Review of Last years high water in Newton County High Water
By paul. Filed in Photography Articles |
If you can get away in the next few days, make sure you travel to Newton County. Anywhere you look, you will find excellent waterfalls. I would consider Smith Creek, Clark Creek, and Hemmend in Hollow for starters. The high bluffs along the Buffalo River will have small waterfalls running off of them. These falls will not be running very many days, only as long as the heavy rains continue. One of the best waterfall is the one at the western end of Roark Bluff. This waterfall must be close to 100 feet tall and falls directly into the Buffalo river. It is surrounded by trees and this of year makes for a excellent and rare shot.
Consider also any of the smaller hollows near the Buffalo as they will all be running at peak flow for the next few days.
For photography, I would consider taking slower exposures, 1.5 to 3 seconds. Use the lower ISO or ASA speed for your camera i.e. 100 or even 50. I would recommend also the use of a CL-PL (Circular Polarizer). This will cut the glare off the water and enhance the greens. Even though there most likely will not be much sun, a CL-PL makes a world of difference around water.
Make sure you bring a tripod or even a mono-pod to help support your camera for these longer shutter speeds. You may have to set a higher aperture, around F11 to F14 to allow your camera to take the 1″ to 3″ exposures. Also try to look for wind noise. If there is a lot of wind blowing the trees around in your shot consider taking two exposures, one for the water and then one for the trees. Move the ISO to around 320 to 400 and try for a shutter speed between 100th to 160th of a second. This will stop the wind noise and allow you to layer the two images together later.
Tags: Arkansas, Buffalo River, Clark Creek, Newton County, Smith Creek, Waterfalls