Muskoka Winter Waterfall Workshop Round-up

The 3rd Annual Muskoka Winter Waterfall Spectacular Photographic Workshop wrapped up today. This year we were blessed with temperatures hovering around the freezing mark with no wind whatsoever. It was quite lovely to be able to photograph without the constant need for gloves to keep fingertips warm. We also had mostly overcast conditions which is the best light of all for photographing the woodland waterfalls we were visiting. A relatively shallow bed of snow also made for mostly easy walking along the trails, although the mild weather did create a few sections where we had to be careful of slip and fall due to icy sections. Nonetheless, we succeeded in completing our visits without incident. I always recommend to folks to bring along crampons for added traction along trails that may have icy sections.

Below is a selection of imagery created at each of our stops on this one-of-a-kind workshop in Ontario’s Muskoka region. I used a variety of lenses from my trusty Laowa 12mm Zero D lens, to my Nikkor 28-300mm lens, and also my Nikkor 200-500mm lens, which is very useful for reaching out into rivers to capture icy details on exposed rocks and such. My filter choices for the vast majority of all my winter photography are those created by Singh Ray Filters and my go to filter choices are neutral polarizers and neutral density filters.

Folks that may be interested in attending the 4th Annual Muskoka Winter Waterfall Spectacular Workshop or any other events that I have or will announce this year can contact me by clicking here to be added to my workshop contact list 🙂

Potts Creek in Winter, Muskoka, Ontario

 

Skeleton Falls Details in Winter, Muskoka, Ontario

 

Skeleton Falls in Winter, Muskoka, Ontario

 

Rosseau River in Winter, Muskoka, Ontario

 

Potts Creek Details in Winter, Muskoka, Ontario

 

Little High Falls in Winter, Muskoka, Ontario

 

Rosseau River in Winter, Muskoka, Ontario

 

Skeleton Falls in Winter, Muskoka, Ontario

 

Rosseau River Details in Winter, Muskoka, Ontario

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2nd Annual Muskoka Winter Waterfall Spectacular Photographic Workshop Wrap-up

Hatchery Falls on the Skeleton River, Rosseau, Ontario

The 2nd Annual Muskoka Winter Waterfall Spectacular Photographic Workshop wrapped up on Sunday February 10th around 12:00 noon. We began the workshop on Friday February 8th at 1:00 pm after driving through a wicked snow squall in Bracebridge, Ontario with near zero visibility. The snow squall left about 6-8 inches of fresh snow on the ground and coated the surrounding forests with a lovely dusting of snow – a perfect winter wonderland was created for photographing throughout the course of the weekend event.

We had four fabulous and talented participants of which three were repeat clients.

We began with a glorious morning at Hatchery Falls near Rosseau, Ontario. As the sun began to rise it cast beautiful soft light on the distant forest behind the Skeleton River, as can be seen in the opening image. It would appear that this waterfall has been visited very seldom this year as we had to blaze a trail through significant snow depth on the ground, but it was worth the extra effort.

Potts Creek, Bracebridge, Ontario

We made two trips into Little High Falls on Potts Creek. The first trip in was on Friday afternoon, followed by a second trip on the Sunday morning. Both days were equally good, but totally different. It never ceases to amaze me how quickly waterfalls and rivers can change during the winter months when ice formations take on new shapes overnight. A light dusting of snow on Sunday morning help to accentuate openings in the thin sheets of ice that had formed on Potts Creek overnight. This can be seen in the above image and two images below.

Potts Creek, Bracebridge, Ontario

 

Winter River Details, Bracebridge, Ontario

 

Potts Creek, Bracebridge, Ontario

During brief breaks in Friday afternoon’s intense snow squalls the fresh fallen snow created beautiful clean winter scenics.

My choice of gear for this trip was kept rather simple. As usual my Laowa 12mm Zero D lens was given a workout. The Nikkor 28-300mm lens was a close second as it is such a versatile lens and great for capturing icy details along the river. When I needed focal lengths in between the 12mm and the 28-300mm lenses I worked with the Nikkor 18-35mm lens. Every image was photographed using a polarizing filter to help reduce or eliminate glare from the scene. Do note that I said “reduce or eliminate” as not every scene will warrant full polarization. There are times when a bit of glare can be used for creative effect within the composition.

Little High Falls, Bracebridge, Ontario

On Saturday afternoon we trekked into Skeleton Falls through 3 feet of snow until we reached the forest where the snow on the ground was much easier to walk through as we made our way down the forested slope to the river.

Winter Details on the Skeleton River, Rosseau, Ontario

 

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