I went to a nature photo event this morning. Calling it “morning” is generous, really – we met up at 3:00, before sunrise. We photographed for a couple of hours, had breakfast, and then photographed some more.

The subject for the entire event was flowing water. You know, the long exposure photos that make water silky smooth so that even the most ordinary waterfall will look magical. This is normally not my style at all (silky? magical?) but hey, getting out of your comfort zone is the only way to learn.

The scene we were photographing at Nyfors was, to my eyes, not inherently scenic – a pretty mundane rapids rather than a picturesque waterfall. Some clumps of grass, plenty of rocks, tree branches caught between them… I found it quite challenging to find interesting photos there.

Our instructor’s advice tended towards the traditional – for example, the rule of thirds, and to create depth by including some foreground, mid-ground and background elements. I tried, I really did! But all the photos I got using that approach just came out totally boring. Too cluttered on one hand, and at the same time devoid of anything interesting.

What worked for me instead was to get closer, to simplify and pare away. The more photos I took, the more minimal and abstract they became.