Closeup along Little River

Little River Closeup, Oct. 23, 2005
I found this image just west of the road that leads to Elkmont along Little River Road in the Smoky Mountains. I was standing on the north side of the stream, looking south. This little tiny waterfall marks the intersection of two streams. The stream heading north, toward Little River, has a rather nice waterfall about 300 feet (100 meters) further into the forest, but I couldn't get a good view with the leaves still on the trees. So instead of a dramatic waterfall, I just got this little tiny one. Since I used my 200 mm lens, I was able to fill the frame with a couple rocks that were about the size of baskeballs, maybe a little bit larger.
It was somewhat dark in this part of the stream, so I used a slow shutter speed (2.5 seconds). As a result, the water appears soft and silky because you can actually "see" its motion. Sometimes I use a quicker shutter speed to "catch" the water in a single spot, thus retaining more of the choppy texture of the water that is normally seen with the eye.