I jumped the gun a bit on my spring adventures along the Southern Blue Ridge Escarpment.  Arriving in early to mid-April, the landscape hadn’t yet greened with new growth.  I was early.  Nature was late.  Doesn’t matter.  Either way, things weren’t quite ready.  But I was there–in place–burning resources.  So, I flexed.  Adapted.  Tried to use the opportunity to shift my focus.

On this morning I hiked down into Long Creek to check out the waterfall that spills almost directly into the Wild & Scenic Chattooga River.  Long Creek Falls is the waterfall equivalent of a slam dunk in basketball.  It’s a predictable, high-quality waterfall behind the lens.  On this morning, however, Long Creek wasn’t quite ready for a headshot.  As I began working the waterfall and chimping my camera screen, I realized that there was just too much brown and not enough green.  It’s one of the disadvantages of returning to familiar locations that you’ve already photographed:  comparison to past work is inevitable.

I slowed down.  Stopped rushing about.  Pulled my mind away from the typical wide-angle frames I originally came to make.  And that’s when I noticed the early sunlight beginning to color the swiftly moving water beneath the waterfall.  I literally turned my back to the crashing water, twisted on a mid-range lens, and started working an intimate, somewhat abstract scene of water and color.  I’m no TJ Thorne, but I channeled his spirit and tried to tap into that artistic energy!

Camera:  Nikon D850
Lens:  Nikon 24-70mm f2.8 @ 70mm
Tripod:  Really Right Stuff TVC-33

Date taken:  April 16, 2025
Settings:  f14, 1/5 second, iso 125