Road Trip#5: Waterfalls

Kory Lidstrom

This is the fifth post in my series from my 32 day road trip through the western US.



"Fall Color Cascade" (Larger version and EXIF can be found here.)

This is one of the many, MANY waterfalls in the Columbia River Gorge in Oregon. In fact, there is such a large number of them, that many don't even have names. This is one of those. I really like shooting unnamed waterfalls because they are often rarely shot by others.

Getting this shot involved removing my shoes and socks, wading through cold, rushing water, and then perching on a mossy, slippery rock that was only about two feet wide. I did all of this with only one free hand, as my tripod was held by the other. On top of that, it was lightly raining. In situations like this, being slow and methodical is the key to not taking an unplanned, fully clothed "swim". Or, I could've simply said 'the heck with it' and gotten my shoes wet, but I hate wet shoes. I'm happy to say that I stayed high and (relatively) dry.

A polarizer was used to remove reflections and saturate the colors.




"Elowah Falls Autumn" (Larger version and EXIF can be found here.)

This, to me, is the complete opposite of the other waterfall above. It is named, quite popular, and shot often. But, because of it's magnificence, I wanted to take a crack at it. As with the other waterfall, I had to remove footwear, wade out and balance on a rock. This waterfall had another challenge: mist. The mist here was pretty strong, and I had to constantly keep it off of the lens. Only with the help of a friend was I able to keep the lens clear long enough to get this shot.

Again, a polarizer was used.

Nacho

Nug, great shots. I like them both, and have shot water flows myself at the Columbia River Gorge. Your description of working that scene is quite familiar also as I've waded through the water and rocks, and taken enough falls there! One of the other features of the Columbia River Gorge is the wind. It looks like maybe that did not trouble your shooting.

Besides the circular polarizer, did you use a neutral density, a remote release? Ah, I see a 5 sec exposure at f/16, with a Canon 5D. ISO 200 at 16mm. Cool beans.

I like them both, but truly enjoy that last one.

Thanks!

Nacho

JAG

lovely shots. You really get into your work don't you!

vgeek

Like the colors of the 2nd. You have a really nice portfolio too, tons of good shots.

davidweaver

I have a soft spot for water captured that way. Great job. #2 is my fav.

Cheers,
David

Dwayne Oakes

Awesome photos ! Technically sound ! Thanks for posting.

Take care,

Dwayne Oakes

kdog

JAG wrote:

lovely shots. You really get into your work don't you!

That's what I was thinking. Great shots!!

Kory Lidstrom

Thanks for your comments, everyone.

Nacho wrote:

Besides the circular polarizer, did you use a neutral density, a remote release?

I like them both, but truly enjoy that last one.

Thanks. On some of the shots I did use a remote release. I shot a lot of falls there though, so I can't remember if the release was used on these two or not. I didn't need an ND filter, the light was already dim enough.

NorthernFocus

Nice images. Like previous comments I prefer the second shot due to bighter colors and sense of mysticism. The upper left of the first image seems a bit messy. But consider the source, I've just started working on my water in motion skills

annnna8888

Both are great, but as several posters before me have said, the second one wins. Maybe it's the yellow leaves, which make the scene brighter, or the mist, but for me it's definitely stronger composition-wise. In #1, I would have tried to leave a little more space between the rock and the edge of the photo. Regardless, it's still a wonderful image!

Ana

leaforte

The second shot is the epitamy of depth. Thanks for sharing.

Allan FG

Nice shots, I will have to get out to the gorge this winter.