Rock River Falls Forest Waterfall (fall)

This image was taken at the base of the Rock River Falls — just north of Chatham after a very bumpy, slow ride down forest roads, with an additional mile of hiking down an unmaintained, but relatively easy to follow trail. I recommend not using the directions provided by your phone. It may take you to the wrong side of the river with no trail to follow in. Instead, follow these directions: - Head north out of Chatham on County Road H-01 (or Rock River Road) for about 3.3 miles - Turn left onto Johnson Lake Tower Road (FR 2276) - Follow FR 2276 for about 3.7 miles - Take a left at the fork in the road onto FR 2293 - After about 0.7 miles, you'll come upon a small parking area on the left side of the road, as well as some large logs and boulders - Park your car and then a small wilderness marker will identify the trail head - After hiking through the falls for a mile, you'll come upon this view

In this part of the Upper Peninsula, sometimes fall colors can peak at the end of September, but usually they're at their most vibrant in early to mid-October. Please note that in the winter, the road to Rock River Falls will not be cleared of snow.

This image was taken on a bright but cloudy day in the late-afternoon. As long as the fall colors are vibrant, and the light is bright but not dappling, you'll have similar lighting conditions.

Be prepared to stand on the edge of the water for this shot. I was in waterproof shoes in a few inches of water with my tripod out a few feet.

A wide-angle lens (29mm) worked here to capture the full width of the falls and criss-crossing logs while keeping the frame full.

Try positioning the falls so that it occupies the right third of the image, with room on the left for foreground elements like downed logs and swirling bubbles.

Using a polarizer will cut the glare off the water and result in richer colors as it darkens the scene. You'll need a 10-stop ND filter as well. Be sure to position the polarizer and get focused before applying the ND filter.

If it's windy, you might want to shoot this a couple times (one exposure to capture the still leaves and one long exposure for smooth water) and combine them in during editing.

If you're out waterfalling, I highly recommend stopping by the nearby Laughing Whitefish Falls.