On an August weekend in the later parts of the summer season, I decided to take my mother and younger brother on a cruise up the Minnesota North Shore on Highway 61 from Duluth to the Canadian border. The last stop was Grand Portage State Park, where we hiked to the High Falls waterfall.
The Pigeon River separates the USA from Canada along the North Shore of Lake Superior. Both sides have a park that overlooks this waterfall. We stayed on the American side. My brother and I hiked the trail to get here.
This was also a moment of redemption for me. I had stopped here in May 2024 before crossing the border on a weekend trip to Ontario, Canada, and during that time, the waterfall was flowing heavily after some recent rain and ice melt. All of my images then were completely washed out since the waterfall was spraying heavy mist all over the place.
Fast forward to this day, it was a more pleasant afternoon with fresh greenery from the summer season. It was more appealing to the eyes than when I was here earlier that year. My brother was in awe of it since it was his first time seeing it. There were plenty of people there, and I waited so those folks could get their photos of it as well. As any photographer knows, sometimes in public places like this, you just have to wait things out. It definitely worked in my favor.
Once the crowds dispersed, I saw a unique perspective to capture the fresh leaves and the waterfall. I’ve never seen a composition like this before, and I was just zeroed in to nail this down.
During this time, the sunlight became more highlighted on the waterfall and cast some shadows on the leaves, displaying an earthy vibe to this image. My brother was curious, and I showed him what I had just captured. His words were, “That’s Cool, Michael,” and I felt as if I had redeemed myself of an image I struggled to capture previously.
In hindsight, with the heavy spray of mist and lack of greenery the first time compared to this final image I captured months later, this was truly worth it. Once we hiked back to my car, my mom loved this image, and then I took a picture of it on my phone and sent it to my significant other. She was just in love with this image and couldn’t wait to see it. Overall, I’m grateful.
It goes to show that sometimes, if you fail to succeed, you should try again. This was a prime example of that.
