Rainbow Falls_2
Nov, 2014Views
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Behind The Lens
Location
I shot this at Watkins Glen, NY. We went on vacation to Ricketts Glen Pa two years ago and from there we drove up to Watkins Glen and we absolutely loved it, the drive up to NY was incredibly beautiful. We liked it so much, we went back this Summer since we only had one day in the area the last time. Lots of wineries and pretty rolling hills throughout the area.Time
This was taken about mid morning on a hot July day in 2014.Lighting
The lighting, since this is in a gorge, was nice. No direct light and didn't need an ND filter. The light was coming through the trees but wasn't enough to light up the gorge and I was able to get the shot without any fuss.Equipment
A Vanguard tripod, a circular polarizer, a Canon 16-35mm and a Canon 5D Mark ii and a remote shutter release. I setup my tripod on a ledge and waited for the shot.Inspiration
I have always loved waterfalls so when I learned about the many waterfalls in the finger lakes I wanted to go. We went back this Summer to see some new ones however, that region is in an incredible drought right now so a lot of the falls (Buttermilk Falls, Taughannock Falls) were really dry. There is something magical about waterfalls that is hard to quantify so I always find myself going looking for more and even going back to ones I have seen previously. I went through times when waterfalls was all I wanted to shoot.Editing
I made my edits to the raw file and then opened it up in Photoshop to do color curves and Levels, did a high pass filter for sharpness. I probably went through a few edits with this shot before I liked the end product. Sometimes it's like that I guess.In my camera bag
When I go out it is usually bring a monopod (Vanguard VEO AM-264TR) unless of course I am going to shoot something that requires more stability. Then I bring a tripod (Vanguard Alta Pro 263AB) with a ball head. In my bag I carry two lenses, a Canon 24-105 F4L and Canon 16-35mm F2.8 L. That pretty much covers the range I may need. However, for the times I need a telephoto lens, I have a Canon 70-200mm F2.8L IS in my backpack. I also have an extender for the times when I need a little more range. Batteries for the flash and various items to minimize dust on the lens. As well as all that I carry tools to tighten the screws up on my tripods and monopods. They tend to loosen up over time. You want to minimize the instances of needing something and not having it when you are in the middle of nowhere. You really want to be ready for anything.Feedback
For this shot, patience was the key. There were a lot of people there that day that were enjoying the park and I sat there setup on the ledge waiting for the moment. Out of all the photos I took, this was the only one that didn't have people walking in and out of the frame. I just had to be patient and wait for that. Photography is like that sometimes, you have to be setup and prepared when it comes because that moment can be a very brief and then it's gone. So, be prepared and ready.
