Horsetail Falls firefall
One of the #EarlySpringSigns in Yosemite is the gathering of hundreds if not thousands of photographers hoping to catch a sighting of the Horsetail Falls firefall phenomenon. It has become so popular that the park closes one lane on each in order to accommodate a half-mile or so of double-parking on each side of the river.
For roughly ten days in late February the setting sun is able to shine into the valley and hit the falls so that they appear to be made of fire or lava. The effect became widely known after Mountain Light Photography founder Galen Rowell shot and published hos famous "Last light on Horsetail Fall" in 1973.
The effect lasts for about 10-minutes right before sunset IF...you are in the right location and IF the water is flowing and IF no cloud interferes with the sun and IF strong upper winds don't blow the stream into a mist, etc. I've overheard photographers describe attempting to get a shot of the firefall as their "white whale."
Two years ago I tried for this shot but there was no water due to California's drought. All I got was photo of a pink rock.
Last Friday there was sufficient water and sun was able to dip under the cloud layer just long enough for a decent shot. I tried again on Saturday and got some interesting shots but no firefall.
The only editing is basic exposure/contrast/saturation adjustments when bringing in the raw image plus a slight crop and sharpen.
Horsetail Falls firefall
One of the #EarlySpringSigns in Yosemite is the gathering of hundreds if not thousands of photographers hoping to catch a sighting of the Horsetail Falls firefall phenomenon. It has become so popular that the park closes one lane on each in order to accommodate a half-mile or so of double-parking on each side of the river.
For roughly ten days in late February the setting sun is able to shine into the valley and hit the falls so that they appear to be made of fire or lava. The effect became widely known after Mountain Light Photography founder Galen Rowell shot and published hos famous "Last light on Horsetail Fall" in 1973.
The effect lasts for about 10-minutes right before sunset IF...you are in the right location and IF the water is flowing and IF no cloud interferes with the sun and IF strong upper winds don't blow the stream into a mist, etc. I've overheard photographers describe attempting to get a shot of the firefall as their "white whale."
Two years ago I tried for this shot but there was no water due to California's drought. All I got was photo of a pink rock.
Last Friday there was sufficient water and sun was able to dip under the cloud layer just long enough for a decent shot. I tried again on Saturday and got some interesting shots but no firefall.
The only editing is basic exposure/contrast/saturation adjustments when bringing in the raw image plus a slight crop and sharpen.