Thanks, gang, for the latest comments.

Gerry, I'm glad to hear that you were able to understand my tutorial, for being the person who wrote it, and understanding what I do, how I do it and why, I cannot adequately determine how well it comes across to someone else reading my words on a screen.

Admittedly, my tutorials are not for Photoshop beginners; there's an assumption that the reader is familiar enough to know about layers, masks and the various tools I use.

I'm sure there are far better tutorials out there which are more pitched at beginners, but I'd have to confess that what I do is generally not beginner material.

On your point of merging images, I'm a believer in the use of physical lens filters (ie, GNDs and NDs) as well as exposure bracketing; employing both techniques offers the most options, and in the case of a scene like this where each frame is unique due to water movement being the dominant subject, you can create your own water, essentially, by taking the most visually appealing elements of multiple exposures and blending them into one.

I'm also glad to hear that I've inspired you to get out there. One of the most invigorating feelings as a photographer is being inspired by what you've read or seen someone else do. I've had my inspiration over the years, and when I go through dry spells, trawling the Internet for great images sometimes gives me a bit of a kick-start.