In my quest for the droplet shot that every photographer absolutely must have, I’ve been closer than this. In fact, I had a perfect one today, with the stem rising up to meet the drop; with the drop itself hovering several millimeters above the stem. Alas, the drop was not in focus.
Since I’m shooting slightly down on the scene—actually, close to 35 degrees down, if the Manfrotto geared tripod head is to be believed—the plane of focus is angled out and away from the the drops and stems and ripples. Getting everything in focus is impossible (though I could get closer with a narrower aperture and higher ISO to keep the flash power at a drop-catchable 1/32nd or faster). And since I can’t aim the spray bottle with any real accuracy—I’m gently squeezing the trigger on the cat punishment device to create the drips—or really time the drops, framing and focusing becomes extremely hit and miss.
But I got closer today, and I have some ideas of how to get even closer, so GoGo.
Any bets on me getting the shot before I get a proper eye dropper? Any suggestions for different things to try? Any tips, maybe?
Thanks in advance!
D7000. Vivitar 70-210mm f/3.5 Series 1 (Kiron), in Macro Mode. ISO100, f/8, 1/250th. SB-700 zoomed to 60mm at 1/32nd, fired behind and across the scene.
