SLR Camera and Photography: Water Droplet Photography Tips

Saturday, May 28, 2016

Water Droplet Photography Tips

Do you love taking pictures? If so, this is a new and exciting way to take awesome photos that will have your friends and family talking! The best part is that you can do this at any time of year or time of day, and you don’t have to leave your home to do it. I will show you how to photograph water droplets for some downright amazing images!

Photo captured by PictureSocial member Jeff Carson

Start by mounting your camera on a tripod in front of your setup.

Using your viewfinder, make sure you background color is reflecting strongly off the water. Try using a piece of magazine as a target to get your camera ready for focus. I stick with using an aperture of f/4 to f/4.5 to make sure the depth of field is still keeping the drop sharp while blurring the background.

Make sure your setup is well-lit with flash units, then dim the room lights.

Set a fast shutter speed.

I have found that an eye dropper works best for making a drip. Squeeze out a drop, and start by manually flashing. Then continue till you achieve your desired result! Your hardest task is going to be timing!

Your best method is going to be trial and error. It does take some practice. After about a dozen shots, you will start getting in sync with your camera and your amazing pics will be proof!

Another method is to use a sound-activated or motion-detecting device that will automatically make your flash units trigger.

“Droplet” captured by PictureSocial member vjekoslav antic

Creating your Shape

Crown shapes. You need to fill the receptacle with liquid to about 1 centimeter or less.
Column shape. Your are going to need to add a tad more liquid. Plain water works best, so no need to waste your time trying anything else. It’s cost effective and reflective!

Backgrounds

Have fun with this. There are several different ways you could go:

Go all black with a beautiful wine glass as your receptacle.
Use bright, fun colors underneath your container; it creates a fun, upbeat effect!
Try placing some colorful stones in the bottom of the dish.
Wrapping paper works great. Make sure your receptacle is a contrasting color to really make it pop out at you.

At about 120 degrees, water drops will reflect a given area. Your background doesn’t have to be huge since it is only going to be sitting about 3 inches behind the receptacle.