Gold Creek winds through the mountains and forests of Golden Ears Provincial Park in Maple Ridge, British Columbia, Canada.
If one were to point to an “iconic” composition from Golden Ears Provincial Park most would choose the second image here, showing some of the peaks of the Golden Ears mountains. While this may be the most popular scene, I decided to feature a slightly different composition in the photograph above. Even without the mountains in the background, I still like the impact of this scene. I have a few different compositions of this, but I think the wider panorama above shows off the area more effectively. In conditions where there were clear skies and/or some snow on the mountains, I think the bottom scene might prevail.
I have previous photographed this area, but never really have encountered “perfect” conditions for doing so. I had planned on photographing this area in the snow last winter, but snow wasn’t really part of our 2014/2015 winter unfortunately. I headed to Golden Ears Park a few weeks ago on a cloudy day, as I knew my main goals were wildflowers, waterfalls, and Gold Creek itself. When I reached this view, about half way to Lower Falls along the Lower Falls Trail, I decided that the iconic view was worth a photograph regardless. The slight haze in the sky and the clouded background still allowed for enough contrast to photograph Evans Peak (left) and Edge Peak behind the foreground of Gold Creek and the many Red Alder (Alnus Rubra) trees lining the edge of the forest.
Which one of these compositions do you prefer? Do you think the second composition here is effective despite the imperfect conditions in the sky?
For more of my photographs from this area visit my Golden Ears Provincial Park Gallery.
Nice shot, either way, though my eye prefers the second crop. In the first, I have a reflexive impulse to move the camera up! Haha! I like seeing the mountains & sky, for sure, but for me they are also an attractive compositional balance for the creek and far shore below; the mountains seem to echo the creek, and the clouds seem to echo the shore. 🙂
Sometimes you just can’t move the camera up b/c of what is up there. 🙂 I guess my reluctance with the second photo has more to do with the way I know this scene can look vs. what it is actually showing here. Might get back out there in winter with some snow on the peaks, and a clear sky, which might all work out much better. On this day I was after river and waterfall shots, so overcast was perfect for that.
That sky isn’t doing your second image any favors…but even so, I prefer it to the first crop.
Ideally I’d prefer that mountain to have great light and a bit of snow on it, but until I find those conditions there… 🙂