Capturing Blue Ridge Falls

I love photographing waterfalls.  Whether they’re slow little cascade trickles, or mighty power-generating behemoths, I enjoy capturing them on film and in digital.

Yesterday, I was in the Adirondacks, looking for some photography subjects for an upcoming “5/15/15” gallery show for the PhotoCenter of Troy (all photos must be taken in the palindromic date of May 15, 2015).  I tried a few images here and there in the North Country, and after a while I decided to take a little “road trip” to see if there was anything else worth capturing.

I traversed a long, windy road just off Exit 29 of the Northway.  Ooh that looks like a nice spot to photograph – aw crap, there’s no parking nearby.  Hey, that looks like a decent subject – aw crap, there’s red “No Trespassing, Private Property” signs.  Hey, maybe I can shoot that waterfall over there –

And…

What, you’re waiting for me to say “Aw crap” again?  That’s the swerve.  I found an unobstructed view, a decent parking spot, and nobody to bother me.

Nikon Df camera at the ready.  I figured for this “5/15/15” photo show, I’d take pictures first with my digital gear, and then I’d use my film gear immediately afterward.  That way, I could prove that my photos were taken on the necessary day by showing the EXIF data from the camera’s RAW metadata, and then saying, “Hey, I didn’t drive 90 minutes into the Adirondacks to re-take the picture two days later.”

So anyways…

The waterfall I saw was just across the road from a resort called Blue Ridge Falls Campsite.  Okay, I’m guessing that if the campsite was named Blue Ridge Falls, then the cascade must be branded such as well.  Makes sense, right?

Tripod at the ready.  My shooting angle was right along the side of a very steep drop.  Nevertheless, I wanted a good shot, one that didn’t have too many distracting branches or stalks in the foreground, while also keeping away distractions in the distance.

Okay, this is as close as I’m going to approach.

Ready.

Aim.

Fire.

I photographed the cascade with a couple of film cameras, and then went on my journey.

And about two miles up the road, I saw what looked like an animal preserve.

Animal preserve my hoof – it’s a bison farm.

Yeah.  Let’s get a few shots, shall we?

And yes, I was a safe distance away from the herd.  That may be where the buffalo roam, but they don’t look like the kind of animals one would have in a petting zoo.

Yeah, definitely want to stay a safe distance from mommy when she’s nursing.

This was a nice little forward stampede.  Except for that one small buffalo who kept drifting wide right with each kick he took … what, too soon? 😀

Yeah, that was a definitely fun moment.  And after I captured these photos, I decided to treat myself.  I went to the bison farm’s “country store” and picked up some souvenirs and eats.  And that also included some frozen bison burgers and medallions.

This was a nice day.  I need nice “driving days” like this in my lifetime.

And I can’t wait to see how the film pictures turned out from this little excursion.