Longish exposure

[rab3rd]

There are some fountains that I want to photograph and make the water look blured. I know to extend the exposure time a little but how do I keep from over exposing the shot. Do I use a filter? If so what kind?

Thanks for helping a newbie.

[Jon]

Neutral Density. They're variously rated by density (every 0.3 corresponds to one stop) or times (2x, 3x,etc. for 2 or 3 stops). You can also,if you haven't got ND filters, use a polarizer (or two) for 2 stops gain.

[rab3rd]

Thanks Jon

[Mark_Cohran]

Dang, I always miss the easy questions. Not fast enough on the draw, I guess. Make sure you get ND's though, not graduated ND's' that are made for landscape photography to hold back the exposure in the sky.

Mark

[tim]

You've tried something like ISO 100 F32 in Av mode I presume? Not all lenses go that narrow but some do, my 100mm macro and Tamron 28-75 I know do.

[kram]

Highest possible exposure (F32 vicinity), lowest ISO (100) and potentially a time of day when its not too bright. If its still too over exposed, the filters are the only way out.

[webejamn]

Neutral Density. They're variously rated by density (every 0.3 corresponds to one stop) or times (2x, 3x,etc. for 2 or 3 stops). You can also,if you haven't got ND filters, use a polarizer (or two) for 2 stops gain.

if you use a ploarizer, you will be able to see through some of hte water though, correct, or incorrect

[Mark_Cohran]

if you use a ploarizer, you will be able to see through some of hte water though, correct, or incorrect

A polarizer will remove surface glare or reflections from the water if used at the correct angle, but since you'll be shooting flowing water, it's not likely to have an significant effect on your picture unless the color shifts due to removing the reflection of the sky. A polarizer under the right conditions can turn a beautiful blue lake into a muddy green/brown disaster. Use with care.

Mark

[jmoore-16]

It also depends on what you want to do with the background. If you want a background that is nicely out of focus, then I would suggest the Neutral Density filters.

If you simply slow down the shutter speed (Av Mode with the smallest aperture) then your picture will have a good blur with the fountain water but the background will be in sharp focus and you will have trouble picking out the subject from the background.

What the ND filter allows you to do is open the aperture up and blur the background while still keeping the slow shutter speed that you need to blur the water. I would use a pretty aggressive ND filter (ND 4 or ND 8) and really open up the lens to blur the background.

Try it both ways to see what you think. Let us know!

Thanks,

John