Motion Blur
A slow shutter does the opposite of freezing: it records everything that happens during the exposure. Anything moving — like flowing water — blurs into a soft, silky smear, while anything still stays sharp.
That contrast is the whole effect, so your camera must stay perfectly still. A tripod is the classic answer, but anything solid works — what matters is that the camera doesn't move, because even tiny shake will blur the entire frame instead of just the water.
At slow shutter speeds you also let in a lot of light, which can overexpose (blow out) the photo. Keep ISO at its lowest and let the camera close the aperture for you; if it still can't darken the scene enough, shoot in shade or softer light, or add a neutral-density (ND) filter — basically sunglasses for your lens.
Shutter Priority (S or Tv) at 1/4s–2s with ISO at its lowest (100) — the camera picks the aperture to balance the exposure. Use a 2-second timer or remote. No tripod? Brace the camera on a wall, ledge, railing, or a stack of books. Photo blowing out? Shoot in shade or add an ND filter.
Moving water — or a fan blade, a running tap — looks soft and silky while everything stationary stays sharp. A kitchen tap counts every bit as much as a waterfall. If the whole frame is blurry, the camera moved — steady it.
The assignment
Use a slow shutter to turn movement into smooth, silky blur — a waterfall, stream, or fountain, or right at home, water from the tap or a spinning fan.
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