The more that I find puddles and their reflections, the more that I like them. They are so transient and so dependent on specific conditions to get a decent image that this subject presents both a challenge and an opportunity. I find that the vignette that the puddle reflection provides is a window to a vantage point not usually seen.
I’ve got a bunch of good photos, as shown below. This is easily a theme where I could find 10-20 photos that would look good in a solo exhibit or as an ongoing project
These four from a random CT parking lot in Winter waiting on my wife to run in the grocery store. Winter is very nice for puddles, as the sky is clearer and the trees provide nice, bold contrasts.
Where to Focus?
One thing to think of is where to place the focus. Do you focus on the ground with some interesting foreground subjects or on the subject in the reflection? Whichever you decide, it has a significant effect on the photo. Witness the two lower photos above. The left one focused on the leaves and the right photo targeted the trees themselves. I’m not sure which worked better, but I do wish I had a version of the photo on the left that showed the trees in focus.
All these taken on my Fuji X100VI
Another set taken at Newark Airport’s cell phone waiting lot while I was waiting on a family member to arrive. I wondered around with my Fuji and I wonder how many other people waiting for travelers in that lot remarked themselves: “I wonder what the heck that guy is doing taking random pictures of the rain puddles?” If they saw these wonderful photos, they’d know.
Incidentally these were taken using my favorite “recipe” on the X100VI; it is called “Harsh BW”. It’s got the shadow and hightlight curves pushed as hard as possible including adding any effect possible that doesn’t cause the camera to spend time processing the image like Clarity.
Lastly a trio of very different subjects united the puddle theme. The upper left has won several awards for it’s composition. The right one is a classic lights in a puddle, but I never tire of well-composed colored light images. The bottom one just screamed out to me in Boston. I should have waited for someone to walk through, but alas, I did not have the luxury of time.
