Sylvia Splendour

Artist: Peter Hill
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Card: US$8.31
Print: from US$35.62

Sylvia Splendour

After a week of rain in Sydney last week, Tatiana and I were itching to head up to the mountains today to shoot Sylvia Falls in the Valley of The Waters in the Blue Mountains National Park, hopefully in full stream. The end of daylight saving last night was both a curse and a blessing to our plan to arrive at Conservatory Hut at the top of the cliffs at dawn, but we made it. The air was crisp and very still, there was a little light rain, and a heavy fog in the valley. On our way down to the Falls we stopped off at Queen Victoria Lookout to check out the view.

We could hear the series of falls in the Valley of The Waters below us quite loudly from the lookout, so it was looking good. Down at the bottom, we split up, with myself stopping off to firstly shoot Empress Falls while Tatiana carried on to Sylvia Falls. Later we reunited at Sylvia, then progressed further down the valley to Lodore Falls and beyond.

We both wanted to give The Black Glass a workout, being the Hoya HMC ND x400 77mm Filter, and boy did we ever! Designed for photographing solar eclipses safely, this extreme neutral density filter gives a special touch to Monochrome daylight photography. It is so dark you need to firstly compose, and focus, your shot without the filter on.

The image you see here is a single shot RAW file. Note the shutter speed! The ONLY processing done on it has been to apply Linear Contrast (+1.3 Brightness Adjustment) and sharpening in Canon Digital Photo Professional before converting.

The extreme settings shown below only worked given the dawn light and the absence of any wind! It was a great shoot.

Canon EOS 5D Mark II, tripod-mounted, remote shutter release
Canon EF 24-70mm f2.8L Zoom Lens with Canon UV Haze Filter and Hoya HMC ND x400 77mm Filter
ISO: 50
Aperture: 7.1
Focal length: 24mm
Speed: 270 seconds (yes, 4.5 minutes!)
WB: Auto
Focus: Manual
Image: single RAW
Style: Monochrome

Best viewed large

Sylvia Splendour belongs to the following groups:

! 100% !, "Tone It Down"! (3/day - No [EXPLETIVE] color allowed!), 5D Mark II, All About Water, All That is Nature (Photography Only), All Water in Motion (A Camera In The Description Before It Will Be Accepted), Australian Bush ☼ (aspects of realistic Landscapes - ie N0 Abstracts or Macros please!), Australian Contemporary Photography, Black & White Photographers Showcase, Blue Mountains of New South Wales, Australia, Descriptions, Dimensions, For the love of Canon - 2 Images per day with type of Canon camera used, Live, Love, Dream: , National Parks of the World, Nature's Wonders, New South Wales Photography, Shades of Grey, Shots in the Fog, The Addicted Photographer►2 Per Day◄, The Beauty of Nature (Nothing Man-Made), The true beauty, UK to Australia and Back, Unlimited Quality, Waterfall Photography and Who Needs Color For Beauty? - Black & White Art At Its Best Available for sale as

Greeting Cards, Matted Prints, Laminated Prints, Mounted Prints, Canvas Prints, Framed Prints and Posters

Elana Bailey

Peter, apart from astound me continually with your incredible work, you are someone that continues to teach me more and more. My hat goes off to you. This is yet another example of pure bliss. Well done. Another instant fave. Cheers, your student, Elana.
Peter Hill replied

Hi Elana. the size of my head has almost returned to normal size after reading your comment. Such feedback blows me away, yet alos motivates me to strive harder. Thankyou!!
whatsthatbeeping

Nicely done here Peter, Gr8 enhancement whit B&W
Peter Hill replied

thanks mate
JudyBJ

This is a super composition and and that mist at the top make the mood .What can i say? Just love it and chapeaux
Peter Hill replied

thanks Judy!
John Robb

Love the softness that the mist gives it – great work Peter.
Peter Hill replied

thanks John – the fog was swirling, that’s for sure. Over the long exposures the light would noticably change
BigD

Excellent work, Peter
Peter Hill replied

thanks BigD
kathy s gillen...

excellent work
Peter Hill replied

thanks kathy!
Jean M. Laffitau

Wow, wonderful image!
Peter Hill replied

thanks Jean!
Robin Webster

Absolutely stunning Peter! This result is so worth the time and effort you put into getting this shot! The specs are amazing! You are a patient man…..
Peter Hill replied

thanks Robin. Normally I am not known for patience, but these falls are a photographer’s dream in the right condition, unlike Empress Falls just above them – they’re just a pain in the backside
Victoria Kidgell

Absolutely stunning series of shots. This one in particular is so beautiful and peaceful. I really enjoyed reading the notes to go with it too, especially reading about the filter and the settings. Wonderful work!
Peter Hill replied

Thanks Victoria – the slow moving fog certainly added a mood!
dinghysailor1

fabulous work and love the dawn mist too.. gorgeous!
Peter Hill replied

thanks mags!
Alexanderargyll

great atmosphere caught here….......
Peter Hill replied

Thanks Alex
Alana Ranney

Lovely comp and image!!
Peter Hill replied

thanks Alana
budrfli

such beauty and excellence in this proffessional piece!
Peter Hill replied

thanks budrfli!
Richard VanWart

Stunningly beautiful! The complementarity of the rich darks and luminous highs are wonderful, and you’ve achieved a spectacular mystical effect that’s just gorgeous! Phenomenal work. Kudos!
Peter Hill replied

thanks for the great feedback Richard!
Joanne Bradley

Breathtaking and what a great choice to portray in b & w!
Peter Hill replied

Hi Joanne, thanks. I shot some in colour also and may upload one too, but the fog really mutes it.
Mindy McGregor

Beautiful work!!!
Peter Hill replied

thanks Mindy!
zouzou

sooooooooo beautiful!!!!!!!!!
Peter Hill replied

thanks!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Tatiana R

Turned out really nice, and soft, and dreamy!
Peter Hill replied

thanks Tatiana! It was a really good shoot yes?
Kellea Croft

Magical splendour..wonderful work, Peter.
Peter Hill replied

thanks you Kellea
Elana Bailey

You are most welcome, Peter.
Peter Hill replied

:)
Mike Lewis

Jaw dropping..:)
Peter Hill replied

Cool :) thanks Mike!
anisja

Great and profound image ! Very strong tons and a beautiful composition . One can fill the force of water .
Peter Hill replied

thank you very much Anisja!
Megan Martin

WOW!!! This is a truly stunning capture….the B&W really makes the water stand out…simply gorgeous my friend!
Peter Hill replied

thanks Megan!!
Pamela Inverarity

Beautiful image!
Peter Hill replied

thanks Pamela!
Kelly Robinson

Stunning
Peter Hill replied

thanks Kelly!
Johnny S

This is fantastic Peter, i love the B&W treatment.
Peter Hill replied

thanks Johnny!
LindaR

stunning work ~ feeling Ansel Adams here in your set of two ~ wonderful wall art xx
Peter Hill replied

thanks Linda!
Peter Hill

Best viewed large
Barbara Brown

A lovely, mystical scene!
Peter Hill replied

thanks again Barbara!
John Kowalski

Beautiful Capture Peter, fantastic image, love it
Peter Hill replied

thanks John!
Craig Hender

Outstanding capture Peter. Again, just love your b&w work.
Peter Hill replied

I appreciate your comments Craig, thank you!
Malcolm Katon

Great work Peter. I did the Valley of the Waters Walk in March for the first time and thought that it was a magical walk (except for the climb back up)

My ND400 arrived this week and I plan to test it out on the weekend.
Peter Hill replied

Thanks Malcolm – yep that walk back up can be a killer! Especially from Vera Falls.

Good luck with the Black Glass and have fun!
IanTaylor

Absolutely stunning image Peter
Peter Hill replied

Thanks Ian
fauselr

beautiful shot
Peter Hill replied

thank you!
Jono Winnel

Fantastic photograph, one you need to submit to my group Achromatic Nature.
Peter Hill replied

thanks Jono, will do that as soon as I finish a big clean-up of my groups
jetkrazee

Beautiful photograph.
Forrest & Camellia
Peter Hill replied

thanks Forrest & Camellia!
Yauchu Steven ...

wow this is really beautiful
Peter Hill replied

Thank you very much Steven!
Nicolette Thain

skillfully taken and the tones are magnificent!
Peter Hill replied

Thanks Nicolette, much appreciated!
en-joy

Fantastic!
Peter Hill replied

Thanks!
Antanas

amazing work
Peter Hill replied

Thanks Antanas
fauselr

very nice
Peter Hill replied

thank you!
Michelle McFar...

Really lovely shot – when I read how you did it, it made me realise I have so much to learn :-)
Peter Hill replied

thanks Michelle – the good news is I have RB to thank for my learning!
mtozier 3 days ago

wonderful
mikebov about 19 hours ago

awesome
Verena Rohner less than a minute ago

Extremely beautiful capture! The way the long exposure is making the water so soft perfectly compliments the fog. Everything just comes together perfectly here?!