How to Photograph
Waterfalls
Waterfalls
Waterfall Photography Tips and Tricks
How to photograph Waterfalls – an introduction
Have you ever wondered how to capture those smooth silky looking waterfall photographs you seen online?
Well I hope so, because that's why I’ve written this entire article. To help guide you towards doing just that.
In this article, I will go over some of my favoured techniques for capturing waterfalls. How I approach each waterfall and what settings and filters I use (if any).
So that's enough for the introduction, let’s dive into the wonderful world of waterfall photography!
In this article, I will go over some of my favoured techniques for capturing waterfalls. How I approach each waterfall and what settings and filters I use (if any).
So that's enough for the introduction, let’s dive into the wonderful world of waterfall photography!
Best Camera and lenses For Waterfall Photography
So in this section, You will see for some pieces of equipment and gear, I will link to Amazon or other retailers. These are affiliate links. If you click through and make a purchase. I may receive a commission from any purchase. I ensure to only affiliate with reputable retailers in order to protect you as a valued reader of these articles.
That's enough Housekeeping.
So for this article, I am going to make a few assumptions.
You already own a camera and at least one standard prime or zoom lens.
You are familiar with the basics of photography in general. You understand the Exposure triangle and how shutter speeds and depth of field effect your images.
The equipment I currently use for pretty much all of my photography is the following
You already own a camera and at least one standard prime or zoom lens.
You are familiar with the basics of photography in general. You understand the Exposure triangle and how shutter speeds and depth of field effect your images.
The equipment I currently use for pretty much all of my photography is the following
Cameras: Nikon Z8 and Nikon Z6ii
Yes, I’m one of those photographers that has 2 pretty decent camera bodies (a call back to my professional days) My main body is the 45.7 Megapixel Nikon Z8. Possibly the best camera I’ve owned so far. With my second being the Nikon Z6ii.
Lenses: Nikon 24-70 f2.8 and Nikon 70-200 f2.8
For me professional grade lenses are an absolute must. You will see much greater improvement in your photography if you invest in your lenses before your camera bodies. Lenses tend to outlive camera bodies, and retain a better price on the used market if you choose to sell them later. My two go-to lenses are the Nikon 24-70 f2.8S and the Nikon 70-200 f2.8 S telephoto lens.
Filters: K&F concept X-pro Nano filter set
Filters are not a necessity, more of a nice to have. They open a whole new world of creative possibilities. I love using BIG ND (neutral density) filters for super long exposure photography. I went through a kick a few months ago of shooting only 2 minute long exposures.
Tripod: Benro Mach3 system tripod
There's an old saying, buy cheap, buy twice. I feel this is appropriate when it comes to tripods. I have bought the generic cheap models off of Amazon. But they always break after a year or two of use. The Benro tripod has been one of the best purchases I have made to date.
Of course, not everyone has or wants most of this equipment. I know photographers who dislike using filters and even tripods. But it really does help for the kind of long exposure waterfall photography that I like to capture.
Composing interesting waterfall shots
When approaching a new waterfall location. I do like to do a bit of research before hand. I use multiple tools including search, flickr World Map and Instagram. To see the kinds of images that other photographers have created at a certain location.
I generally don't like to copy other photographers compositions. I always feel its necessary to put your own spin on a location, rather than just rinse and repeat what others have done before. But its a good habit to get into so you know roughly how to compose a decent shot at any given location.
Good composition can make or break your image. The thing I like to keep in mind when composing my shots is “How do I take this from a photo of a waterfall, to a photo ABOUT a waterfall”. Its a bit cheesy I know, but I feel it works.
Waterfall Photography Settings
Now choosing the correct settings for your waterfall phonography is crucial. But, it all depends on how you envisage your final image. You can go online and read any number of comments in favour of using long shutter speeds. Also, you can find equally as many comments calling out that technique as being ugly and unappealing. It all comes down to personal preference.
Myself, I love a long exposure. I have been through stages where I will ONLY shoot exposures of 60 seconds or more. Thankfully, that was a short lived phase. There is an idea I like to put into practice when deciding the shutter speed I use for waterfall photography.
The lower the water level, the longer the shutter speed. So if its middle of summer time and there's not much rainfall. I like to use a really long shutter speed. Anything from 60-120 seconds. The more the water is flowing, say a very large falls like High Force, the faster a shutter speed I like to use.
As mentioned above, no matter what shutter speed you choose, someone out there will prefer it the other way. So you may as well do it as you like it!
As for the other sides of the exposure triangle, the aperture value I pick depends on the overall scene and the foreground I want included. Ask yourself if you need everything in the frame to be in sharp focus. Or does having out of focus elements in the fairground help bring the attention to the waterfall.
Watch the weather
How’s the weather? Has it been raining for the past few days? If you’re in the north of England, that answer is probably yes. I’m not the biggest fan of having lots of sky in my waterfall photography. Sometimes it’s unavoidable, but whenever possible. I aim to cut out all the sky. But don’t worry. You can always clone out the sky if it’s dull or overexposed.
Cloudy overcast days are fantastic for waterfall photography. Even better if there’s been a downpour of rain in the last few days. Lots of rain means swollen rivers. Swollen rivers mean big epic waterfalls!
Hot to photograph waterfalls - tip & tricks conclusion
As with all photography, waterfall photography takes time and practice. While writing this article I’ve looked back at lots of my old images. The waterfall shots I was creating in 2016 for example, were awful compared to what I produce lately.
Finally, I should add this. When shooting at a waterfall, please keep your own and the safety of others at the forefront of everything you do. Waterfalls can be extremely dangerous places. If you aren’t careful, you may lose your camera or worse, hurt yourself or those around you.
