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.
You can see one of my former photos of a waterfall. This was captured on the auto setting over ten years ago when I knew very little about photography. Fortunately times have changed and I know what to do now!
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.
I was not able to fix it. Why? Because the image was not taken correctly to begin with. I tried to fix the highlights and decrease the brightness at the top to even out the lighting but it still does not work. I had to forget about this one regrettably.
When waterfalls are taken on a bright day in the auto setting we get one of two things. The waterfall is flawlessly exposed and all the surrounding elements, like your mountain range and cliff face is not exposed enough. (Too dark.) We may also be challenged by the surrounding elements being ideal and our waterfall having too much light (too bright.) How do we get the waterfall and the surrounds both looking ideally exposed?
The first thing I can suggest is to photograph in soft light. A smooth grey light will not only bring out your green leaves and trees around the waterfall, but it will not overexpose anything too much. You will still need to meter off the white water however.
You will notice that when capturing your falls in gentle light, it's easier to get better exposure. The highlights are reduced and the shadows are not as strong. Light is refracted due to the overcast day and therefore we get a filtered look in our photos.
Let's take a look at some examples of what waterfalls look like in filtered light.
Let's inspect this photo a little more thoroughly. The light is coming from the upper part of the photo and we see shadows in the rock face below. To be able to create this waterfall photo I made certain that I had the correct exposure. I metered off the flowing water. You see your waterfall will be the lightest thing in the picture so it is imperative to tell the camera to meter off that. This works especially well if you are spot metering.
This photo was taken from a fair distance, at the end of a very high platform, gazing across a river. I wanted to be able to have a more interesting vantage point but it was not physically achievable, so I made the most of what I had.
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.
How to take photos of waterfalls depends on your lighting, where you stand and getting the right exposure. Once you have all three aspects covered, then you can enjoy going to the next level; editing. Sometimes bringing up the white and dark by a small part will help balance out the light even more. You may want to increase the vibrancy, or increase just one colour only. Relax and find the precise method that works for you. Soon your waterfalls will be appearing like masterpieces 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.
You can see one of my former photos of a waterfall. This was captured on the auto setting over ten years ago when I knew very little about photography. Fortunately times have changed and I know what to do now!
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.
I was not able to fix it. Why? Because the image was not taken correctly to begin with. I tried to fix the highlights and decrease the brightness at the top to even out the lighting but it still does not work. I had to forget about this one regrettably.
When waterfalls are taken on a bright day in the auto setting we get one of two things. The waterfall is flawlessly exposed and all the surrounding elements, like your mountain range and cliff face is not exposed enough. (Too dark.) We may also be challenged by the surrounding elements being ideal and our waterfall having too much light (too bright.) How do we get the waterfall and the surrounds both looking ideally exposed?
The first thing I can suggest is to photograph in soft light. A smooth grey light will not only bring out your green leaves and trees around the waterfall, but it will not overexpose anything too much. You will still need to meter off the white water however.
You will notice that when capturing your falls in gentle light, it's easier to get better exposure. The highlights are reduced and the shadows are not as strong. Light is refracted due to the overcast day and therefore we get a filtered look in our photos.
Let's take a look at some examples of what waterfalls look like in filtered light.
Let's inspect this photo a little more thoroughly. The light is coming from the upper part of the photo and we see shadows in the rock face below. To be able to create this waterfall photo I made certain that I had the correct exposure. I metered off the flowing water. You see your waterfall will be the lightest thing in the picture so it is imperative to tell the camera to meter off that. This works especially well if you are spot metering.
This photo was taken from a fair distance, at the end of a very high platform, gazing across a river. I wanted to be able to have a more interesting vantage point but it was not physically achievable, so I made the most of what I had.
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.
How to take photos of waterfalls depends on your lighting, where you stand and getting the right exposure. Once you have all three aspects covered, then you can enjoy going to the next level; editing. Sometimes bringing up the white and dark by a small part will help balance out the light even more. You may want to increase the vibrancy, or increase just one colour only. Relax and find the precise method that works for you. Soon your waterfalls will be appearing like masterpieces 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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