Confused? Long exposures not working out for me.
I have a question that hopefully some of you more advanced photographers can answer/help me out here. I have a Canon T1i and I have been trying to do long exposures on water falls to get that smooth flowing effect and it seems that all I get is white out photo's on anything over 1.5 second. I tried everything, even bracketing exposures on every setting I have but I still get white out effect on any exposure over 1.5 seconds. What am I doing wrong or am I not using the right settings? It's aggravating to spend the amount of time setting up on a tripod and hoping that I can get the shot that I trying for. The lens I'm using is a Canon 18-55mm macro.
Thank you
Steve
Use neutral density filters and expose for the water. (the rest will be under exposed so try different settings.)
Steve, yes, you need an ND. If the water blows out at the settings you use, put the camera on a tripod and shoot it as an HDR. One of the exposures needs to be for the water. Good luck. ;-)
SS
SteveC_ wrote:
I have a question that hopefully some of you more advanced photographers can answer/help me out here. I have a Canon T1i and I have been trying to do long exposures on water falls to get that smooth flowing effect and it seems that all I get is white out photo's on anything over 1.5 second. I tried everything, even bracketing exposures on every setting I have but I still get white out effect on any exposure over 1.5 seconds. What am I doing wrong or am I not using the right settings? It's aggravating to spend the amount of time setting up on a tripod and hoping that I can get the shot that I trying for. The lens I'm using is a Canon 18-55mm macro.
Thank you
Steve
I have a question that hopefully some of you more ... (
show quote)
Neutral density filters are often needed especially in bright light. It is easier to shoot this type of scene in subdued lighting- early or late in day, shaded areas, overcast skies. Different waterfalls need different settings to achieve milky blur. Sometimes 1/10'of a second does the trick, sometimes 2 seconds. Depends on rate/amount of flow and other stuff. Requires lots of checking shot on LCD and histogram and reshooting till you get used to it. I always shoot them on full manual so I control everything and decide what compromises to make. Be sure you don't have auto ISO enabled, that will sabotage everything you do, base ISO is best.
minniev wrote:
Requires lots of checking shot on LCD and histogram and reshooting till you get used to it.
Minnie, could you please pass me one of those bananas?! Please?! :lol: :lol:
SS
BobR
Loc: Norwalk CT USA
Use the lowest ISO setting and stop way down- f22 or more depending on the lens. If that doesnt do it you will need as others have mentioned an ND filter. Ive gotten away without one but only on fairly dark overcast day. Bob
SharpShooter wrote:
Minnie, could you please pass me one of those bananas?! Please?! :lol: :lol:
SS
Actually, SS, you can have ALL the bananas to yourself or share them with the OP who may want some -Since I shoot m4/3 I don't have to chimp anymore, I see the shot I'm gonna take and it's histogram in my cool EVF before I press that little button! Simplified old Min's life a bunch :D
minniev wrote:
Actually, SS, you can have ALL the bananas to yourself or share them with the OP who may want some -Since I shoot m4/3 I don't have to chimp anymore, I see the shot I'm gonna take and it's histogram in my cool EVF before I press that little button! Simplified old Min's life a bunch :D
Minnie, I'm a Master Chimper(MC)!!
I can chimp and shoot so fast...., I can chimp at 10fps!! People are so mesmerized as they watch me chimp, before they can recover I just walk on over a steal their bananas!!
Never actually have to bring my own.
LOVE bananas. When I shoot film, I actually have withdrawals!! :lol: :lol:
SS
Like they say, low ISO, high aperture number, ND filter or take the picture on dark overcast day.
All this is valid advice and most people who do this kind of shots use ND filter to reduce light to the camera sensor.
One more thing you could try is to take the shot in the evening when it is getting darker outside or early morning while there is still not much light.
Whuff
Loc: Marshalltown, Iowa
I've never done that kind of photo before and I've never used an ND filter so what is the right one to use in most situations? Or is it best to have a variety in order to make sure you use the correct one for each situation? As I understand it they come in several densities.
Walt
Whuff wrote:
I've never done that kind of photo before and I've never used an ND filter so what is the right one to use in most situations? Or is it best to have a variety in order to make sure you use the correct one for each situation? As I understand it they come in several densities.
Walt
there is a variable ND filter,so you don't carry a bunch.Also a good tripod, late evening or early dawn or a dark overcast day, f-22 and vary the shutter speed. the water should be moving vigorously to obtain the effect you wanted..
I almost never use an nd filter for water. I like shutter speeds in the .5 to 1 second range. Smooth but still some definition.
Gene51
Loc: Yonkers, NY, now in LSD (LowerSlowerDelaware)
SteveC_ wrote:
I have a question that hopefully some of you more advanced photographers can answer/help me out here. I have a Canon T1i and I have been trying to do long exposures on water falls to get that smooth flowing effect and it seems that all I get is white out photo's on anything over 1.5 second. I tried everything, even bracketing exposures on every setting I have but I still get white out effect on any exposure over 1.5 seconds. What am I doing wrong or am I not using the right settings? It's aggravating to spend the amount of time setting up on a tripod and hoping that I can get the shot that I trying for. The lens I'm using is a Canon 18-55mm macro.
Thank you
Steve
I have a question that hopefully some of you more ... (
show quote)
Steve, you can't just change your exposure without changing anything else, and still expect the image to be exposed correctly.
You should be using the camera's lowest ISO, and preferably an Fstop no smaller than F11 - since diffraction will rob sharpness as you make the aperture smaller. No matter what, the exposure settings must be correct.
It sounds as if you have hit the limits of your camera body You can't shoot at a low enough ISO to allow a slower (longer) exposure time. A neutral density filter will block out additional light and provide more flexibility with ISO, and still give you a slow enough shutter speed to get the effect you are after.
I use two ND filters - a 400 and a 32. In dark light, the 32 which cuts light by 5 stops is great. But in bright daylight, even the 400, which lowers your light by a little over 8 fstops, sometimes comes up short. I sometimes put them both on a lens to get the desired effect. Depending on how close you are to the water, you will need anywhere from 6 secs (for a far distance), to 1 sec if you are very close.
Set your camera to spot meter, and let the camera measure your water. Dial in +1 to +2 exposure compensation - and you should be good to go. The water should be bright, but so much that you overexpose it. The rest of the image will be dark, but if you shoot raw (and this is an excellent situation for this) you will have more flexibility raising the darker levels in the image without losing the highlight areas.
SteveC_ wrote:
I have a question that hopefully some of you more advanced photographers can answer/help me out here. I have a Canon T1i and I have been trying to do long exposures on water falls to get that smooth flowing effect and it seems that all I get is white out photo's on anything over 1.5 second. I tried everything, even bracketing exposures on every setting I have but I still get white out effect on any exposure over 1.5 seconds. What am I doing wrong or am I not using the right settings? It's aggravating to spend the amount of time setting up on a tripod and hoping that I can get the shot that I trying for. The lens I'm using is a Canon 18-55mm macro.
Thank you
Steve
I have a question that hopefully some of you more ... (
show quote)
Here's some info on ND filters.
http://digital-photography-school.com/step-by-step-guide-to-long-exposure-photography/http://www.the-digital-picture.com/Reviews/10-Stop-Neutral-Density-Filter.aspx
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