Written by Kevin Thompson
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I asked a fellow photographer friend of mine to try photographing something that neither of us had ever done, Water Drop Photography. At first I started reading about all these gadgets they sell to help capture a water drop. Most of the blogs I read made it seem as if it was very difficult and complex. I almost bought into it, but then I thought I should give it a try before investing money into something I might only use 2-3 times. So after discussing it, my buddy came over and we found it wasn’t so difficult. I’m sure some images might be harder to capture, but my first try proved successful. I think it’s important to realize you might waste money on equipment you could possible never use again, I recommend you try and see what you can do without all the gadgets first. If you decide you want more options or control, then move forward with more equipment.
Here are some things that work for me.
1) Camera and water dropper mounted steady. Camera on tripod, dropper on second tripod or something that wont move. I find the dropper about 18-24″ off the water really works best.
2) I use an ink refill syringe with the refill needle make the best size drops.
3) Use a white background, and gel the flash what color you want the water to illuminate with. I use 1-2 flashes.
4) Shoot across the water, don’t shoot down on the splash it doesn’t look as nice.
5) If possible have a friend drop the water so you can focus on the shutter . I shoot directly into the computer so the image pops up on screen. That way I can see the results immediately. I use a shutter release cord so I never touch the camera. Plus the preview is much larger and you can see if your image is sharp.
6) I usually shoot around f22, ISO 200 & 1/200s
7) You do not have to press the shutter at the same time water is dropped. You have enough time to press the button once you see the drop start to fall. I usually wait a tiny amount of time between water and shutter.
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