Making an image. Waterfall and water swirl image during a Vermont Autumn.

The water swirl image is a challenge to pull off both technically and creatively. Creatively the composition has to be just right as well as the conditions technically to shoot the image. In this leaf swirl image I finally had everything come together to allow me to make this image during the Fall here in Vermont. I had been hiking around some rivers all day shooting and I was on my way home when I came across the scene here and I had to make one final shot for the day. The overcast light was crucial to making this image because it was even throughout the composition and dark enough to allow for the long exposure that this image would need to be made. I gave the light a bit of help with the addition of a circular polarizer to reduce any glare and reflections along with a neutral density filter to darken the light a bit more and allow me to lengthen the exposure time.
This small waterfall and pool was away from the main river that I was on so the water wasn't as churned up and the swirling of the leaves was not as erratic. The leaves were swirling in the same consistent pattern and just fast enough to capture a few revolutions in a single exposure. You really never know what you may find when you are out hiking and I think I found a real gem here. The pool of water is very small but you wouldn't really know it because of the framing. I like to add motion into a still image when possible because it really adds a nice dimension to the static elements in the frame!

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