Middle Prong of Little River in the Tremont section of Great Smoky Mountains National Park is one of the most beautiful streams on the planet. It is a boulder-strewn paradise of water, rock, and life that in late-August begins its preparations for the coming of autumn. It is some of the best evidence around for the resilience of Nature in the face of human devastation, for between 1925-1930 Tremont was extensively logged by Col. W.B. Townsend’s Little River Lumber Company , which had a logging community located at the confluence of Thunderhead Prong and Lynn Camp Prong, the very headwaters of Middle Prong. The resilience of Middle Prong is by no means an argument for unbridled development, rather to the contrary, it is a call for restraint and preservation in the face the onslaught that threatens so many of our beautiful public lands.
A focal length of 19mm, very wide-angle to be sure, gave me the angle of view I wanted. My primary concern here was the height of the camera above the beautiful mat of the somewhat rare dwarf bristle fern (Trichomanes petersii). I saw that being lower would impede the view of the water from upstream, so I chose to make the ferm a bit less dramatic as a foreground element by being about 3.5′ above the plants. An aperture of of f/20 provided depth-of-field and at ISO 100 a shutter speed of 13.0 seconds was required for an overall medium exposure. An ISO of 400 would have reduced the shutter speed to 3.25 seconds, which did not seem to offer much of an advantage under the circumstances.
The wonderful world of Tremont has always offered me a respite beyond imagining. If you have a favorite Tremont story, I’d love to hear it.
Don, this is a delightful image. It is simultaneously lively and peaceful. It is both simple and nuanced. I appreciated your technical notes, especially about the trade offs regarding height of camera. When I opened your email and first saw the image, I had to scroll down to view the full thing, and interestingly the view (scene) just kept unfolding and unfolding until I found myself staring down at the fern with you. Neat experience! The little grace notes of light from the blurred stream add to this image’s beauty.
I agree with your point about the lessons we can learn from nature’s resiliency. But it brings peril, too: the fact that the Tremont can recover from a period of intensive abuse is no justification for future abuses, and your regular reminders about our collective stewardship responsibilities are important.
Back to the image for a moment, one more thing I like is that while there is one obvious direction of movement through the frame with the water, many other indications of movement and activity appear as well. The various lines or vectors — e.g., the boulders, the stream’s edge, the bends in the far vegetation — add lots of visual interest. Thank you! I’m off to Portland, OR for a brief work trip this week and will have at least one opportunity to explore the beauty there. Have a great week. Ray
I think I’m supposed to learn a lesson this week. Just a few days ago, my first outdoor photography instructor, Hank Erdmann, posted a blog about lines that draw the viewer’s eye into the frame, but end within the frame, instead of exiting at an opposite edge or corner. Says Hank, such lines increase interest in the image by enticing the viewer to ask, “What lies beyond the end of the line?” Now, here you come with another example that does exactly that! What would I see if I walked further up the creek? Just maybe, Don, with both you and Hank reinforcing that thought, I’ll remember to look for such opportunities when I’m out shooting. Thank you!
This is mesmerizing! I have been looking at it for quite a while and thinking how it must have felt to be standing in the middle of such a tranquil scene. Thanks for choosing the wide angle for this and making it vertical. I am enjoying all the rich greens that August offers from the ferns in front, to the green reflections in the water, then the trees in the background. The s-curve running through it slows my eyes down so I can take in more of the beauty and ponder what’s beyond the bend. Then I start all over in the foreground because I don’t want to leave. Thanks for sharing the images and and notes.
Beautiful image. Even though the water is flowing towards me, I find myself taking the more difficult path upstream as I view the picture, going from the lower left to upper right. The use of the rock in the lower left to start us out is perfect, although I did find the white spot on it a little distracting. Classic example of using “s” curves to guide your viewer. Am I the only one so far that sees that rock as an alligator/crocodile head? Also like the different flows of the water with some gentle, some rough, and some still so you can see through it to the bottom. Getting low and shooting vertical was definitely the right choice here. Thanks for sharing.
Good afternoon Everyone. Thank you all so very much for joining me for this conversation. What fun it is to talk about a place that is so very dear to my hear and so beautiful at the same time; and the entire Tremont area of Great Smoky Mountains National Park is just that.
Hey Ray. I very much appreciate not only your kind words, but your thoughtful observations, as well. So much of thoughtful composition is, in my mind, about the trade-offs that one encounters in the process of creation, and with wide-angle imagery this seems especially so just because there is so much information to manage. Your “lively and peaceful” comparison is well-taken. Many images such as this tend to emphasize the lively and dramatic aspect, but it seems to me that sometimes drama and pacificity (not yet a valid Scrabble word)can co-exist effectively. I have no plans to stop advocating for restraint from the abuse of nature; and sometimes I feel myself becoming more vociferous by the day, and sometime I’d love to share this area with you. I believe your reaction would be much like mine. Hope your week in Oregon was excellent.
Hey Donald. It’s great to hear from you. I have to agree completely with Hank’s observation (and I see that he loves the UP also). Images that provide “answers” can be quite powerful; but images that carry the continuing question can be equally so. Your eyes are quite refined already, but there is no limit to what they can continue to see. Be well, my friend.
Hey Nancy T. I wait in anticipation each week for the stories you will share with us; and they never disappoint. The greens of August in the Southern Appalachians are enchanting, even mesmerizing, and you can almost see the plants just beginning to gather themselves up to turn the corner and begin to head toward fall. I’m so delighted you point out the “S-curve” for us. It’s a bit subtle, but I hoped the small bit of whitewater where part of the creek makes a turn inward would be noticeable. Bonnie Cooper didn’t want to leave either. We were here into late afternoon and almost did not make it to Clingman’s Dome for sunset. Hope all is well.
Hey Kev, I always look forward to what you will share because it nearly always involves your own journey, which is a big part of why I do the Image to begin with. We are all on this amazing journey of discovery together. Nothing the matter with swimming upstream when its appropriate. I wondered if anyone would comment on the yellow birch leaf on the “alligator” rock in the foreground. I was tempted to move it but decided I would let it lie as a way of calling a bit of attention to the small water drop in the lower left. That leaf became part of a triangle with the orange leaf on the left side of the greenery toward the back and the yellow-orange leaf near the edge of the long boulder in the middle of the river. The yellow leaf was certainly the most prominent, but I did not see it in isolation. I continue to appreciate how you work through your reactions to the elements of a composition. Walk in Beauty.
Thank you all for some wonderful comments and observations. I am so grateful that my home is in this part of the world and that I have the opportunity to be a part of its expression and its preservation.