I spent last week on the north shore of Lake Superior in Minnesota and then a couple of days on the south shore in WI. This picture was made at Twin Falls near Port Wing WI. I hiked up the creek a little ways to get to this spot and quite enjoyed. It was a fun place to shoot. Any thoughts welcome!
Canon 5DMK4, 16-35 F/4 L@16mm, ISO 50, 1.0 sec at F/16, CPL
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I would crop it horizontaly and cut the lower part of the river to help the eyes go to the small tree with those lushing greens and continue to the waterfall in the back.
As i said, its my vision, just an opinion
No problem downloading the image at all and I really do like your crop version of it. I had not thought of doing that and now when I see it I quite like it. Thanks too for the kind words! Cheers!
Nick, this is an interesting location, with nice ledges up top, pleasing greenery, and the two ribbons of the falls work into the comp nicely. I also like the horizontal option @João_Ferrão did, mainly because it shows the falls larger, and it eliminates some of the less interesting parts at the immediate FG. I really like the little bush at the left. But there is one thing that to me feels awkward - the top of that bush tends to block the view of that little dark ledge just beyond. Maybe just me, but I’m wondering if moving your point of view to your right a few feet could be an option. And that would work with either the vertical or the crop, just my thoughts. It’s a fine location worth exploration.
Bill, Thank you for you’re thoughts on this. I like the crop too and think it gives another nice option for the image. Honestly I really didn’t think much about the leaves blocking that dark area but I can see now it would be better if they didn’t. This area had huge amounts of water rushing through it from storms which left quite a few large boulders and fallen rock around the edges. Still I probably could have moved some and maybe that would have helped. I plan on going back so we’ll see. Thanks much! It is all those little things that make a difference.
Hi Nick, this is a lovely, inviting scene. Nicely cool on a day that’s going into the 90s here in MD. I too was thinking that a crop from the bottom to the bottom of the bank on the left would look good.
Nick, what an interesting waterfall and location That moss behind the falls is so eye catching that it salvages this image despite the low flow of water. I like your processing of color here, it is very vibrant but well within the bounds of being natural looking. I like the crop suggested by @João_Ferrão, it eliminates a lot debris in the LRC of the original image, and it places more emphasis on the tree and falls. The only downside is that it loses all sense of the leading line of the creek. Here is another alternate comp to ponder, that retains more of the leading line. I also did a substantial amount of cloning to remove distracting elements in the LRC.
Hi Nick, This is really nice. I like the way the eye meanders through the composition back to those attractive falls. Processing looks good only thought would be to burn down the brighter edges and then dodge the falls a bit. I find the sides are a bit brighter than the falls and this distracts my eye.
A fine image, Nick, and I like both crops as well. One thing nobody mentioned is how attention getting that waterfall is due to the formation of an almost perfect white bordered rectangle. I feel that takes away something from the image. That’s my impression, anyway. BTW, it’s very nice to see you posting here once again.
Thanks to all of you for the great feedback and helpful suggestions on this. It all adds up to a better looking finished image. Thanks for the help! Cheers, Nick
Nick, I had an unrelated question for you if you don’t mind. I noticed that you shot this at ISO 50 on a Canon 5D MK IV body. I also shoot with a MK IV, and the default low ISO is 100, with it settable to 50. Have you seen any noticeable benefits to shooting at 50 vs. 100, or were you just going for the longest possible shutter speed for this specific image? I guess I have FOMO if there is some magic to ISO 50
And it is nice to see you posting here again, I really enjoy your work.
First off get to see a post from you again as I always enjoy your work, Nick. This looks like a lovely find and you made the most out of what looks like low flow conditions. I love the warmth of the surrounding landscape as it compliments the lush greens behind the falls. Of the tree versions I think I prefer @Ed_McGuirk’s with the couple of tweaks. I think that distills the scene down to just what is needed. Lovely scene!
First I’ll echo the other sentiments to say, it’s great to see a post from you! Hope to see more!
This is a beautiful and well composed image as presented. I do think and as others have suggested, there are viable crops. For me, I think ultimately this is about the delicate and elegant falls, right? Even if they’re farther away… but I like the juxtaposition between those falls and the forward little tree; and yes, the subtle lead-in of the water.
I think a horizontal works, with your own personal take. But also Ed’s crop. Personally I would crop more off the right towards a 4:5 ratio. But like I mentioned, there are several viable alternatives and no wrong answers here.
I’m guessing you moved in closer after this comp? Sure looks like a fabulous location and no doubt you enjoyed your time there.
Ed, Don’t mind at all. I really can’t say that I have noticed any real benefit at ISO 50 other than lowest shutter speed and on this shot I was thinking that was what I wanted. Actually a bit faster shutter speed would have been better because the closer up plant leaves blurred just a bit. For the most part I do shoot at ISO 100 on the MK4. I do print my own images on a Canon iPF 8300 printer and can say I don’t know if I see any real difference in ISO 50 and 100. Maybe some can I don’t know.
Thanks Lon! Good to be back! It was a place I was looking forward to photographing again. It had been quite some time since I last saw these falls. I stopped by the afternoon before and walked the trail that runs along the top of the gorge and could see the water level was low and that is really what I was looking for. The light was not good then so I decided to go back the next morning and hope for better light, and it was! For me the 45 mile drive from my motel in the early morning was really worth it! To get this view you need to walk up the creek not following the trail so low water made it more possible. Nice getting your thoughts on it. Thanks, Nick
