Creating images of woodland landscapes is among my favorite spring activities – especially when those images include roaring rivers with swollen banks and tannin-tinted water. I found just such a combination of elements along the Cisco Branch of the Ontonagon River while hiking in the Ottawa National Forest in 2017.
This part of the river, a series of “S” turns dropping in elevation, is known as Kakabika Falls. Walking the rocky, moss-covered river banks, I scouted the river for interesting compositions. To my delight, I came across steep rapids where a fallen tree had come to rest diagonally in the river. Once I identified a vantage point under the rapids, looking upstream over the log, my composition was complete.
My location along the river’s edge made it possible to fill the foreground with emerald shrubs, the fallen tree, and tumbling water, while the background features lovely spring colors: chartreuse and pear. I felt that including the mature hardwood trees on the far bank balances the movement of the scene with a contrasting stillness.
Kakabika Falls
These are the technical details for the image:
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