Shooting in the Rain
David JohnstonDescription
What is the first thing you are tempted to do when you are outside and it starts to rain? Most people would answer that they would make a mad dash to their car and go back home! Not us. We are outdoor photographers and there is actually a lot of photography potential when rain starts to fall. Number one: the amount of people in some of the best locations are going to be few and far between. Don’t be shocked if you have the entire landscape to yourself sometimes. But, what should you try to photograph when shooting in the rain and how should your camera’s settings be adjusted?
In this video, David Johnston will take you to one of his favorite waterfalls in Tennessee to show you how to photograph in the rain, what kinds of things to pair with rainy conditions, and how to remove the effects of rain from your photographs. Now, before you start shooting in the rain, be sure to have the proper water gear, such as a cover for your camera and lenses to keep them dry. An easy photography hack is to simply use a plastic bag that zips shut to keep moisture off of your gear.
Hey what's up guys, Landscape Photographer, David Johnson here and I wanna talk today about photographing in the rain. How do you do it? And why is it one of my favorite conditions to actually go out and shoot in. Well, number one, when you have off and on rain for several days, like we've had here in Tennessee lately, what happens is water levels rise and I like to pair rainy conditions with wet conditions or wet locations. Namely waterfalls, rivers and lakes. Today I'm at Jackson Falls which is a waterfall that you can see right behind me. And what I wanna do is pair the right conditions for rain, with the right gear for rain and the right settings for rain. So what I'm gonna do is shoot with a wide-angle lens and try to compose a really compelling shot that really frames out this waterfall. I'm also gonna be using a circular polarizer to remove any glare off of the surface of the water. Now, what rain does is creates a very nice overcast shield to harsh light but you also still get some reflection so I wanna take some of those off. And then lastly what I'm gonna do is I'm gonna lengthen my exposure to show a lot of motion in the water. What this is also gonna do is remove any raindrops that fall on the surface of the water. So, a longer exposure's gonna create a smoother surface of the water. Let's go ahead and jump into the back of my camera and let's compose this shot together. What I'm trying to do here is use the curvature of the rock that's in front of me and the long exposures to pull the viewers eye into the waterfall that's right in front of me. And then ultimately lead back to the larger waterfall in the background. It's a really awkward position to shoot in but I think the shot's gonna be worth it. So settings wise right now, I'm at one second exposure f/16 and ISO 100, to really lengthen that exposure. So my circular polarizer is darkening the entire scene but the one second exposure, is really going to help me lengthen the motion of the water and smooth out the surface of the water and remove any raindrops falling on the water itself. Now, when you're using a longer exposure in rain photography specifically, use a tripod because those long exposures can't really be hand held. And you want everything to be tack sharp within the entire scene.
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