Last week I noticed an Instagram post by Matt Champlin about the Carpenter Falls Unique Area reopening with a new overlook platform. Never having visited there, I immediately planned to get there to check it out. Below is the result.

The overlook platform gives an unobstructed view of Carpenter Falls. The trees even make a natural frame of the scene. It was mid-afternoon with a cloudy sky to give even lighting. To get the look I wanted, I placed a 3-Stop Neutral Density filter on my lens to cut down the light even more. To keep the camera steady for the 1/3rd second exposure, I put it on a tripod and used a remote shutter. I performed some dodging and burning in Adobe Lightroom Classic to highlight the falls even more.

There were a few people moving about the Bear Swamp Creek and even getting in behind the falls. To show scale, I decided to take a photo with a couple of them looking up at the 90 foot (27m) drop of Carpenter Falls.

I was impressed by the work of the New York Department of Environmental Conservation (NYDEC) who administers Unique Areas. There is a nice easy 5 minute walk from the parking lot on a boardwalk leading to the overlook which is fully Handicap/Wheelchair Accessible. There is an Acrylic panel in the middle of the fencing allowing people in wheelchairs a clear view of the waterfall.

For anyone living or visiting the Finger Lakes region of New York, Carpenter Falls is a beautiful and easily viewed waterfall which is often bypassed for the more famous ones in Ithaca and Watkins Glen.