mattpayne
FollowOn the last day of my recent waterfall photography expedition with my friend Kane, we stopped at Koosah Falls at sunrise. The beautiful soft morning light was b...
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On the last day of my recent waterfall photography expedition with my friend Kane, we stopped at Koosah Falls at sunrise. The beautiful soft morning light was beaming through the tips of the trees above the waterfall, lighting up the mist created by this powerful 64 ft. waterfall on the McKenzie River. Koosah Falls is located in Lane County, Central Oregon right off of Highway 126 near Sisters.
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Contest Finalist in Your Point Of View Photo Contest
Contest Finalist in Along The River Photo Contest
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Contest Finalist in The Magic Of Moving Water Photo Contest
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Contest Finalist in Capture The Jungle Photo Contest
Contest Finalist in Discover America Photo Contest
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klhprice
March 11, 2016
Visited Oregon/Washington last September. Happened on Sahalie Falls Park by accident. It was one of the highlights of our trip. Beautiful area and I wish we'd had more time to spend here. This is a great capture!
betsynorris
December 21, 2016
I have been here many times, never have I seen it captures like this! There was a major forest fire here last year so you may have captured something lost in time. The lighting is extraordinary!
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Behind The Lens
Location
This photo of Koosah Falls was taken along the McKenzie River in Central Oregon. Koosah is easy to access; however, getting down to the more photogenic areas require some caution and for you to be fairly nimble, as it is quite steep. There are two very good spots along the river to photograph the waterfall, one up close and one from afar. Both require some steep down-climbing from the main trail to reach, but it is very obvious as to where to go.Time
This particular photo was shot in the early morning at sunrise.Lighting
I found a very interesting composition that utilized some of the trees in front of me to break the scene up a bit and to provide a sense of scale. I shot it at 20mm with a circular polarizer. I absolutely loved how the early morning light was just above the waterfall here and I'm hoping to get a huge print of this one someday.Equipment
For this photograph, I used my Nikon D800, Nikon 14-24 f/2.8 lens, a Circular Polarizer filter, and of course a tripod.Inspiration
When I photographed this waterfall, I was on a four-day journey through central and south Oregon to photograph some of the best waterfalls the state had to offer. Out of all of the waterfalls I shot, this was easily one of my favorites. The light of the rising sun combined with the super serene nature scene was just amazing to take in. I wanted to try to impart that experience on the viewer with the use of the wider angle.Editing
I post-process extensively in Photoshop and Lightroom. For this shot I did employ the use of a technique referred to as light bleed where a gray or neutral layer is overlaid and then the artist is able to "paint" in darks and lights as well as color.In my camera bag
These days I seem to always have two lenses in my bag - the 14-24 and the 24-70. If I'm not on a long hike, I also bring my 70-200 lens. For my night photography I always also use a shutter release cable and intervalometer.Feedback
My advice for anyone is to first learn how to use your camera in manual mode and understand how the exposure triangle works. This allows for so much more creative control over your subject and scene than shooting in auto that really the possibilities are endless. Next, I’d suggest becoming extremely curious about the work of other photographers that you admire, and to ask yourself how they shot it. This will force you to experiment and learn new techniques and post-processing skills. Additionally, embrace feedback, positive and negative, as it is the only way we grow as artists. Don't shy away from asking for critique and stay open to the feedback, even if it feels mean or cruel. This is hard since we all have egos, but persevering through this process is worth it. Lastly, I’d highly recommend learning as much as you possibly can about Lightroom and Photoshop (or your program of choice) – these open up a third dimension of creative control and ability that really cannot be emulated or accomplished in the field.