This week’s assignment “The Beauty of Rain” involved capturing puddle reflections and photographing water droplets. As it did not rain before this assignment was due, I created my own puddle on the street where I live, so it was not that big of a puddle, but sufficient to satisfy its purpose. Capturing puddle reflections was initially challenging trying to find the right shooting angle to optimize the reflection. Once I found a suitable shooting angle and properly distanced myself from the puddle I was able to capture the images I sought. Initially I stood far away so the reflection was visible in the puddle and I was able to capture it as part of the landscape. After experimenting with several shots at different distances away from the puddle and bringing my camera lower to the ground I found I preferred a greater proportion of the puddle in the photos to optimize the reflection. For the water droplets photography I used manual focus, a steady hand and a much-needed gardening foam kneepad to get close in to my subject matter. I gained a new found appreciation for the patience required to capture discernible and defined water droplets. The purple pansy, bamboo leaf and green grass strand’s natural coloring and textural beauty were showcased with water droplets, however the spider’s web, was my favorite as the water appeared to decorate the spider’s wondrous web, making it appear like multiple strings of pearls.
With regards to camera settings, I found the optimal settings were an f stop value of 5.6 and a shutter speed of 1/250.
With regards to camera settings, I found the optimal settings were an f stop value of 5.6 and a shutter speed of 1/250.