I have always been lulled to sleep at night by the sound of a rainstorm, and as a photographer I look forward to the photographic gifts that a sunny morning after a storm brings, especially the reflective raindrops on flora and puddles formed in interesting shapes on the ground. They mirror back colorful skies, puffy clouds, tree branches overhead, people, cityscapes, etc.
I invite you to venture outdoors after a rainstorm, in search of reflective water. And if you just can’t wait for the storm, why not pull out the spray bottle or garden hose and make your own rain.
If you live near a pond or river, capturing the environment reflected on the surface can be magical. On windy days, and if there is a current, the reflections will look distorted and abstract. On calmer days, the glassy surface of the water can reflect back a perfect, mirror image of the scene above it.
24-70mm f/2.8 Lens at 24mm, ISO 400, f/11 for 1/250 sec.
Reflections of autumnal trees on bodies of water take on abstract, painterly appearances when the surface of the water is churned by a breeze.
100mm f/2.8 Lens, ISO 200, f/4.6 for 1/200 sec.
Seek reflections in water droplets and capture them with a dedicated macro lens. If you don’t have a macro lens, use the ‘close-up/macro’ Scene mode on your DSLR in conjunction with a zoom lens for the best results.
iPhone - The perfect symmetry of this reflection, coupled with the muted colors of early Springtime in Maine, caught my eye and made for a unique composition. I took this shot with my iPhone and applied a texture layer with the app Blender.
15-85mm f/3.5-5.6 lens at 24mm, ISO 200, f/8 for 1/125 sec.
My husband is used to hearing me ‘ooo and ahhh’ while driving in the car on family day trips. He knows that means it’s time to find a good place to turn around and take me back to the scene I wish to photograph. This is one of those shots; and it turned out to be one of my favorite reflection shots.