Fall

A Niente

Elowah Falls · McCord Creek · John B. Yeon State Corridor · Columbia River Gorge · Bonneville · Oregon · USA

This ponderous four-headed bigleaf maple has long fronted Elowah Falls, I suspect to equal parts reverence and dismay from photographers. It certainly makes for a graceful frame about the falls, but air currents perpetually generated by the waterfall and creek canyon means motion artifact from the rustling leaves are a 3-season conundrum. It may not be an issue for long, however, as the creek has steadily carved away the earth at the tree's base, and I suspect within the next rainy season or two it will have finally succumbed to the pull of gravity. On this remarkable fall morning, the air uncharacteristically quelled long enough for me to fire off a series of exposures up to 15 seconds long. It would be the last composition I'd capture before the winds stirred from their repose and brought the leaves to a simmering quiver. The soul, however, remained still.