@bestlight · 2mo ago
The red bridge shot everyone posts — mirror-still water doubling the whole structure — needs the reservoir to be completely flat, and that is maybe one morning in four. I have started checking the wind the night before rather than just the sunrise time. Under about 5km/h and it mirrors. Above that you get texture on the water and the reflection breaks up. Centre the deck for the symmetry, just before the sun is properly up.
This applies to Jurong Lake too. The twin pagodas reflection is the entire shot and it is gone in any breeze at all. Nice to have someone say the quiet part — a lot of these locations are conditional, not just a matter of turning up at the right hour.
Getting out to Punggol for a windless sunrise is a real commitment when you find out the night before. Has anyone found a forecast that is actually reliable at that hour?
Not really. I check the night before, set the alarm, and accept that maybe half the trips are wasted. That is the deal with reflection shots.