We all know that social media has like a million and 1 negative effects on our society. But it does have some beneficial qualities too. And I really try to focus on using social media for the good.

Social media can be harmful when we see other’s carefully curated lives and have negative thoughts about our lives. Why aren’t our lives as good as theirs seems to be? But there is a flip side to this that no one tells you about.

When you go on social media and you see something fun that one of your real life friends did and you are then inspired to go out and do something fun for yourself too.

I love to photograph waterfalls. However, in upstate New York many of our best waterfall trails at state parks are closed through winter until they are completely free of ice in mid spring. This year that cold weather has felt interminable.

Recently it has not only been cold, but also very very rainy. But, the other day I was on Instagram and saw a post from my friend that they were out running the gorge trail at Watkins Glen State Park, one of my favorites and a fantastic place to photogrpah waterfalls.

She shared a video of one of the prime waterfall locations in the park, Rainbow Falls. The water flow at that location was higher than I could remember seeing it before. Not only did I get inspired to shoot some waterfalls I learned that the gorge trail was officially open for the season.

The rain and cold did have one good effect. Great high water flow through the gorge for fantastic images. And low visitor turnout. Especially in the morning when the temperature still hovered in the 40’s. As I made my way through he gorge photographing all the beautiful scenery I was thankful for the low foot traffic but also happy to see some people out enjoying the park early in the season.

When I arrived at Rainbow Falls I was almost in disbelief over how few people there were. And I was so excited that I was going to have the opportunity to photograph this beautiful location without any other people in the photos. This is usually one of the busiest and most crowded location in the entire park.

And for good reason. It is simply awe inspiring. The gorge is cut deep by the water flow. Multiple waterfalls roar down below. Especially with this higher level of water from all the recent rain. And then there is an overhang that you can walk under and the water cascades down the side of the gorge and flows within arms length as you pass underneath. Often it is more of a small stream, but today it was a flume of water. Splashing and careening off the stone and into the valley below. The addition of fresh spring greenery gave it a magical vibe as well.

Most of the time this area is full of people. Everyone wants to take time to admire this feature that is like no other. People taking photographs to cherish forever of the landscape, of their families, and of themselves in a place maybe they will never visit again. As someone who lives nearby I am fortunate to visit regularly.

I have begun to craft my photography of this location especially to incorporate people passing through this landmark feature. It can create its own magical effect if you get it just right. But there is still no beating the opportunity to photograph it in its nearly pristine condition with as little evidence as possible of humans aside from the railings and walkways.

I was joined be a few people now and then, but there were few people and they were so spaced out that I could patiently wait as people walked through and enjoyed the view and then return to asking photographs. Or just photograph sections that didn’t include the walkways as people passed by and then zoom out to take in the entire scene after they had passed. This is one of the best features of a zoom lens for landscape photography.

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Include at least one fully zoomed out image, one zoomed in image of the cascade over the walkway, one photo of other falls, maybe a photo from the opposite angle too.