One of the great things about living a short drive away is that I can experience sunrise over Niagara Falls pretty much whenever I want. As long as the weather cooperates and I can stir my stumps.
Of course, the weather does not always cooperate. I recently went with friends down from Ottawa and it was not a good day for a sunrise. Completely overcast, the sun never put in an appearance. We went to Dufferin Islands instead and had a great time exploring and getting chased by the birds. But that’s another story.
I went back with Nikki last weekend, and it was a completely different scene. The sky was bright and clear. We were early, and had time to just stand there soaking up the wonder of it all. Breathtaking.
Something Different
As usual I was fully loaded, with four lenses and a tripod plus accessories. I like to be prepared. I planned to do something a little different. Rather than focus on the famous Falls, I wanted to focus on the river and the way the dawn light plays across the wave tops at this time of year. I’ve not seen that done before. At least, not the way I wanted to do it. OK, I thought. Let’s make this happen, I thought. And did.
A side note: Those that don’t spend their mornings waiting for the sun might not know that not only does the sun move quickly, it changes position every day as the world turns through the seasons. In Spring, dawn breaks the horizon about thirty degrees North of where it breaks it in Autumn. In terms of Niagara Falls, this means that if you are standing at the Table Rock platform sunrise comes up near the American Falls in Spring and over the Grand Island bridge in Autumn. Right above the river. Perfect.
Back to the story. I was ready. The exact moment the sun broke the skyline, burning dawn light flooded across the river setting those tumultuous waves aflame. The solid stone of the bridge stood in stark contrast to those restless relentless waves as they rushed rapidly toward their unseen doom at Niagara Falls.
I shot over a hundred images in the next few minutes. Different angles, different lenses, different compositions. Down, into, along, around. I rang the changes, captured the usual shots. Why not? But this image captured exactly what I wanted. One exact breathless moment. Frozen in time, forever.
The Boring But Necessary Bit
I hate to bring this inspirational moment down to earth with a dull thud, but my fuel tank does not fill itself by magic. Accordingly, this and other images are available as prints for those that share my tastes, in our store HERE.
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Go on. You know you want to.
