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Rain Forest Steam
walked up this small stream until i came to the place where it narrowed and was flowing through the forest floor and over the logs. Slowed the shutter down just...
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walked up this small stream until i came to the place where it narrowed and was flowing through the forest floor and over the logs. Slowed the shutter down just a bit to capture the movement.
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Apr, 2015Views
2064
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Awards
Contest Finalist in Landscapes With Textures Photo Contest
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Contest Finalist in 500 Streams Photo Contest
Peer Award
Superb Composition
Top Choice
Absolute Masterpiece
Magnificent Capture
All Star
Outstanding Creativity
Superior Skill
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Behind The Lens
Location
This image was taken along the Sol Duc River in the Hoh Rain Forest of Olympic National Forest in Washington State USA. This area is referred to as a primeval ocean-born temperate rain forest as it is still one of the best surviving examples of the ancient forests that existed between Southern Oregon to Southeast Alaska. Having got to this spot without it raining was pure luck. The weather flowing from west to east off the pacific ocean comes up against these Olympic mountains and rings out much of the moisture resulting in 140 to 170 inches of rain a year. This shot is a great example of this ancient forest that shows this stream just flowing over and finding its way through the more recent fallen trees. I am still fascinated by the evidence of how the water is slowly wearing away the downed log as it passes by this special place.Time
While its true that many photographers both new and professional look for the edges of the day to get their best images, morning and evening light is truly your best bet, this shot was taken in a darker middle of the day setting. This of course is a bit easier when your in a rain forest like this small stream was. This shot was not about the sky of course, it was about the flowing water over the rain forest floor. These type of shots are actually best taken in mid day when you get a bit more light penetrating the surrounding vegetation.Lighting
This shot was taken in mid day with only natural light within the rain forest. Without help from artificial lights, its critical to have a tripod not only to get the flowing water but also to slow the shutter and let more light into your camera. Which is what I did for this shot. I did do some post processing in Adobe Lightroom to brighten up the shadows and lower the light on some of the brighter spots.Equipment
To get this shot with the low light and need to capture the water flowing over the forest floor, I used my Canon EOS 7D with a Tamron wide angle 10-24 lens. . It was a great camera and lens combination for landscape images. I have upgraded since taking this shot but still value all the images, including this one, I took with it. I also used my tripod with an Acratech GV2 Ballhead. A tripod with any darker forest shot and getting movement in the water is a must. I also had a Canon remote shutter release cable to cut down on camera shake.Inspiration
I took this shot when I was just getting serious about my photography. I knew I was headed into the rain forest so pre-planned to have my equipment like wide angle lens and tri-pod packed. I signed up for a photography workshop that lead us into this forest. The nice thing is we basically just wondered around, being very mindful not to disturb the landscape, to find our own locations for various shots. I would highly recommend a workshop to anyone no mater what your skill level as these groups can get you to places you would not have otherwise known about. I spent some time taking pictures at different locations and different heights from the ground. This shot remains my favorite from that effort as it brings in the detail of the forest floor as well as giving reference to the bigger forest surroundings. The small stream is of course the focal point of this shot as it seemed weird to me that it would just be flowing over all the downed trees. It really is a great representation of that forest.Editing
I have been using Adobe Lightroom for many years and find it to be the best for simple edits to bring out the images qualities. I used Lightroom to lighten up the shadows and bring out a bit more detail in the forest floor. I also darkened the areas in the upper part of the image as the longer shutter bighted up the sky a bit too much in the original shot.In my camera bag
I have upgraded my equipment since the time I took this image. The reason is that newer cameras have advanced the ability to control the quality of the image with higher ISO's resulting in less grain in low light, faster speeds and higher mega pixels. Higher mega pixels allows more flexibility is image cropping. So for me, I have stuck mostly with Canon over the years. My main gear I don't leave home without is the Canon 5DIII camera, Canon 24-105mm F/4L IS II lens, Canon 16-35mm f/2.8L USM Lens. Depending on how much space I have to pack things, I will also bring my Canon Fixed 85mm 1.8. Sadly, there is a lesson here, I dropped my backup Canon 5DII with Canon 100-400 lens into the ocean water a couple months ago. Neither survived the salt water corrosion as I was not able to get it adequality dried off and to the shop in time. The Canon 100-400 is an amazing lens and I will be replacing it. I can also add my Canon 1.4 extender to the lens to get even closer. My backup backup is my Canon 7DII. Still a great camera and very fast. I also have a Tamron 70-200mm f/2.8 lens. Another great lens for all kinds of things.Feedback
Any time you venture out to the Washington coast and especially into the Olympic forest is to be prepared with water proof equipment. This includes rain and wind gear for yourself. Even lightweight water proof wind jackets and pants that can be rolled up tight and put into your bag will save you from missing out on some great shots. A water proof bag is also nice. I just picked up a Voyager Sunny 16 water proof bag that I tested out in driving rain at Canon Beach Oregon a couple weeks ago. Worked great. Highly recommended. For your camera and lenses, you can get a simple inexpensive plastic cover like the OP/Tech rainsleeve. I have two. I can even just fold it up very small and put it in my pocket. I also have a more robust water proof fabric one but honestly I just use the plastic one 99% of the time. Then, to get this shot, you need a sturdy adjustable tri pod and a remote cable release as you will want to get a longer shutter time and you will want to limit shake. Also, I would recommend setting your camera to 100 ISO and dial in your shutter accordingly. This way you will limit the grain. The other advise, just have fun and experiment while your there. Take lots of shots with different settings. You likely have a digital camera and you will regret not having taken a bunch of shots when you get back to your editing desk. Have fun.
