Waterfalls, Rivers and Streams
High water and peak spring greens at one of my favorite waterfalls in the Columbia River Gorge of Washington. It was amazing to see the high volume of water pouring over the falls during the spring runoff. The water in this river is almost entirely spring fed which makes it incredibly clear and blue. Expert kayakers occasionally run the line on the far left of the waterfall.
An incredible amount of water flowing over Elowah Falls in the Columbia River Gorge of Oregon. In December 2015, the Pacific Northwest received a record amount of rainfall. The rain was intense for several days and flooding was widespread throughout the region. The town of Cascade Locks, Oregon, which is located in the middle of the Columbia River Gorge, received 24.48 inches of rain in the month of December. This was double the normal amount of rain. With all of the heavy rainfall, the waterfalls were absolutely raging in the gorge. I was lucky enough to be able to make it out during the peak of the flow and this is my favorite image from that day. Even though I wore my full rain gear and waders, I was completely soaked after spending the day out there! This image was quite a challenge to capture due to the intense spray coming off the main waterfall and the pouring rain. To deal with all of the spray, I covered my camera/lens with a small umbrella while I found my composition and got everything set up. When I was ready to shoot, I would quickly lift the umbrella straight up and fire off a few frames. Within 5 seconds the polarizer was completely covered with spray and rain drops. I would then cover the camera back up with the umbrella and dried everything off with microfiber cloths and Kim Wipes. When everything was ready, I would repeat the process. I spent over an hour shooting this scene and managed to get 4 usable frames. The process was challenging, but it was definitely worth it!