Droplet challenge

I want to shoot some water droplet images on the surface of a car for a photographic challenge I’ve set myself. Do I need a macro lens?

A Not necessarily, Susie, unless you specifically want to shoot a few small droplets at life size so they are

really big in the frame. A macro lens is a brilliant tool for allowing you to focus in on tiny detail, but there are other ways to get the type of shot you are describing. I suggest you try it with a telephoto lens, if you have one, and zoom in so you have a tight composition with lots of impact. If possible, work with the camera on a tripod so you can carefully control your composition. If your camera has Live View, use it for both sorting the composition and to zoom in and focus very precisely.

You can use either natural light or diffused flash to light the droplets. I don’t know whether you are going to wait for natural droplets to form after rain, but if you want to speed things up a bit, create them yourself using a spray bottle.

Make sure you’ve prepared the car’s paintwork. First of all, clean it properly so there are no unsightly marks on it, then give the area you are going to photograph a really good treatment with some polish or wax. You can do the whole car if you want, but that takes longer! The wax helps your water spray form big and attractive beading, but choose a relatively flat area on the car’s surface, otherwise it’ll just run off.