Reflections on water surfaces and buildings: low-angle camera shots of puddles after rain, no polarizing mirror reflection capture

1. Optical reflection law and Fresnel phenomenon in parallel world

Optical reflections in nature strictly follow the law of reflection: Angle of incidence = Angle of reflection.

• Fresnel Effect: When you look down vertically at a puddle, most of the light penetrates the water directly to the muddy ground, and the water surface reflection is extremely weak; however, when you lower your line of sight to an ultra-low grazing angle (Grazing Angle) that is nearly parallel to the water surface, the reflectivity of the water surface will instantly soar from the original 2% to an extreme mirror surface close to 100%!
• The position of the camera determines everything: Flying close to the ground: When shooting the reflection of puddles after rain, do not stand and shoot from a high position. The flip screen of the camera must be pulled out and the front lens group directly attached to the extremely low position of only 1 to 2 cm above the water surface**! At this time, what was originally a small, weak pool of water as big as a palm, was instantly transformed into a vast mirror lake reflecting the entire skyscraper and pedestrians under the perspective stretching of the wide-angle lens.

2. The most common fatal mistake in reflection photography: indiscriminate use of CPL polarizers

Many landscape photographers are accustomed to wearing CPL polarizers in front of the lens all year round:

• Fatal Consequences: The core physical function of CPL is to eliminate reflections from water and glass! If you are wearing a CPL to take a reflection, and turn it around slightly, the precious and beautiful reflections of the buildings on the water will be ruthlessly filtered out by the filter, leaving only a puddle of gray and dirty muddy water!
• Iron Rule: When shooting mirror reflections, remove any CPL polarizer as soon as possible!

3. Should the focus point be on the water surface or on the reflected virtual image?

This is a core question that countless photography enthusiasts have repeatedly puzzled over:

• Physical truth: reflection is a virtual image! The physical distance between the optical virtual image of the skyscraper 50 meters away reflected in the water surface and the lens is not 1 meter from the water surface itself, but a full 51 meters away (water surface distance + vertical distance from the object to the water surface)**!
• Practical conclusion:

1. If you want to take a clear and complete mirror image of the building, you must focus on the virtual image building in the water (focus at infinity) and shrink the aperture to f/8;
2. If you want to express the yellowing leaves and ripples of raindrops on the water surface, focus on the floating objects on the water surface and let the deep reflections blur into a dreamy and colorful background.

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