moving water

[doto]

how do I catch running water; streams, fountains etc. and capture the movement?

[Taallyn]

By capturing the movement, do you mean getting a nice silky blur? You do that by using a long shutter speed. To get really smooth water you will probably need to use a tripod. A neutral density filter can help as well if you are shooting in bright sunlight as it will allow you to further limit the amount of light coming, thus increasing your required shutter speed.

However, if you mean you want to freeze the water then use shorter shutter speeds.

[doto]

do you mean really long shutter speeds? how long for normal daylight? won't it blur the surroundings such as trees plants, etc?

[windrider86]

Try this link. It is mainly focused on water falls but can be applied to anything

http://digital-photography-school.co...l-photography/

[Taallyn]

Long shutter speeds will cause blur if the subject is moving. That is how you end up with the smooth, flowing water look. However, anything else that is moving will also get blurred. Thus, you don't want to have a very strong wind or breeze when you are shooting. A neutral density filter, not the graduated kind, will cut down on the light entering the lens. Which allows you to use longer shutter speeds in daylight without overexposing everything. It basically fools the camera's meter into thinking there is less light so you can use longer the longer shutter speeds to capture motion blur.

Another thing that can help, is having image stabilization of somekind as that will also allow you to use longer shutter speeds than you normally could holding the camera. An example of that is:



The shutter speed for this shot was 1/20th of a second. Which is normally too long for me to hand hold steady. The image stabilized lens though, allowed me to get the shot hand held while using the shutter speed that blurred the water's motion.

Basically, motion comes down to shutter speed. If you want to blur it you need a longer shutter speed. You then have to adjust your other settings (ISO, apeture) to keep the exposure in check. Supports (tripods, bean bags, chairs, tables, wife's shoulder), image stabilization, and filters are tools that can help you with that. The same techniques can be used for any sort of motion you want to blur. Car lights. Amusement park rides. All kinds of stuff.