Secret Paradise (Charlie Falls, North Carolina) Poster

Pictured here is Charlie Falls, a large but relatively unknown waterfall near Lake Glenville, North Carolina. The waterfall itself is very sunny and falls into a large clearing, but the stream quickly becomes re-shrouded in rhododendrons and shade. From that vantage, the waterfall takes on a whole new feeling – one of secrecy and discovery. If you visit in the right weather on the right time of day in the right time of year, the mist is brilliantly lit by the afternoon rays, further amplifying the experience. This just goes to show you that in photography, rules are meant to be broken every now and then. Shooting waterfalls in bright sunlight is typically very hard, and the results are typically underwhelming. But sometimes, when you break the rules, they shatter fantastically.