Tips to photograph a waterfall
Tip 1: use the right shutter speed
Which shutter speed you should use when photographing a waterfall depends on what kind of effect you want. Do you want to highlight the force of the water? Use a fast shutter speed. This freezes the movement, so you can capture all of the drops of water. With a slow shutter speed, the water gets a soft and milky appearance. Use a shutter speed of about 1/10s or half a second to achieve this effect. Don't forget to place your camera on a tripod.
Tip 2: avoid a wet lens
When you're photographing near a waterfall, there's a good chance your lens will get wet. With a lens hood, you can protect the lens from small drops coming from the waterfall. Dry your lens with a lens cloth after photographing. Dried-up drops of water turn into annoying stains that can ruin your next photos.
Tip 3: use a gray or polarization filter
A gray filter is useful if you want to take a good waterfall photo. With a gray filter, less light hits the image sensor. As a result, you can use a slow shutter speed more easily and get that special effect you want. Screw a polarization filter onto your lens to keep annoying reflections and glares from the water out of your photo. This makes the photo look calmer and retains the natural light-dark contrasts.
Tip 4: don't take photos if the sun is too bright
If the sun is very bright, the contrasts in your photos become more pronounced. The exposed parts quickly become overexposed and the shadows turn very dark. In addition, the water stands out less, because the structure is no longer visible due to the bright light. That's why you should try to photograph on a cloudy day. A waterfall hidden in the shadows looks nicer on your photo. And there's another advantage. If the light is less bright, you can use a slow shutter speed more easily.
Tip 5: create an interesting composition
You want to show off how large the waterfall is. You can do so by choosing the right composition for the photo. Make sure you create depth by placing a tree or flowers in the foreground. When you create depth, the eyes of the viewer are drawn to the waterfall. Don't forget to capture the surroundings of the waterfall. This puts the size of the waterfall into perspective.
