Western Tatras: Smreczynski Staw

Some time ago, I promised myself that I would come to Smreczynski Staw in the Tatra Mountains to photograph the reflection of the mountains in the perfectly smooth water surface. I even posted this promise on my blog here a few years ago. That was after my first walk to Smreczynski. Back then, the ice covering the lake hindered me from taking the photo. A few days ago, in early April this year, I finally managed to return and capture the same scene by the lake. Unfortunately, due to the wind, the lake’s surface wasn’t smooth, and I… well, I additionally made a mistake: instead of simply photographing the landscape as I usually do, I started experimenting with long exposure times for… well, I have no idea for what! As a result, several crucial shots went to waste. Once again, I learned that simpler is often better. Perhaps photography is like investing? The simpler, the better!

An unplanned attraction during the trip turned out to be the streams where I practiced photography with a gray filter without a tripod. I like those photos. Keeping the camera steady for several seconds is quite a challenge!

In the gallery below, I want to draw your attention to the second photo: it was supposed to be the ‘outstanding’ one, but meanwhile, the water looks like a render on a graphics card :)

The trail map is here.