Image 1 of 1
Image 1 of 1
Image 1 of 1
Image 1 of 1
The fourth of July, and Multnomah Falls was as busy as it gets. I waited a couple of hours for the Benson Bridge to clear, and in the last of the evening light it did — a few seconds with nobody on it. The usual frame here is vertical, taking in all 620 feet (189 m) of it. I wanted the bridge and the flora instead, with the water behind them, and a landscape format held that better. Silver and stone: it doesn't need colour to hold you — just the water, the arc of the bridge, and the gorge closing in.
The bridge has stood since 1914, crossing the creek about 105 feet (32 m) above the lower falls. What it spans is older by a long way. The Columbia River Gorge is cut through basalt laid down by lava flows some 15 million years ago, and at the end of the last ice age the Missoula Floods scoured its walls back, leaving tributary streams like this one hanging above the valley floor with nowhere to go but down. Stripped of colour, the scene resolves into structure: the arch and its balusters, the layered maple and moss crowding both edges, and the water reading as texture rather than as green.
A note on presentation: black-and-white landscape has traditionally lived on paper, where tone and texture carry the image rather than surface reflectance. This is that tradition; the three papers differ in how much texture and sheen they bring to it.
Fine Art Paper — Canson Arches BFK Rives White is the traditional choice for a frame like this, its lightly textured matte giving the foliage tactile weight and the water the softness of a darkroom print. Canson Platine Fibre Rag offers a smoother lustre with deeper blacks; Moab Silver Metallic heightens contrast and lends the falling water a pearlescent sheen. Prints are trimmed borderless at the stated size. 8x12 inches and smaller ship flat; larger sizes ship rolled, and are supplied unframed.
Also available in: Standard Acrylic version · TruLife Acrylic version · ChromaLuxe Metal version · Gallery Metal version
Made to order · Allow 1–2 weeks for production and delivery · Shipping charged at cost, never marked up · Shipping & Returns
The watermark shown here protects the online image only. Your print arrives clean.
The fourth of July, and Multnomah Falls was as busy as it gets. I waited a couple of hours for the Benson Bridge to clear, and in the last of the evening light it did — a few seconds with nobody on it. The usual frame here is vertical, taking in all 620 feet (189 m) of it. I wanted the bridge and the flora instead, with the water behind them, and a landscape format held that better. Silver and stone: it doesn't need colour to hold you — just the water, the arc of the bridge, and the gorge closing in.
The bridge has stood since 1914, crossing the creek about 105 feet (32 m) above the lower falls. What it spans is older by a long way. The Columbia River Gorge is cut through basalt laid down by lava flows some 15 million years ago, and at the end of the last ice age the Missoula Floods scoured its walls back, leaving tributary streams like this one hanging above the valley floor with nowhere to go but down. Stripped of colour, the scene resolves into structure: the arch and its balusters, the layered maple and moss crowding both edges, and the water reading as texture rather than as green.
A note on presentation: black-and-white landscape has traditionally lived on paper, where tone and texture carry the image rather than surface reflectance. This is that tradition; the three papers differ in how much texture and sheen they bring to it.
Fine Art Paper — Canson Arches BFK Rives White is the traditional choice for a frame like this, its lightly textured matte giving the foliage tactile weight and the water the softness of a darkroom print. Canson Platine Fibre Rag offers a smoother lustre with deeper blacks; Moab Silver Metallic heightens contrast and lends the falling water a pearlescent sheen. Prints are trimmed borderless at the stated size. 8x12 inches and smaller ship flat; larger sizes ship rolled, and are supplied unframed.
Also available in: Standard Acrylic version · TruLife Acrylic version · ChromaLuxe Metal version · Gallery Metal version
Made to order · Allow 1–2 weeks for production and delivery · Shipping charged at cost, never marked up · Shipping & Returns
The watermark shown here protects the online image only. Your print arrives clean.