Aira Beck Falls, a photo from Cumbria, England

Photographer's Note

This is small waterfall at the top of Aira Beck, which starts at the top of Stybarrow Dodd at a height of 720 metres (2,362 ft) above sea level and flows across the heather-covered slopes of Gowbarrow Fell.

It is the first in a series of falls that eventually become the more famous Aira Force falls that are much larger and more spectacular (images to follow in subsequent posts). This beck takes an 8 kilometre journey to join Ullswater Lake.

One kilometre before entering the lake, the beck takes a 20 metres (66 ft) leap down a rocky and steep sided ravine at the falls known as Aira Force. The water falls approximately 22 metres (72 ft) to a rocky pool, from where the beck continues through a shallow valley to the lake.

The river name Aira is derived from Old Norse 'eyrr', a gravel bank, and Old Norse 'á', a river, hence The river at the gravel bank, a reference to Aira Point, a gravelly spit where the river enters Ullswater. The Old Norse word 'fors', waterfall, has been adopted into several northern English dialects and is widely used for waterfalls, with the English spelling 'Force'. Thus, the waterfall on gravel-bank river is now Aira Force falls.

tyro, ikeharel, ourania, jhm, claudeD, alvaraalto, pajaran, lucasgalodoido trouve(nt) cette note utile

Critiques | Translate

lousat (130067) 2016-08-17 1:21

Hi Michael,a lovely pic,a classic long time of exposure on the waterfalls to create this amazing silk effect.Perfect and professional capture about this cumbrian river,interesting note too.Have a nice day and thanks,Luciano

tyro (30513) 2016-08-17 2:34

Hi Mike,

You have a clever knack of "homing in" on specific and beautiful aspects of Nature, unlike myself who fails to see them and only seems to appreciate the wider view. Perhaps I should try to concentrate on such lovely details as this - you must give me some guidance when next we meet.

This photograph is a gem - a lovely and pleasing capture of a beautiful small detail of the beautiful Lake District which so many (including myself) might just pass by without a second glance. You have found the perfect viewpoint (not POV - I hate that) for a strong diagonal composition and you have also selected the perfect shutter speed to provide some lovely blurring of the water - not too little and not too much. What was your shutter speed, incidentally?

A beautiful photograph with lovely soft light, natural but rich colours, perfect exposure and exquisite details and sharpness.

Beautiful!

Kind Regards,

John.

Royaldevon (75622) 2016-08-17 3:05

Hi Mike,

I went with a couple of photographers to Aira Falls a few years ago and loved all aspects of the area.

This is a very well composed photograph with a lovely diagonal, created by the flowing water, from left to right across the frame. The details are exquisite!

I do prefer to see water flowing with sharp cascading details but understand the preference of others to turn the water to silk.

Have a lovely day,
Bev :-)

ikeharel (105983) 2016-08-17 3:10

Hello Michael,
Fantastic "silky" water falling off the rocks on the way to the lake.
Long shutter exquisitly managed.
My cong.'s for this beauty.
Regards,
Ike

ourania (51103) 2016-08-17 3:37

Hello Mike,
I've been reading a lot about photography on the internet lately and, one tutorial leading to another, I started to practice with the much slower motion of the sea:) It's obvious you did a fine work on this shot, I like very much the silky texture of the water against the rough aspect of the rocks. The light and colour contrast is great too, the water stands out in a calm, intimate environment. I particularly like the way the waterfall strikes the foreground. Congratulations and thank you!
All the best, have a great day,
Ourania

jhm (203151) 2016-08-17 4:00

Hello Michael,

I like the nice frozen water, with depth and perspective.
You choose a wonderful angle with the river in foreground.
A very nice picture with the river and the big rock stones.
Very well done, TFS.

Best regards,
John.

claudeD (47754) 2016-08-17 5:39

Hello Michael,

very fine picture from Cumbria showing this amazing waterfall. Perfect choice of long exposure time are producing here the wanted effect. Very good contribution to TE.TFS.

With regards from Luxembourg

JC

No_One (4) 2016-08-17 8:57

Hi Mike
I love the sense of force and power in the water, the king exposure worked perfectly to catch the very best of the light and color in the scene. I still have never perfected the art of long exposure so I've a particular liking for this fine nature photo
Cheers
Noek

jemaflor (135550) 2016-08-17 9:33

Salut Michael,
Bel effet au niveau de l'eau, joli dynamisme, très bien gérée techniquement, très réussie.

emka (152426) 2016-08-17 14:39

hello Mike, I always envy other photographers who can make pictures with such a silky water. i tried but with now success. This is very small waterfall but charming. I like such moss
covered stones, nice place for relax in the mountains..

WArm regrad s MAlgo

abmdsudi (88649) 2016-08-18 1:23

Hi Mike
I love the action where you get some wonderful movement from long exposures that really grabs attention. The clear flow and power of the water is really visible and lots of falls to go at. The natural fluidity is just perfect & love the contrasting colours and the dynamic energy that is so beautifully portrayed here. Excellent exposure and thanks to your solid tripod! Congrats
Best regards

alvaraalto (42358) 2016-08-18 12:53

Hello Michael
Excellent picture with your choice for relative short shutter time. It makes the wild water looks like a smooth white flow through the landscape.
Well done.
Groet Rob

willperrett (14029) 2016-08-19 2:57

Hello Mike

Sorry to have stolen your tripod, but you seem to have managed to hand-hold this one perfectly well! What a gorgeous postcard: we'll be seeing this in all the Ullswater souvenir shops I assume...

Regards

Will

pajaran (102818) 2016-08-20 11:18

Pozdrav.
Lep pogled, interesantan i dobar tekst ...
Dobar rad, kompozicija i kontrast, lepe boje, lepo pokazan vodopad.
Lepo postignut efekat sa dugom ekspozicijom.
Lepa priroda.
Sve najbolje, srecno.
Paja.

Hello.
Nice view, interesting and good text ...
Good work, composition and contrast, nice colors, nice shown waterfall.
Nice effect achieved with a long exposure.
Beautiful nature.
All the best, good luck.
Paja.

lucasgalodoido (26958) 2016-09-05 17:07

Hi Michael,
nice capture of waters at low speed. The colors, quality and bright are perfect. Great job, my friend.
Regards,
Lucas

gervaso (28177) 2016-09-16 8:46

Hello, Michael!

Very nice capture of these falls with this great effect of movement! Light, colors and sharpness are excellent! Beautiful place and composition! Well done!

serp2000 (47063) 2016-09-19 11:57

Hello, Mike!
It reminds me my trip to Laos. If you remember I have similar photos in my rest room ). The scientists said the waterfalls are the young rivers... OMG! I can't wait for this place to transfigurate to real river )). Excellent photo. I like this exposure, just a milky way )
Best!
Serghei