How to photograph a fast running stream without a tripod
Many days of recent months have started or finished with a walk from the door. Carrying a camera has provided an incentive to get out, even on less than clement days. As the months have gone on, I’ve had to look beyond the most obvious subjects. One of the most distinctive aspects of the local landscape is the steep slopes running down towards the Tyne. Over winter, as streams have swollen over winter, there’s been plenty of fast-running water. So I’ve taken the opportunity to experiment with a subject I’ve found intimidating, as I’ve struggled to produce results I’m happy with. Most of what concerned me is though relatively easy to solve with a modern camera and a bit of experimentation.
Photographs of any moving object depend most on the camera’s shutter speed. Flowing water is no different from any other moving object; how long the shutter is open determines how far the water moves across the camera’s sensor. The longer the shutter is open, the further the travel across the sensor. A fast shutter speed, where the sensor is only exposed for a small fraction of a second, will in effect ‘freeze’ any drops of water, clouds of spray or bubbles. But with slower shutter speeds, it is the paths taken that become more prominent than the drops or bubbles themselves. The resulting silky surfaces are quite seductive, particularly for the small-scale dramas that play out in miniature waterfalls and cascades than otherwise most rarely consider worth capturing.
1/80 second f7.1
But with slower shutter speeds, it is the paths taken that become more prominent than the drops or bubbles themselves. The resulting silky surfaces are quite seductive, particularly for the small-scale dramas that play out in miniature waterfalls and cascades than otherwise most rarely consider worth capturing.
1/6 second f8.0
Keeping the shutter open long enough to capture the flow is therefore key to varying the appearance. There are a few ways of doing this- perhaps the easiest is to limit the light and force the camera to compensate. To do this, set the camera to Aperture Mode (the A of PASM) and close down the aperture (larger f-number) to cut the light reaching the sensor. The camera will then compensates by lengthening the time the shutter is open. It’s a matter of experimentation as to how long- but I’ve used anything from ⅙ of a second to a second, depending on the distance from the water and flow.
At this point, I should qualify this guide. I use a compact mirrorless micro four-thirds camera. These notes should apply to any mirrorless digital camera with a good degree of image stabilisation. Mine claims to make a difference of five stops compared to hand-holding an unstabilised sensor. So, if you have a camera that does not boast image stabilisation in the body (Olympus models) or lens (many Panasonic models), you may need to go the tripod route.
The feasibility of this method also depends on the focal length of the camera lens. There is no great mystery here; try pointing a short stick at a distant object and compare the amount of shake you observe when you swap to a stick three times as long. Longer lenses mean greater chance of camera-shake creeping in. I have had greatest success with a standard (12 to 40mm equivalent to 24 to 80 mm full frame) zoom lens.
Professionals use tripods for such work. Tripods are designed to keep your camera still and stable, making it much easier to get really good clear pictures, even with slow shutter speeds, where otherwise camera-shake would ruin any images. Using a tripod therefore maximises the flexibility over camera settings.
But tripods are bulky and heavy and have rarely passed the test of being important enough for me to carry more than a few hundred yards. This has limited when and how I take pictures, but has meant I’ve kept a camera at the ready more of the time. That has made a difference for many of my short walks from home in recent months; the absence of a tripod has meant I have taken more photos on these daily trips. But I’ve had to work out what is feasible in getting good images.
If you find your photographs of moving water unsatisfactory- and have a camera with image stabilisation- then I hope these notes encourage you to some productive and enjoyable experimentation.
12mm (24mm full frame equivalent) f13 4/5 sec