by Editor Lourens Durand 
Edited and published by Yvette Depaepe, the 22nd of July 2022

'Kilchurn' by Wojciech Kruczynski

“If there is magic on this planet, it is contained in water.“
(Loren Eiseley, American Anthropologist)

Water is all around us, yet we often do not appreciate the wealth of photographic opportunities that it represents.
When we do think about it, though, we immediately recognise the possibilities in landscapes featuring rivers, waterfalls and dams, as well as seascapes, birdlife and watersports.
If we dig a little deeper, we may unearth endless opportunities in the smaller things, like raindrops or dew on flowers, oil globules on water, splashes of all kinds, reflections, frost and snowflakes.

On a larger scale water features in photographs of agricultural themes, representing everything we eat or drink – even some of the clothes that we wear. Possibly the largest user of water worldwide is industry, with enormous graphic potential. Then there is medicine, hygiene, health and safety, where water features enormously.

Whichever field we choose to feature subjects containing water, we need to bear in mind that water is glossy and reflects quite brightly. Reflections properly handled can be great compositional elements, but we need to be careful of the glare and washed out areas in the final photograph - polarising filters can be quite useful in these instances. On the other hand, the brightness of the scene can fool the camera’s auto exposure mechanism, so it may sometimes be necessary to override the exposure setting to avoid underexposure.

When photographing moving water, as in waterfalls, waves or splashes, we need to decide whether to freeze the action with a fast shutter speed or to smooth the water out, suggesting movement, by using a slower shutter speed, often in tandem with a Neutral Density filter to enable longer exposures.

In conclusion, I invite you to enjoy the following selection of images presented by 1X.com photographers celebrating the magic of water.

Lourens Durand 

'Sunbeam III' by Marek Biegalski EFIAP

'Bruges in Christmas dress' by Yvette Depaepe

'purple sunset' by Anna Cseresnjes

'The power of calm.' by Slawomir Kowalczyk

'Winter Song' by Sebestyen Bela

'Spa Pool, Hamersley Gorge' by Ignacio Palacios

'autumn reflection' by Udo Dittmann

'Storm in San Francisco Bay' by Michael Delman

'fishing' by Evgeny Loza

'Playing with splash' by Angela Muliani Hartojo

'Goodbye My Lover' by Ismail raja sulbar

'Move Over....' by Paul Keates

'Washing hair' by Adam Wong

'Nature Study' by Bragi Ingibergsson -BRIN

'old harburg bridge' by Alexander Schönberg

'Surfer' by Assaf Gavra

'laundry' by asit

'Hidden Saphire' by Ganjar Rahayu

'Balance' by Tobias Bräuning

'way to the sky' by Ahmad Baihaki

'kingfisher' by Alberto Ghizzi Panizza

'Splash' by Milan Malovrh

'Four oar' by Robert Adamec

'Arsène Lupine gentleman burglar' by Thierry Dufour

'Oil and water' by Mandy Disher

'Monochrome Mesocyclone' by Rob Darby

'Firefighters at work' by beppeverge

'Firefighter' by Sveduneac Dorin Lucian

'Shower Time' by Nicole Goggins