It was a cool and dreary day in October perfect light for photographing waterfalls. "Lets's go to Watkins Glen today, crappy weather like this should keep the crowds down," I said to my husband! Oh I could not have been more dreadfully wrong. Despite the crappy weather huge throngs of people from all over the world had descended on this tiny but beautiful glen and even a wedding was being hosted there! My hopes and dreams of getting gorgeous people free photos were dashed. I've been to Watkins Glen several times over the past couple of decades and while it is normally rather busy this day was like New York City at Christmas type of crowded. Then again Watkins Glen is highly advertised and exalted as one of the best places in the world to visit for it's waterfalls. It is listed over and over again as a must see place to visit and a great place to" 'OPT OUTSIDE." However in my head I was screaming "Opt inside you fools." I know people were there for the same reasons as me and I just had to be patient.. I don't like posting photos with people in them publicly on the internet, never know who will turn around and sue you. It was nearly impossible to make a photo without people in it during this trek through Watkins Glen. The beauty of shooting waterfalls at a low shutter speed and a high aperture is that not only is the water beautifully blurred but the moving humans are turned into ghosts or colorful blurs with no identifying features. I had to keep reminding myself of this to avoid believing that my photos were completely ruined. After all some folks out there are obsessed with ghosts and may appreciate such "ghosted photos'. So despite the human challenge I opted to do my best and crop out people when I could. In some of the shots you really have to look closely to see the "ghosts." In more recent years I've noticed a huge increase in people populating the places I seek to get away and relax. Nature is a great place to relax that is unless it is inundated with other people. Needless to say this was a very stressful day. I'm beginning to wonder if there is truly any place left to "get away." Be sure to click on the images above to see them better. Don't forget to "like" us on Facebook for a updates on the latest blog or to see the "picture of the week". I started the Facebook page as a means to increase traffic to this page, challenge myself to get better photos and stories to share, and in hopes to get some feed back. Don't be shy please be sure to comment or drop a an emoji. Thanks for visiting!
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Julie MetottNature Photographer, wife, mother, lover of outdoor adventure! Archives
November 2022
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