I went to Great Falls yesterday hoping for some interesting ice, but there was very little. I did get to pursue another favorite activity, shooting rainbows in the mist from the falls. Here are three views of the big step in the middle chute. The three views zoom in tighter on the mistbow and the rock at the bottom of the plunge. (7D3, 100-400, 1/6 s, f/16, iso 100, polarizer, 4 stop ND and tripod)
@248 mm
@188 mm
@164 mm
I think all three images work pretty well Mark. After the media made it sound like the metro DC area barely survived snow-mageddon, I’m surprised that you didn’t have more ice than this. But the rainbow and jagged rocks are more than enough to generate strong interest here.
The 248mm image has the simplest and cleanest presentation of the foreground rocks. But I don’t like the merger of the rainbow rock with the foreground rocks. And I like how the other two images show some of the rocks at the top of the cascades. I prefer the 188mm composition over the 164mm because the triangle rocks in the foreground are larger and more prominent. My only nitpick with 188mm is how the rock in the LLC is clipped by the frame edge.
188mm for me. It has the best diagonal flow of movement.
Sign me up for the 164 as well. I like the addition of the rocks in the upper portion of the waterfall. In the 188 version those rocks are just starting to peak into the scene but not enough and you know they’re there so I want to see them. In the 164 version the rocks help to frame the image a little bit better. I also like the inclusion of the small rock in the LLC and splash of water around it. The large rock at the base of the 188 version seems cut off to me. One last thing…I find that texture of the far rock wall better matches the textures of the large near foreground rock better in the 164 version.
The 164 mm view tells a more complete story to me, with some breathing room at the top and bottom of the falls. It also highlights the flow of water in a more interesting way for my taste.
All three images are quite nice, but I am liking the 164mm version the best, Mark. I like the little bit of a wider view as I think the water flow is a little more interesting and I like the inclusion of more rocks in the scene. I will have to get back down there one of these days as it was many years ago for my only visit.
