Dogwood Pond Waterfall
Hills & Dales Metropark, Kettering, Ohio
"Water is the driving force in nature.” - Leonardo da Vinci
Hills & Dales features 63 acres of photogenic creeks, rolling hills, a wetland habitat, and so much more. My first visit happened to be during autumn when the gorgeously colored wooded leaves painted the Metropark.
This image is of a man-made cascading waterfall connected to the creek. At first I worked the scene with a wide angle lens however found it to be too static and uneventful. I switched lenses to a small telephoto and thus opened up a world of possibilities. Purposefully wanting to crop the waterfall to the finest details, the telephoto zoom lens allowed the frame to be filled with all the movement and action I intended to show.
As expected I used a circular polarizing filter and remote cable release with mirror lockup to minimize camera shake and enable a longer exposure. This waterfall is certainly unique in that these stone slabs are jutting out of the bridge it is connected to underneath. My goal was to have the stone patterns come forth, show the silky smooth water stream below, and rely on textures of the moss to bring it all together. This has become a top favorite in my portfolio for this reason. Some days I believe I've explored it all, but then you know you've seen nothing yet.
© 2018 Ryan L. Taylor Photography. All Rights Reserved.
