Ricketts Glen: A Decade of Dazzling Waterfall Photos

Looking back at over 10 years of photographing the stunning waterfalls at Rickett's Glen, I' find it difficult to pick a personal favorite. I'm asking for your help. There are literally dozens of various cascades and waterfalls that you can photograph if you hike the entire trail, with 24 of the larger waterfalls being officially named.

Can you help me decide which are the best ones Just pick your 3 favorites.  I included a simple poll at the end of this post  with the opportunity to cast your vote on the top 3 photos of Ricketts Glen.  Whether you vote or not, I'm sure you'll enjoy these photos as much as I enjoyed taking them.

Especially when you're shooting with an extremely wide angle lens, the slightest change in the position of your camera can have a big impact on your photo.  Compare the next two photos. Both include the interesting circular blur of the leaves in the foreground and the triple-channel cascade of water.

In the composition above I lowered my tripod and chose a vantage point that would created a visual diagonal from the eddy to the cascades to the distant autumn trees in the background.

In the photo below, I raised and moved my tripod to the left. This eliminates the distant background and puts added attention to the details in the cascading water. Which one do you like better?

With both of the two "Ricketts Glen Eddy" photos above, I used a super slow shutter speed ( a little over 1 second) to create motion blur and a small aperture ( f/22) to make sure everything was in sharp focus.

Rather than taking the traditional, camera-held-at-eye-level snapshots of the big waterfalls I find it more enjoyable to practice my compositional skills and look for interesting ways to capture the smaller details in the numerous cascades.

The photo below is another example of a middle distance composition where I picked a perspective that would intentional use a foreground element to lead your eye into the image and give you a visual path to something interesting in the backgroun.

I always shoot my waterfalls photos is color in the RAW format, so that I can process the image files in a variety of ways. That includes occasionally as black and white renditions.

It wasn't until 3 years later when I wrote this post on Ricketts Glen waterfall photography that I thought the image above would translate nicely to black and white. I was pleased with the result I got below. Do you prefer the color version or the black and white?

The black and white version of this scene really brings out the textures in the rocks.

In photo #5 below, the water was flowing at a high rate and a shutter speed of 0.6 second game me the look I wanted in the photo of the Sheldon Reynolds waterfall.

The Sheldon Reynolds is the first attractive-to-photograph waterfall that you'll encounter if you start your hike from the spacious new parking lot on Route 118.

The #6 photo below was taken using a 4-stop ND filter with an 8 second exposure.

While you're there, don't forget to look around for photo ops other than the falls and cascading water. I was inspired by this tapestry of fall colors in the trees. The strong backlighting penetrating through the leaves gave this scene the feeling of an impressionistic painting in photo #7 below.

I zoomed in to my maximum telephoto lens setting to "flatten" the perspective and it made this image more of an abstract. 

In photo #8 below I love the tonalites of the different areas of the image, especially the contrast between the yellowish and bluish colors in the top center of the composition.

Photo #9 below was a rainy day photograph. The lighting was a bit too flat for making a dynamic high-impact photo, but it does capture the tranquility I felt as I was the only one on the Falls Trail in this section of the Glen Leigh side.

Photo #10 below made it into this post because of the composition. I, along with many other photo enthusiasts, shoot most of my landscape and nature photos as horizontals, rather than verticals. When I came to this spot, I was intrigued my the zig-zag path that this stream had carved into the landscape and thought it would best be framed in as a vertical.

There are several waterfalls that make for a great location for family portrait photography. In addition to having a great background a successful waterfall portrait is dependent on good lighting, good posing, and choosing the right vantage point when composing your photo.

 Ricketts Glen FAQ

Got any questions about visiting and photographing Ricketts Glen? See the section below to get answers to frequently asked questions. Click on a question to reveal the answer.

Without And With A Polarizing Filter

Look at the dramatic difference a polarizing filter can make by moving your cursor on and off the photo below. Not only does the filter remove  much of the reflections on the water, but pay attention to what happens to the colors in the trees when you hold the cursor over the photo.

Move your mouse cursor on and off the image.

Pay close attention to the small reflections on the leaves on the wet rocks in the foreground and the fallen tree as you move your cursor on and off.

With the polarizing filter in place and reduced reflections, details on the stream bed are revealed and colors become more vibrant. Using a CPF will also allow you to use slower shutter speeds because of the 1 or 2-stop reduction in light reaching your sensor.

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Ricketts Glen video

While you're here on my website, enjoy a peaceful moment of tranquility with this 30-second video of one of the smaller cascades at Ricketts Glen.

If you enjoyed the video above, you may be interested in a longer, even more relaxing, compilation of video clips of the larger waterfalls at Ricketts Glen on my You tube channel here.

Select Your Favorite:

This Form cannot be submitted until the missing fields (labelled below in red) have been filled in
PICK YOUR 3 FAVORITES
Please note that all fields followed by an asterisk must be filled in.
Select Your 1st Favorite: *	Picture #1 Picture #2 Picture #3 Picture #4 Picture #5 Picture #6 Picture #7 Picture #8 Picture #9 Picture #10
Optional Comment:
Select your 2nd Favorite:	Picture #1 Picture #2 Picture #3 Picture #4 Picture #5 Picture #6 Picture #7 Picture #8 Picture #9 Picture #10
Optional Comment:
Select your 3rd Favorite:	Picture #1 Picture #2 Picture #3 Picture #4 Picture #5 Picture #6 Picture #7 Picture #8 Picture #9 Picture #10
Optional Comment:
Please complete the challenge that you see below.

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Map Of Ricketts Glen Falls Trail

On the map below-I took this photo at the beginning of the Falls Trail at the south end-the red line is the walking trail and the blue line is the stream.

On the map above of Ricketts Glen and its waterfalls, what isn't shown is the substantial elevation gain involved in the trail as you head upward from the bottom, from south to north.

I hope that you enjoyed this short, but unique, photo tour of Ricketts Glen and that I've inspired you to visit and photograph it as well.

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