Cascade and spring reflections, Great Smoky Mountains NP, Tennessee. I loved the repeating patterns created by the standing waves in this cascade, coupled with the vivid green reflections. 52mm, 1/3 sec. at f/16, ISO 100.

You can find every shade of green in the Smokies in spring – light green, dark green, blue-green, yellow-green, and everything in between. Occasionally the greens are mixed with a splash of blue sky or white water, but it’s a green world.

Our eyes and brains can distinguish more shades of green than any other color. The cones in our retinas, which perceive color, are more sensitive to green wavelengths than other colors – not surprising for a species that evolved in African forests, where distinguishing between shades of green helped find food and avoid predators.

And green is a soothing color. Being surrounded by green evokes feelings of calmness, balance, harmony, and renewal in many people – including me. Being surrounded by all that spring greenery in the Smokies was wonderfully soothing uplifting.

While the greens were visually and psychologically compelling, it was hard to incorporate them into cohesive compositions. The forests themselves were often a cluttered mishmash, making it challenging to find order amid the chaos. And while those greens were lovely, that was only one main note of color with subtle variations, and basically monochromatic.

But flowing underneath the canopy were cascading creeks and rivers, which provided just the right complement to the greenery. Splashes of white water could add a contrasting hue, and perhaps a visual focal point to build a composition around. The line of a creek could provide a design element to give a photograph structure. And reflections of sunlit greenery in shaded water created the most vivid greens, with reflected patches of blue sky sometimes adding another note of color.

Here’s a collection of some of my favorite water images from the Smokies during our April visit. I had fun concentrating on shaded ripples and small cascades reflecting sunlit greenery, looking for wave patterns in the water to give the image structure. I was also inspired and encouraged by one of my fellow instructors at the Out of the Great Smoky Mountains conference, Nye Simmons, to look for squiggly abstracts in riffles and cascades. And of course I just followed my nose and photographed anything that caught my eye. And with Michele Sons, my co-instructor for the field sessions, it was fun to help conference participants look for these water abstracts. For some people this was their first time photographing scenes like that, and it opened up a world of new possibilities.

Just looking at all the greens in these photographs takes me back to the Smokies, and calms me. It was a wonderful place to be in the spring.

— Michael Frye

Green cascade, Great Smoky Mountains NP, Tennessee. The small rocks and cascade provided a focal point for the green reflections. 152mm, 1/3 sec. at f/16, ISO 250.

Ripples, Chilhowee Lake, Tennessee. Michele Sons led our group to a spot she knew for reflections. The lake turned out to be too rough for what she had in mind, so we switched gears and concentrated on abstract ripple patterns. 400mm, 1/250 sec. at f/22, ISO 6400.

Green and blue cascade, Great Smoky Mountains NP, Tennessee. Another small cascade provided patterns and focal points for the green reflections. 152mm, 1/3 sec. at f/16, ISO 100.

Reflection abstract, Great Smoky Mountains NP, Tennessee. Nye Simmons showed us this spot with squiggly reflections. 169mm, 1/15 sec. at f/16, ISO 400.

Squiggles, Great Smoky Mountains NP, Tennessee. Taken near the previous photo. 265mm, 1/8 sec. at f/16, ISO 320.

Small cascade, Great Smoky Mountains NP, Tennessee. Michele and I scouted this small, photogenic cascade before the conference, and took one of our groups there later. 31mm, 1 second at f/16, ISO 100.

River island, Great Smoky Mountains NP, Tennessee. I was intrigued by the split stream coming together at this spot. 89mm, 1.5 seconds at f/16, ISO 100.

Tree shadows and rushing creek, Great Smoky Mountains NP, Tennessee. After the sun hit this spot in the morning I looked for scenes that might work with backlight. I thought these tree shadows on the water could look interesting with a slow shutter speed, so I put on a strong (10-stop) ND filter, then bracketed and blended exposures to handle the high contrast. 39mm, three bracketed exposures ranging from 0.7 seconds to 10 seconds at f/16, ISO 100, blended with Lightroom’s HDR Merge.

Related Posts: Great Smoky Expectations; Ridges Upon Ridges

Michael Frye is a professional photographer specializing in landscapes and nature. He lives near Yosemite National Park in California, but travels extensively to photograph natural landscapes in the American West and throughout the world.

Michael uses light, weather, and design to make photographs that capture the mood of the landscape, and convey the beauty, power, and mystery of nature. His work has received numerous awards, including the North American Nature Photography Association’s 2023 award for Fine Art in Nature Photography. Mich
ael’s photographs have appeared in publications around the world, and he’s the author and/or principal photographer of several books, including Digital Landscape Photography: In the Footsteps of Ansel Adams and the Great Masters, and The Photographer’s Guide to Yosemite.

Michael loves to share his knowledge of photography through articles, books, workshops, online courses, and his blog. He’s taught over 200 workshops focused on landscape photography, night photography, digital image processing, and printing.