This was the first photograph I took with actual photography techniques in mind. When I lived in Tāmaki Makaurau I did a lot of tramping, and would often take photos. After a while I naturally wanted to improve my photos and somewhere (probably some photography blog online) I came across the concept I tried here.
The advice was to include something in the foreground at ‘human scale’ that introduces the viewer into the image. This way, they are not just viewing a photograph of a waterfall, but rather they are invited into the experience of standing in front of a waterfall. Obviously, it is not the world’s greatest photo of a waterfall, but in terms of exploring this technique I am pleased with it. Interestingly, it’s a photo that got quite a number of comments from friends online and I put it down to the use of this concept.
If I was to take this again, I’d be more selective about the inclusion of trees (less is more, and I’m not sure the overlap of water and branches works) and perhaps play with a few different viewpoints. But, it was a big step forward from just taking a photo of a subject, to thinking more about framing and composition – and the viewer’s perspective.
First posted on my previous photography blog. September 2020
Dwindle River Studio 