• Ansel Adams.

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Cedar Creek is one of the star attractions of the beautiful Petit Jean State Park. There are two significant waterfalls on this creek, one of them natural and another artificial. Cedar Falls is a natural waterfall, and it's pretty massive and has a trailhead from the visitor’s center to reach the bottom of the falls. The dam overflow from Lake Bailey is quite impressive, especially when the water flow is relatively high. It also has an excellent compositional opportunity using the stone arch bridge to frame the falls.

I took today’s post while walking to get to the location that will allow me to compose the dam overflow with the stone arch of the bridge. The trail was nice and flat, following the creek closely. After taking the shot I wanted, I decided to make a small hike out of it, explored the trail a bit further, and reached these cascades. It seemed like a gentle drop where the trail crosses the stream. The recent spring rain had transformed it into a mini cascade. I liked how the trees on either side of the riverbanks looked. I composed the image to use the river as a leading line into the forest. A tiny bit of Orton effect and a little dodging helped finish off the composition.