When you photograph reflections and you fill the frame with nothing but water - i.e., the reflected object itself - try presenting it to your viewers upside down. It will obviously looks right side up when you do this. This is what I did with the photo (below) of colorful houses on Burano Island near Venice, Italy, as they reflected in a canal. If the water is too disturbed from wind or boats, you won't get a clear reflection, and this technique won't work.
The ideal scenario is to have still water with a slight ripple or wave. This allows you to retain enough definition in the subject to discern what it is, and yet it will look painterly.
The image above - of an autumn reflection in Vermont - is similarly very painterly. This looks like an impressionist work of art simply because I inverted it.
- Jim Zuckerman is a top stock shooter who teaches many terrific online photo workshops at BetterPhoto.com, including Developing Your Creative Artistic Vision, Eight Steps to More Dramatic Photography, and Techniques of Natural Light Photography.
- Also, Jim Z is a top contributor to The BetterPhoto Guide to Creative Digital Photography and The BetterPhoto Guide to Photographing Light, both recently published and co-authored by Jim Miotke and Kerry Drager.
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