscape photography and depends quite a bit on the fact that we prefer better image quality for our landscape photos. However, the simple attributes of cameras and lenses are important in ensuring that the equipment we use can survive such environmental agents. Taking pictures of waterfalls, especially waterfalls with strong currents or flows, requires quite a bit of resilience when your device gets wet. Unlike marine landscapes, where water arrives as solid waves, the area around the basin below waterfalls is often filled with aerosol mists that come from continuously flowing water and take the form of air bubbles. When shooting waterfalls at a considerable height, your device can get wet after only a few minutes of exposure to the air. For most mid-range and high-end cameras, weather sealing on the crevices may be enough to protect from moisture. On the other hand, any other camera that is not covered by the weather needs to be protected with a rain cover or constant wiping.
Neutral density filter
The use of neutral density filters in waterfall photography is not always necessary. This is especially true when the area around the falls is covered with a lot of shade trees. Also, one may not like long exposures and want to get the frozen texture of water. However, when you shoot in a relatively bright condition and after the textures are smooth and brushed on the water surface, ND . filter is a must have. Usually, a 3-point or 6-point ND filter should be enough to give your exposure time considerable length depending on the texture you’re after. Gradified neutral density filters can also be useful but are not always necessary, especially if the camera you use has significant dynamic range or if you prefer to capture in-frame exposures for later blending. this.
Circular polarizer
The CPL filter is probably the most important filter when photographing waterfalls during the day. Circular polarizers are often used to enhance reflections on bodies of water to create symmetry, but the use of CPL . filter In this case it’s the exact opposite. Polarizing filters redirect light coming from reflective surfaces, and this diversion can have two common results. First, CPL can redirect light to enhance reflections and provide more contrast for surface reflections. In addition, polarizing filters can reduce or eliminate reflections and this can be useful in some cases. In the daytime sky, the filter works to reduce glare coming from particles reflected in the atmosphere, resulting in darker blues in clear skies and increased contrast against bright white clouds.
In the context of waterfall photography, the same mechanism is useful for removing the reflection of many small wet surfaces from moist air. In this scenario, all the blades of grass, all the leaves, and all the wet rocks act as individual mirrors that reflect light from the sky. The effect of all the small bright objects around the waterfall creates a remarkably rough texture that almost fills the entire frame. In addition, because these surfaces reflect light, their brightness takes attention away from the highlight of the scene, the waterfall. With the use of a circular polarizing filter that rotates in the right direction, photographers can reduce or even completely eliminate glare and distractions, helping to smooth out surrounding areas and create good highlights. than for waterfalls.
Hood and shield
In this case, the hood serves a slightly different purpose. Most of the time, a lens hood is used to shield strong light from the sides that can lead to unwanted lens flare. When photographing waterfalls, a lens hood can partially shield the lens from fog, not completely eliminating glass wetting but at least minimizing it. In the video above, I used a magnetic lens hood above the ND+CPL filter I was using because the setup didn’t allow the use of a regular hood. In this case, the hood acts as a temporary shield when I’m not exposed as the far ends of the hood will be visible in the frame by the super wide-angle lens. However, if shooting with standard zoom or a normal focal length, the hood can be held in place to act as a shield the entire time.
Super absorbent lens cloth
Probably the most important accessory to have in your bag whenever you’re out shooting waterfalls will be an absorbent cloth. As mentioned many times before, the fog from the falls can really be optically troublesome. Humidity not only reduces clarity, water droplets can also be seen in brighter parts of the frame when using a small aperture. The result will be a blurred waterfall shot with so many spots that it’s almost impossible to remove.
When shooting waterfalls, it is important to clean the front glass element (lens or filter) after each exposure. It may also be necessary to limit the exposure time to a certain amount of time depending on the rate at which moisture builds up on the glass. The condition of the front glass determines the success of each exposure, and a seemingly minor mistake of forgetting your lens cover can completely ruin your shoot. If you’re shooting for a long time, it’s best to have multiple sheets ready in case one gets too wet.
There’s definitely more to it than looking at well-executed waterfall landscape photos. Serene and peaceful environments are in stark contrast to the logistical effort a photographer has to take to create them. In the end, being prepared for the challenges of both lighting and the environment will certainly pay off.
