Niagra Falls Advice !

sunny2004

Again I find myself turning to you guys for any advice or tips for photographing the Falls, any advice tips locations or stuff to watch out for would be appreciated..
Travelling Feb

Cheers

bradnailer

Wrap up well, there's a skylon tower in Niagara (Canada) that should give you an birds eye view. I think there's pedestrian access to the rainbow bridge which could be another good point of view. On the US side I think there's a pathway that runs along the lower side of the falls and there's more vantage points there. I'm not sure if the maid of the mist runs during the winter but it probably not a good place for your camera:D
I think the falls and surrounding area look better during the winter ice, snow, less people etc.

Paulw

You'll have to watch out for moisture, no matter where you are. You certainly don't want damp getting inside your camera.

dudara

The falls are futher away than you might think. I went with the standard 18-55mm kit lens on my Nikon and I was wishing that I had much more zoom.

Still though, if you are there at night, you will get some nice shots.

Panhour

Moisture is the biggest thing to watch. There is a Sheraton which does an all you can eat lunch and has a balcony where you can get some good overall shots of the American and Canadian sides.
Another good place to see is Nigara on the lake, very old world with old fashioned shops and chemist. They're really good to let you take photos too!!

challengemaster

Put the camera into a ziplock bag tbh! Just make sure it stays dry.

As for advice? Go at night. It's frikkin amazing at night time when the lights go on...

looks something like this:


(img from wikipedia)

leinsterman

I know this is a bit of a cliche shot but I like em nonetheless ... Bring a few Neutral Density Filters to blur the motion of the falls during the daytime ... you'll need a tripod and/or a bean bag to do this ... you need to shoot at speeds in excess of 1/2s for best effect ... hence the ND filter to reduce the light hitting the stopped down lens...

For the bean bag you could pop in to Gt Outdoors and by a dry sack ... when you arrive pop in to a supermarket and fill it with dried maize and voila! ... it can also double as protection of your gear from water when out on the water and not shooting ... cost - Eur5-10.

decsramble

I went there a few years ago on the Canadian side. I'm told thats the more dramatic side since it's below the falls, but since I've not been to the USA side I wouldnt know for sure.

If you take Maid of the Mist and the tunnels behind the falls you will get dramatic views but you will get wet. I wouldnt bring an SLR on Maid of the Mist, the little water proof disposable camera I had got soaked to a point where many of the photos were distorted by drops on the tiny lens. As far as I can remember with the tunnels there was viewing platform that was "dry" enough but I still had to work hard to stop drops getting on my lens. I was using a point and click. If you got in there with an SLR, tripod and a wide angle lens you might get some nice shots and a rain cover might protect your camera but is the shot worth a wet camera?

There were fireworks some nights, though I think its a Saturday some months and Saturday/Sunday other months. I remember because we got there and skipped the fireworks on the first night expecting them to be on the next night but they werent. You should check if they are still on and exactly which night.

CabanSail

Get a Rainsleeve.



They work fine & you just have to keep the front element dry.

City-Exile

I got pictures from the Sky Tower.
The view is amazing!
They're film and I haven't got them scanned.

Also got pics from the Maid of the Mist.
You get very wet there, but I had my camera under the plastic poncho they give you.

For your own benefit, take the tour through the tunnels at the back of the falls.
The noise in there will blow your mind!

sunny2004

Cheers folks, great info,
Would never of thought of it as a night time location ! Need to just find out if its lights are on all year around as heading in Feb. if they are GREAT.

I expected the wet, but assumed if I wasn't on a boat it wouldn't be an issue, but it seems not ! don't have time to get waterproof sleeves, so plastic bags will have to do !


ON a side note, from the falls I want to photograph something in Canada, (landscape or cityscape) something really cool but within driving distance (Day driving distance) any ideas ???

challengemaster

Trust me, having been there, you get wet coming out of the shops at the falls, which are a fair distance away from the edge, which is further away from the falls..

Loads of mist... LOADS

Panhour

Toronto is only 2 hours drive from the falls, loads to photograph there.....

decsramble

sunny2004 wrote: »

ON a side note, from the falls I want to photograph something in Canada, (landscape or cityscape) something really cool but within driving distance (Day driving distance) any ideas ???

Niagra on the Lake is supposed to be lovely.

lushballs

You could take the Ferry (located in Harbourfront, bottom of Toronto) out to Centre Island in Lake Ontario. You could then take shots of the city of Toronto from there. Also go to the CN Tower. If you get a clear day you can see for miles..........

In relation to Niagara Falls: I walked across the Rainbow Bridge to the American side in the early 90's. Showed my passport and put a coin in a turnstile after a grilling by immigration. Got thru and walked through a garden to get a view of the Falls from the American side. Walked back to the Canadian side.

rymus

CabanSail wrote: »

Get a Rainsleeve.

Camera condom ftw!