
Empress Falls, Blue Mountains, NSW.
Camera in point and shoot mode, letting the mist provide the blurring and the magic.
It was a good day for taking photos of waterfalls yesterday.
I’d read a bit about how to do it, and practised the technique with a bathroom tap, trying to get that smooth, soft water effect that seems to be compulsory for waterfall shots in magazines.
And where better to try it for real than on a hike with my fellow amateur snapper Duncan down the evocatively named Valley of the Waters, in the Blue Mountains just outside Sydney? Here’s what we learned…
1. Weather. I’d read that it’s easier to get a good waterfall shot on a cloudy day. Full sun reflecting off the water gives too much contrast and makes exposure hard to control. Perfect- yesterday the mountains were shrouded in mist, with accompanying drizzle.

The National Pass track. On a fine day it gives vistas across the valley. This was not a fine day, so we looked for other attractions.
2. Camera settings. I’m not an expert in using manual settings and I have a camera (Canon 500D) that knows more about getting it right than I do. So I used the ‘Tv’ (‘Time value’) setting, switched the timer to a one second exposure and let the camera make all the other decisions.
3. Tripod. I should have carried one. I didn’t. Your hand can shake quite a lot in one second. So I was reduced to improvising a tripod in every shot, perching the camera on a rock, feet sometimes on dry land, sometimes strategically placed in the water. To avoid the inevitable shake while pressing the shutter I set the camera to a two second delay…pressed and stepped back.

The soft water effect works ok, but the lack of a tripod limited my choice of angles and composition.
4. You can’t get it all in. Wentworth Falls are 187metres high, in three tiers. So from close up it’s impossible to fit the whole cascade into one shot, with my camera at least. This shouldn’t matter. From where we were the top of the falls was hidden in the mist, and I liked the effect.
5. Less can be more. Some of the shots I liked the most were not of the majestic, pounding, awe-inspiring waterfall kind. I aimed the camera at points where little rivulets were streaming between textured rocks.

Thanks, Duncan, for the company, the stories, the jokes and for holding the umbrella to keep the camera dry when needed.
Valley of the Waters is just off the Great Western Highway out of Sydney, by the village of Wentworth Falls.
To see the inzoomable details of our route, from the Conservation Hut along National Pass and back across the Undercliff Track, CLICK HERE.
Great photos, Richard. Love them all, but especially the third one from the top. It whispers stories to me and I can almost feel the cool mist cling to my skin.
Mina, the National Pass track is a superb short (about 9km, with a lot of knee-challenging ups and downs) walk in a beautiful National Park.
I like your favourite as well!
Some nice shots, Richard. Thanks for your comments on my latest post.
Thanks, Andrew and John.
Richard, liked all your photos, particularly the first.( Perhaps Duncan could have done something about the branch at the very top of it).Also taken by your map information from your Garmin. It doesn’t by chance also do heart rate ?
Yes, Knuckles, the Garmin (Forerunner 110) does measure the heart rate, but only if I wear the monitor. In this case it was enough just to know that my heart was still ticking over, both at the start and at the finish of the hike.
I do like your soft water effects…….oh to be able to do that with a simple ‘point-and-shoot’ camera……..
Those are stunning waterfall pictures, Richard – and particularly enjoyed your description of how you went about taking the pics, as I can relate to those problems too.
Thanks for the encouragement as ever, Reggie.
Beautiful shots, Richard.
I really like waterfalls, and they provide great opportunities for photography.
True, Sreejith, though the art is discovering how to avoid the cliches. If you’re not careful, all waterfalls can look much alike. I’m still learning.
The perfect place to practice that technique, your photos look great and you’ve achieved that nice dreamy effect with the water and mist.
Thank, tbd. I got a few to be pleased with, though I’ll definitely take the tripod next time I have water shots in mind.