I call the area around this waterfall the “Columbia Gorge” of Massachusetts. The greenery, mosses and ferns here are so lush that they remind me of shooting in the Pacific Northwest, rather than in New England. We have had crazy weather this spring, initially so cold in early May that everything was running late. Then 10 straight days of unseasonably hot and sunny weather that put a major crimp into waterfall photography during what should have been peak season. But over the past week the rains finally arrived, and I went out hunting waterfalls with a vengeance.
I’ve visited this waterfall many times and have lots of “straight shots” of the falls. This time I decided to try something different that emphasized the lush greenery of the location, rather than the falls itself. I thought this more environmental shot provided a nice sense of place. I also liked how the ferns were nestled in the roots of the mossy tree.
This caught my eye immediately - I love the sense of depth and layers. I want to step around that tree root and walk up to the falls. Did you consider alternative crops? I could see nipping a bit off the top, to eliminate the upper shelf of the falls - a 5x7 would do it. That would make the top of the frame more harmonious with the bottom, in that the bottom cuts across the fern and tree, but the top doesn’t cut across the falling water. Does that make sense? Anyhow, this is super.
Ed, it’s been too long since I last viewed your work, I am glad to find this on top of the list today.
I am really captivated by the fern on the foreground. I get that same feeling as @Bonnie_Lampley to walk up to the falls. But I hope you also create an image of that fern alone.
I like it. At Tucker I attempted some similar things. Could you get farther back or go wider? I ask because the compression between the tree/fern and the water makes them seem right on top of each other. Maybe they are…?
A nice lush scene that I thought was the northwest upon opening it. I am thinking along the same lines as Bonnie about the upper falls. I would either like to see more above the top of that falls or have it cropped out. To my eye, it is kind of a tweener. I quite like it with the top of that falls cropped, but obviously I can’t compare it to the other suggestion. This one makes me want to be there and hang out and enjoy the wonderful sights, sounds and mood.
I thought the diagonal of the tree trunk helped offset/salvage what otherwise would have been a static 50/50 composition. Do you agree ?
I agree. I think the composition as presented is balanced and appeals to my eye. I also would love to see the lower third as a separate image. You and I are on a moss trek!
This is a really fine image. Good fg to bg images are not that easy to make. It would have looked like one image imposed over another except for that middle ground wedge on the right. The fern gets your initial attention and then the eye begins to explore. One of the really neat things you find are the ferns ‘living’ behind the falls. It’s a secret trove to be discovered. Maybe they should be processed to make them a bit more obvious. That main diagonal of the tree trunk is a really strong compositional element. I’m not convinced that cutting off the top of the falls is a good thing. Actually, if you do cut it I would make sure that the black ledge is not removed. Having the water descend right out of the frame doesn’t seem to me to be optimal in this case.
Thank you all for your comments and input. While shooting this in the field I debated how to handle the top of the image, and knew it had potential to be an issue. There is not a lot more room above that doesn’t introduce some major distractions (sky patches, logs). I did crop this slightly so I have posted a rework that has slightly more space at the top. Then I posted 2 more reworks that cut off the black rock ledge Igor mentioned, one as a 3:2, and another as a 5:7 as suggested by Bonnie. I put them all together back up top for comparison, if anyone wants to compare and offer further opinions.
I have a ton of shots that show wider views, I’ll probably post one of them later in this series. The tree/fern is literally right on top of the falls (this was shot at 33mm, so no telephoto compression). The tree can’t be more than 10 feet from the falls.
I have a bunch of telephoto shots where I zoomed in on this moss/ferns behind the falls, to me this is one of the neatest things about this waterfall, and is relatively unique for the waterfalls here in Mass.
I like it as presented originally, Ed with the rock shelf included. Otherwise, to my eye, it appears you accidently clipped off the top of the falls. I can’t see the area that is creating the upper fall - if that makes sense. Anyway, super shot of a beautiful area.
