MY SHUTTER SPEED EXPERIMENT

had a chance to shoot some pics of a waterfall. decided to do an experiment and play with my shutter speeds and aperature. i think it shows pretty well the affects of shutter speed. first is wide open f/4 at 640,,second series are on a tripod,3rd are handheld

And what were the sutter speeds for the subsequent shots ?

That's cool. I didn't know you could get that "flowing" look by simply shooting at f/22, thought a ND filter was a must. Shows what I know.. now I feel like going out and shooting!

The "flowing look" is purely a matter of shutter speed, the slower the shutter, the more blended and flowing the water.

Exposure is a combination of shutter speed, aperture, and ISO. For the greatest "flowing" or smoothing effect, you want the the lowest ISO and the smallest practical aperture, allowing proper exposure with a very slow shutter speed. Only if you cannot get the smoothing you wish with that combination will you need an ND filter to reduce the amount of light.

Or, you could simply wait for dusk. Things like waterfalls keep running after sunset and before dawn.

For an interesting variation, you might try a combination of fast and slow exposures. This would entail a slow shutter speed to capture the smoothing effect, plus a suitable fill flash to capture the momentary effect. You would need a good flash at a suitable distance, so the entire waterfall is substantially equally illuminated. A 580EX with a Better Beamer does a nice job.

DStanic wrote in post #5902437
That's cool. I didn't know you could get that "flowing" look by simply shooting at f/22, thought a ND filter was a must. Shows what I know.. now I feel like going out and shooting!

did have on a circular polarizer:p..had fun with my experiment. next thing im get is a nd filter

bohdank wrote in post #5902390
And what were the sutter speeds for the subsequent shots ?

1/5 and 1/10 for the second and third shots, respectively.

20droger wrote in post #5902477
For an interesting variation, you might try a combination of fast and slow exposures. This would entail a slow shutter speed to capture the smoothing effect, plus a suitable fill flash to capture the momentary effect. You would need a good flash at a suitable distance, so the entire waterfall is substantially equally illuminated. A 580EX with a Better Beamer does a nice job.

Care to post and example?

20droger wrote in post #5902477
Things like waterfalls keep running after sunset and before dawn.

Oh, man! That changes everything!

bwolford wrote in post #5907659
Care to post and example?

Sorry, I don't have a convenient waterfall handy, being in the middle of the desert. Maybe on my next trip to somewhere where there is one....

But then, I'm not prone to post images at all.

Double Negative wrote in post #5908669
Oh, man! That changes everything!

I saw a show on Niagra falls. They said one of the most asked questions was if they turn the falls off at night!

rdricks wrote in post #5909406
I saw a show on Niagra falls. They said one of the most asked questions was if they turn the falls off at night!

Of course they do! After all, everyone knows that we must conserve water!

rdricks wrote in post #5909406
I saw a show on Niagra falls. They said one of the most asked questions was if they turn the falls off at night!

Wow. Just... Wow.

DStanic wrote in post #5902437
That's cool. I didn't know you could get that "flowing" look by simply shooting at f/22, thought a ND filter was a must. Shows what I know.. now I feel like going out and shooting!

I was actually in the same boat recently, went to Jasper National Park and visited three waterfalls. If it's really bright and sunny, f/22 at ISO100 isn't going to slow down the shutter speed enough. I went to buy an ND filter the next day to continue shooting, but got a circular polarizer instead because they didn't -have- any ND filters.

Double Negative wrote in post #5909501
Wow. Just... Wow.

Even Disney has to service the pumps!

rdricks wrote in post #5909406
I saw a show on Niagra falls. They said one of the most asked questions was if they turn the falls off at night!

They acually do slow the flow down some times at night by pumping more water to the power stations to get more power.