Verdant Cleft

Gallery: LandscapePosted May 21, 20163,404 views11 comments

One of the early photos I posted here on NPN was of Wahclella Falls. (That was long ago enough that it doesn’t show in my gallery here, but you can view it on my website.) The wind was nasty in the eastern Columbia River Gorge when I was camping last month, so I decided to revisit some “old friends,” including Wahclella.

For the composition in that old photograph, I had to scramble up on top of one of the large boulders along the stream. However, since my ear surgery went awry last fall I have had a much harder time keeping my balance. (I don’t notice it much on a flat trail, but scrambling on irregular or slippery terrain is much more difficult.) This time I just stuck to the easy to get to comp.

Nikon D7100
Nikon 12.0-24.0 mm f/4.0 at 12 mm (18mm equiv.)
Blend of 1/6 and 1/2 at f/16.0 and ISO 100
Two images for DOF

Comments

11 comments

Comment posted by Igor Doncov on May 21, 2016 at 4:11 PM

This is a fine composition, well thought out and constructed. I particularly like the upper half of the image. This is an unusual case where the smaller version is more attractive than the larger and I think that may be due to the shadow areas having more detail in the smaller version. There is a barely noticeable magenta tint to the lower falls, or is it my eyes?

I enjoyed visiting your website very much. I noticed that you went from a more olive-green rendition of this area to a more cyan-green rendition. I like it both ways, actually. Great job. Thanks for posting.

Registered on November 22, 2014, 189 Posts, 2733 Comments

Comment posted by Kathy Barnhart on May 21, 2016 at 11:14 PM

Sometimes the easy to get comp works well, and don't we all wish we were 20 years younger when we are scrambling on slippery rocks. A wonderful, dynamic image with lots to look at. All that lush greenery is gorgeous. I'm not sure if the highlights are blown out in the main falls, but it's very bright compared to the foreground.

I just looked at your website and really enjoyed the images and music. You've got some real winners there!

Registered on November 11, 2011, 404 Posts, 1639 Comments

Comment posted by Harley Goldman on May 22, 2016 at 10:08 AM

Pretty lush scene. I might do a little light cloning in of some faint detail in the back waterfall to deal with the pure white? For an easy to get comp, it sure turned out nice. sad

Registered on November 19, 2003, 586 Posts, 11271 Comments

Comment posted by Doug Koepsel on May 22, 2016 at 10:55 AM

I like this John. It has a nice flow to it, good mix of darks and brights, nice shutter speed that shows individual streams of water and not silk/fog. I always like water coming over scalloped rock edges too. The only nit would be that the water surfaces in the image center seem to give a CW tilt.

Registered on April 1, 2010, 196 Posts, 1592 Comments

Comment posted by Roel Wijtmans on May 22, 2016 at 2:14 PM

No problem with sticking to the easy comp when this is the result! Great comp if you ask me, and I really like that small line of upper waterfall in the urc. A small detail, but I think it really adds dynamics to this photo. Perfect ss too.

Registered on September 30, 2012, 116 Posts, 2257 Comments

Comment posted by Mark Seaver on May 22, 2016 at 2:49 PM

This is a fine view, John. I especially like the multiple "types" of flow in the water and how you've arranged them in the frame. The greens are luscious and the sense of depth excellent.

Registered on January 23, 2011, 1103 Posts, 17270 Comments

Comment posted by Ed Lowe on May 22, 2016 at 4:18 PM

Nothing wrong with the easy comp when they turn out this beautifully, John. The lush greens are gorgeous and your SS choice created some nice water action in the scene. My only suggestion would be to tone down the highlights in the waterfall. Sorry to hear about the balance problem; hopefully it will get better.

Ed

Registered on February 7, 2004, 414 Posts, 7115 Comments

Comment posted by Brian Schrayer on May 22, 2016 at 6:00 PM

I like the dramatic perspective, John. It's fascinating the way that the waterfall is a small ribbon that becomes a powerful waterfal flowing into the foreground stream. Those greens add a lot of intrest as well.

Registered on May 28, 2004, 114 Posts, 2890 Comments

Comment posted by Kah Kit Yoong on May 23, 2016 at 2:49 AM

A really well-balanced and effective composition. I wonder if you could extract just a bit of detail from the brightest part of the falls to match the water elsewhere? But honestly, I'm struggling to find ways to improve the presentation.

Registered on September 27, 2006, 636 Posts, 10682 Comments

Comment posted by gary phillips on May 23, 2016 at 1:38 PM

This is really beautiful, John. Technically perfect and artistically pleasing. No nits from me. I love the sliver of falls top right, the explosion of the main falls, the foreground spilling over the ledge and the profuse greens. A very invigorating image.

Registered on October 24, 2013, 185 Posts, 4136 Comments

Comment posted by Dave Dillemuth on May 23, 2016 at 9:49 PM

This is beautiful. I really like your comp and the image is very well-crafted. As mentioned by others, I might try to coax a bit more details out of the waterfall highlights.

Registered on December 10, 2015, 104 Posts, 1112 Comments