After my last trip, I hesitated to visit Stepstone Falls because of difficulty navigating the high steps. But I ended up going again, even twice in one week! For these trips, I did not carry my tripod, which made going up and down the steps a little easier.
The First Stepstone Falls Trip
Jim wanted to visit the site for foliage earlier, but I stayed behind because the foliage was not colorful enough. He managed two visits there before I joined him on his third. It was October 23, 2023, and the weather was very comfortable. We first visited the Arcadia Management Area, where a small pond provided a nice reflective surface. Much of the leaves had fallen, probably during the rain two days prior and the winds the following day. What remained showed some color, and we walked up and back on the wooden walkway. You will see some reflections, some woods, some foliage, and a lot of fun.
The second stop was just a few minutes away, and after a very bumpy ride, we were at the small parking area with a huge boulder. I thought its sides were covered with leaves stuck on its surface, but on my second trip, Dennis told me they were dried and curled up lichen.
We carefully made our way down. The water level was high, and it flowed rapidly. I took pictures of the falls and the trees, but my main interest was the reflection of the fall color on the water. The fluid dynamics does wonders with fall colors. I photographed the dynamic shapes and lines repeatedly, as the results were unpredictable.
Click on the images to see them larger, uncropped, and read their titles.
The Second Stepstone Falls Trip
I wanted to take more reflection photographs than the foliage and the waterfalls. A few days later, I asked Dennis if he would be interested in traveling there. He was game for Friday afternoon, October 27, 2023. Jim was busy and could not join us.
That Friday, the weather was cloudy and overcast. The sky showed a little blue. But we kept on schedule. Driving on a slightly different route, we came to the same spot from the other direction. That’s when Dennis told me that what I thought were dried leaves stuck on the rock were lichen.
We slowly walked down, taking pictures. I wanted to try a different focus setting and use longer focal lengths on the zoom lens. I leaned against the tree by the water and clicked away. The cloudy skies with little light hitting the foliage did not create intense colors, but the film was free!!
The longer focal lengths allowed me to capture more detail, but the occasional presence of color was somewhat disappointing. I also turned off the servo focus on my Canon R7, and that caused me to miss some frames because, by the time the shutter was released, the focus point might have shifted a little.
As it usually happens with this kind of photo shoot, I ended up tossing away a lot of frames. I also stitched some panoramas I took by carefully moving the camera without a tripod or a panorama head. Some of the stitched results turned out to be almost 100-megapixel images.
Click on the images to see them larger, uncropped, and read their titles.
Bill Clark
Beautiful images of this this beautiful place and time of year. I’ve experienced this flowing water multiple times and have never been disappointed. Spring and fall are especially magical!
As you are touring around, you might consider visiting the Hunt’s Mills in East Providence. A hidden gem that is easy to get to and packed with opportunities for stunning photos in any season.
A. Cemal Ekin
Thanks, Bill, for stopping by, sharing your feedback, and giving us tips on new locations. I had a vague idea about Hunt’s Mills from the brief research I did before the Kenyon’s Mill article. We will try to visit it soon, weather permitting.
Take care,
Cemal
James Turner
Wonderful images Cemal. Step Stone is such a picturesque place.
A. Cemal Ekin
Thank you, Jim, for your comment and for introducing me to Stepstone Falls and taking me there multiple times.
Take care,
Cemal
Haluk Atamal
Thanks for the beautiful images, Cemal.
It goes without saying to me that one seldom needs a tripod if one feels experienced enough to find many around! Rocks, trees, cars, waste-bins, what not..
I use my tripods only for long exposure night shots or selfies. Even then more often than not, it will be a tabletop mini.
Kindly allow me to comment that I liked the second set more.
Take care and best regards,
Haluk
A. Cemal Ekin
Thanks, Haluk. I am learning to find trees to lean on! The third frame in the second set was a slow-speed shot, hand-held. Not bad despite my shaky hands. Probably a tribute to the image stabilization in the camera. The second set was more purposeful to photograph reflections. If only I had a little more blue sky and light falling on the leaves!
Take care,
Cemal