I tried my hand at creating a misty water effect on a waterfall in the park yesterday. This is usually achieved by slowing down the shutter speed to allow the light into the lens for longer and creating a sense of movement as the water falls.

Here’s the fountain on a normal shutter speed. You can see that the water is frozen in time and is broken into droplets.

In this second photo where I slowed down the speed of the shutter you can see that the water looks continuous and misty, like flowing water.

The key thing with trying to create a misty effect is that you need a tripod to hold the camera completely still while the shutter closes, as any movement causes the photo to become blurry, like the second photo is a little as I was holding the camera in my hand trying to be still.

I’m pleased with the results so far but hopefully I’ll get more practice and a tripod so the next time I come decide to shoot a flowing river, rapid stream or just a pretty fountain I can aim to get some great photos.