I live in North Alabama. Just southwest of where I live is the Bankhead National forrest. They have a ton of waterfalls, but most are seasonal. This is due to the hilly nature of the topography and all the creeks and streams. At any rate, here are 5 shots of the waterfalls at Caney Creek. This is my second time going down there. This however, is the first time I've crossed the stream to get a better vantage point for several of the shots. The waterfall is cool because it is one of the few that you can walk behind in the forrest. Getting down to the falls is easy. Its about a 1 mile hike, from where you can park, down an old forrestry road to the top of the falls . To get to the bottom, there is a steep trail leading down, which is the most challenging part. Going back on the mile trail can be difficult too, mostly because its up hill all the way. Its not fun when its 90 degrees outside and 100 percent humidity. What is interesting about the last two shots, was that crossing the stream was easy because there are rocks to hop across. On the way back after the shots were taken, I "fell" into the stream after slipping on one of these rocks. The stream is only about 3 feet deep, but luckily my camera was in the case across my hip. The tripod did fall into the stream. It seems ok. The only real challenging part, photographically, was that I took these with an ND2 filter, and I really could have used an ND4 or ND8 filter. It was overcast, but being mid afternoon didn't help too much. Critique as always. This particular "view" is about 20 feet from the falls, on the same side the trail leads up to the falls. This view is about 10 feet from where the trail dumps down to the falls, or about 50 feet from the falls. This view is really close to the falls. My tripod got soaked with this shot. I really like this view. I had to zoom a little with the kit lens to get closer without getting the camera too wet. This view is crossing the creek to the other side. The small canyon wall is against my back and is steep. Similar view as to above, but different camera orientation.
Can I get this thread moved? Or should I say, I think I was supposed to put this in the "Scenic" sub-forum.
Great work. They are all good but, I like the 3rd one the best. I imagine that is a prime poisonous snake area based on your description of where you were.
Gives me a new perspective on North Alabama, which I don't know well. Nicely done. Glad your gear survived. I've thought about getting a watertight bag for my G1 and other gear. That way they should be all right even if the backpack gets dunked--all too likely in my slippery trout fishing haunts.
I'm a native floridian. I miss the ocean. I suppose hiking to waterfalls is akin to walking on the beach for me. North Alabama is beautiful during the fall and springtime. I do a good bit of day hiking, and I would have never thought about putting my camera in the drink. It was strapped to me pretty good in the bag. I had the tripod in my hand and when I slipped, I let go of it. Suprisingly, the tripod is fine. Thanks for all the kind words on the photos. IMHO, it is a testament to the flexability to the OLY kit zoom lens which doesn't get too much love on most of the forums.
