Camera settings to experiment with for monsoon photoshoots

For many, creativity for photography and **videography comes alive during the monsoon. This is the time you can use to capture beautiful landscapes, cloud formations in the sky, or even street shots at night. With the weather teasing creators, outdoor is where the magic happens during monsoon. There is this nostalgic mood attached to the monsoon and many people who are into photography and videography mostly hit the streets with their gear and start shooting content. What is also important here is to have protection for your gears and the right camera. Rainy day shoots can also be a challenge, there are chances of minimal light and fast-moving raindrops, but with the right camera setting, you can ace a couple of shots. Be it a timelapse **or panoramic shot, if your settings are not correct you are on the losing end.

Read on to find out about settings:

1. ISO — If you are outdoors and the weather is getting dull and dark, all you have to do is set your ISO from medium to high. With this, you do not have to compensate for the shutter speeds too much but will also help in low-light conditions.
2. Shutter speed — If you are in a situation with rapid rainfall, or out in the streets where you see splashes, you can keep your shutter speed faster than usual to catch the rain.
3. Aperture — Start at f/8 and see which setting brings out the best in the given environment. Construct a depth-of-field with wide apertures for moody portraits. For dynamic street portraits, use a narrow aperture.
4. Focus — If you are someone who uses autofocus, you might want to experiment a little here. Go for manual focus to capture the perfect rainfall click. You can practice till you nail the shot, a lot of things come out right when it is in your control and not automatic.
5. White Balance — Check your camera’s White Balance setting. Just like in cinematography if you are looking to ass warm and saturated tones to your shot try Shade White Balance or Tungsten White Balance.
6. Try Macro — With different levels of aperture to control the blurring of the background, use water droplets and get that shot behind the droplet making sure the object is 2 to 3 inches behind the droplet. This can give you a unique macro shot.

Besides the above, there are other creative ways and tricks to make the best of monsoon photography.

1. You can introduce your cityscape by shooting a timelapse.

2. You can use the reflection from a puddle in front of any iconic monument.

3. If you would rather shoot indoors, you can sit by the café and take pictures of streetlights over the raindrops on windowpanes.

4. You can also create a series of monochrome shots, just like in portrait photography that will add in more nostalgia to the picture.

5. Include dark clouds, especially in a landscape shot, that will truly bring out the monsoon.

6. Catch people, especially kids in action, enjoying the rain, the smile, the splashes, it will immediately uplift your mood too.