Reflecting on reflections

click photo to enlarge

Reflections in water are a popular subject for photographers. By and large, the better the reflection, the more likely it is that it will be captured by a camera. Snow capped mountains mirrored in an ice cold lake is a particular favourite. So too are reflected buildings in ornamental ponds or rivers. Or ducks on a still sheet of water, each bird with its inverted double immediately below. I've taken my share of these shots, such as this building, these trees, and this heron. Less popular is the reflection made by disturbed water, yet it has much to commend it.

The painterly effect that such a reflection produces can be very satisfying. The broken image, impressionistically rendered, with strokes that suggest the marks of a watercolour brush on wet paper have a pleasing quality. A few examples from my previous posts include this railway bridge , this fence, and this stormy sky behind sharply captured, newly emerged, water lily leaves.

My most recent foray into this area is shown above. It was taken from a bridge over the River Welland in Spalding, Lincolnshire, though it could be anywhere. The brief appearance of the sun through a small hole in an angry sky prompted the shot. I was looking for an image that drew its strength from the bright point in a tonally differentiated, but largely monochrome and fractured surface. Circular ripples made by either rising bubbles or fish kept appearing at unforeseeable points and intervals, so I waited for a few and included those too. Not a shot that will appeal to many I suppose, but it pleases me, and that's what matters!!

photograph & text (c) T. Boughen

Camera: Olympus E510
Mode: Aperture Priority
Focal Length: 36mm (72mm/35mm equiv.)
F No: f7.1
Shutter Speed: 1/640
ISO: 100
Exposure Compensation: -1.3 EV
Image Stabilisation: On