Wahclella Falls

I won't mention the yoga I had to do to get into this position, but needless to say, getting the big boulder to my left out of the frame entirely was beyond my abilities. I have seen better compositions in books and forums, but I'm wondering if a downed tree has made those perspectives unavailable. I plan to go back as leaves start to turn so any advice on shooting perspectives would be appreciated.

Great, great! point of view here Marylynne. Having the rocks and water flower in the fg, with the falls in bg makes for an enjoyable trip through this image front to back. Love all the moss, too. Very PNW!

The boulder and rock in lower left don't bother me at all, In fact, I think they help the composition by providing a frame and directing the eye back to the waterfall after it makes a circuit of the photo. It may be just the difference in our monitors, but I think the color of the moss could be a little more vibrant. Overall, a very nice composition, IMO.

I am enjoying your overall composition of this image. My only nit is the darker portions of the image. Not the deep shadows but the darker mid-tones. If you do luminosity masking you could bring them up or work with the shadow/highlight adjustment. I believe you might see an increase in apparent dynamic range from such an adjustment.

I like the comp as is Marylynne. I agree with Phil's suggestion. Also, the water looks like it has a slight purple cast to it. Maybe a white balance adjustment would take care of that. Overall a nice, intimate scene well captured!

Thanks, everyone. I made a few adjustments (lifted mid-tones, adjusted water hue, and straighened the "horizon" of the waterline (I think it was tilted down on the left). Is this better, or should I go back with a heavier hand. I was especially light on hue adjustments. The rocks in the water tend to have a rusty brownish hue, so I didn't want to make the water too blue or turn the rocks gray.

I do like the blue water less saturated in the second version, but otherwise prefer the first. I agree that the boulder is fine and adds to the comp. When you return in fall, see how the comp looks from high on the slope that is behind where you were for this shot. I like the distant perspective it gives because it takes in so much of the surrounding fall color. Someone, Sean Bagshaw???, posted a shot like that a year or two ago.

Thanks, John. I was trying to see where that perspective was shot from. There is a huge boulder one could climb on, but I think you mean the rocky, mossy slopes to the left (west) of the trail as you continue on the loop? That was the only place I thought the pulled back perspective could come from.

Exactly! I've climbed up there to survey the scene, and it's not too bad a jaunt (watch for slippery rocks in the rain though).

Here is one more version. I had originally rejected it since the large boulder figured more prominently, but now, since that doesn't bother folks in the one above, I thought I would give it a second look. Let me know if you like this composition better.

I much prefer the earlier composition, Marylynne. This newer one is kind of a bulls-eye comp with the main interest right in the center of the image, and the rocks on the left are now too prominent. Also, in the original the flowing whitewater in the lower right stopped just before the edge of the photo, which helps to keep the eye in the frame instead of wandering off.

I think this is the view, or close to it, that John is referring to:
http://gregvaughn.photoshelter.com/image/I00009PxTlnXtbko
Sean's photo is no doubt better, but this will give you the idea.

That was my instinct too, Greg. I liked the water to the right, positioned at an angle, kind of creating a natural vignette. I do like the foreground smaller rock on the left, but the boulder is more intrusive. I think I want a slightly higher perspective so the water doesn't hit the pool behind the mid-range rocks. Might go back tomorrow and play around a little.