D Is For Drop

Okay, So Maybe It Also Signifies Danger As Well

Photograph copyright: DAVID McMAHON

I guess it’s not often you get to take a shot directly above a waterfall, but this shot of the Montmorency Falls in Quebec City was taken in mid-September 2005. I wasn't rafting over the edge - but I had a great vantage point from the wooden walkway that spans the falls themselves.

I was astonished when the guide told me that these falls are actually higher than the Niagara Falls – but obviously not as wide. She also told me that the Montmorency Falls freeze over completely in winter – and yes, that’s a sight I would love to replicate from this identical angle.

I shot this with a Canon EOS 3000 in fairly grim weather. There was low cloud and rain, but I was determined to get a bird’s-eye view of the gorge.

As I’m well over six foot, I was able to lean over and hold my camera out a long way to take this shot directly above the apex. If you look to the left of the frame, you’ll actually see floating logs down below, looking like a collection of matchsticks.

I shot about a dozen frames, from slightly different angles, but I like this one because of three reasons: a) it is an almost even balance between foaming water and relatively calm water far below; b) it is unmistakably Canadian because of the logs and c) I was lucky enough to catch two separate tendrils of “mist” emerging from far below.

This is just a low-resolution version of the original shot. To see the high-res version, just view my RedBubble version of the same shot at Over The Edge Of The Waterfall.

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