Laja Falls

The waterfalls of the Río Laja

At the Laja Falls in Chile, bright water divides at the edge of the rock and collects again in darker pools deeper down. From the side, the height of the fall is in the foreground, from above the shape of the edge. Together, both views can be viewed as two readings of the same stretch of river.

Water above and below the edge

On the Río Laja you can follow the water before and after the edge of the waterfall. Only both areas together show how abruptly the previously connected surface changes.

In the case of a waterfall, a single image section can only approximate the actual height. Above all, a steep look shows where the water comes over the edge and how the current splits. From the side, the wall and the pool below become clearer. A coherent selection keeps the same characteristic rock corner in view in both views. This means that the watercourse can be traced from the inflow to the lower section even without a schematic drawing.

The shape of the rock in the light

Rock surfaces are often harder to read in an aerial photograph than their sharp outline suggests. A dark area can be a deep crevice or just in shadow. The connection of several visible edges provides information. Where they converge and cover a surface, a spatial jump is understandable. A location with clear rock contours is suitable for publication with smaller images. In a larger format, the eye can wander more over the finer differences in the surface.

Light and surface of the water

On water, colors and brightness change with the direction of the light. A bright spot can be a reflection, a darker stripe can be caused by the shadow on the bank. The easiest way to describe such differences is to use a solid bank edge or an object in the water as a comparison. Two different distances are attractive for a sequence of images. The closer view shows small surface structures, while the overview makes their location in the entire water surface understandable.

Light and dark areas of the image

If you browse through the 15 aerial photos, you can stay at shot 14 and shot 4 for a comparison. In the first photo, light and dark areas are closer together in tonal value. In the second shot the contrast is more pronounced. When switching between photos, it is worth looking from the lightest area to the dark areas. The greater the distance, the more individual contours can stand out, even in a small preview.

For Shot 1 and Shot 15, the same day is noted in the image files, March 7, 2022. The recording times recorded are approximately 14 minutes apart. ISO 100 and an exposure time of 1/320 second are recorded for both files.

The Aerial Videos section supplements the photos with 8 clips. The aerial photographer's photographs linked there include “Laja Falls in Chile from the air”. The relevant video page on Adobe Stock can be opened using the respective preview.

Show the proportions of the landscape

For a series of natural history images, an observable form is the best starting point. Where does a surface end, what structure continues next to it, and how much environment do you need to tell the two apart? The questions can be followed directly from the photo. Statements about origin, depth or age, however, require additional sources. An aerial photographer can capture the visible traces and draw attention to a detail. In the later caption you can then clearly explain what can be seen in the photo and what comes from the technical classification.

Related motifs in the aerial photo archive

If you are looking for related motifs, you can start with Anissaras – Crete. In front of Anissaras, small rocks rise out of the water, which respond to the protruding coast in the wide views. It's worth taking a second look at Greece - Lefkada & Surroundings. On Lefkada, the colors change from light turquoise to dark blue off the edge of the beach.