Vernal Fall

Everything in this image was being impacted by the waterfall and the river. The air was so full of spray that I was soaked in seconds. The air blast coming off the fall was tremendous, shaking trees and providing a sense that everything was alive and pulsing to the beat of the river. This image was extremely difficult to make! First I tried farther upstream with the idea to photograph streamers of light over the fall as the sun came up. After discovering that the soles of my new shoes had the traction of roller skates on wet granite, I stayed in position, getting soaked with spray for a long time. At last the sun came up and instantly turned the river into one blinding mass of spray. I moved farther downstream where the spray was more manageable, but the air blast coming off the fall was making sharp images difficult. This is the sharpest photograph of the set, but I am looking forward to returning through the summer as the sun moves farther north and the light does interesting things on Vernal Fall. Photo © copyright by Michael Ambrose.

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