Allegro
Upbeat and Uplifting
Music marked allegro is lively, uplifting, and joyful. Flowing water is the primary expression of this graceful yet buoyant mood in the images. Perhaps you can imagine the refreshing song of the water.
Bridalveil Falls, Yosemite in Winter Storm, 2019
by Michael Piraino
Elements of winter in Yosemite Valley. We were fortunate to capture the warmth of the morning sunlight, with mist off the falls creating a pleasant glow. The overnight snowstorm decorated all the tree in the valley. The morning was a natural art exhibit of color and light.
Purchase
Basalt Columns and Breaking Waves, New South Wales, Australia, 2018
by Michael Piraino
Great swells from the South Pacific come ashore here and demonstrate their power when they hit the basalt columns of the former quarry. This huge wave produced patterns like a fireworks display. The booming sound and rhythmic movement were fascinating, and you feel the full power of the massive ocean hitting the solid mass of the shoreline.
Of course the music has to be Tchaikovsky’s Year 1812 Solemn Overture
Purchase
Rapids in Tenaya Creek, Yosemite Valley, 2019
By Michael Piraino
These waters flowing down from the canyon are on their way to meet the Merced and eventually reach the San Joaquin Valley. In this winter scene, the river is flowing fast and furious with meltwater. The creek is named for a 19th century leader of the Ahwahneechee people who lived in Yosemite Valley before they were removed to a reservation. The colors, sounds and flow of the river are beautiful in all seasons.
Purchase
Stamp River Rapids, Vancouver Island, Canada, 2012
By Michael Piraino
The emerald green waters of the river flow in rapids towards a series of waterfalls in a short but narrow gorge. We enjoyed watching two kingfishers flying over the waters in the gorge. Below the gorge, the water seems to be boiling as it passes large boulders. The water color here is even greener than above the falls.
I used a long exposure to smooth the flow of water, reproducing how the moment felt. Fortunately, the wind was light and the leaves did not move much during the exposure.
Purchase
Kings River Rapids, Kings Canyon National Park, 2013
By Michael Piraino
This is the Kings Wild and Scenic River as it flows through Kings Canyon, one of the country’s deepest. It is an area of spectacular wilderness scenery on a large scale, yet there are these beautiful small scenes that speak volumes to the soul. This magnificent river was in full spring flood when I took this shot — a bit blurry because I shot handheld but I liked the painting-like result. I look at these lines and the colors and I can hear the river singing to me.
Purchase
Canyon and Waterfall, Canadian Rockies, 2019
By Michael Piraino
The water arrives at magnificent and deep Maligne Canyon from a lake 8 miles away. Millions of years ago, this was a tropical sea, and you can see fossils of the sea creatures and even the imprint of ancient waves. It’s a world of color and design brought to us by 365 million years of sedimentation and erosion.
Purchase
Rapids and Tree Reflections, Merced River, Yosemite Valley, 2019
By Michael Piraino
The colors of winter reflected in the flowing water of the Merced River, Yosemite Valley. A tiny pullout on the Southside Drive overlooks this spot, but few people stop to appreciate the scene. They are on their way somewhere.
Purchase
Mountains, Glaciers and Icebergs, Aoraki Mount Cook, New Zealand, 2017
By Michael Piraino
Dawn at Tasman Glacier Lake, Aoraki/Mt. Cook National Park. With few clouds around I was prepared for a disappointing sunrise. It wasn’t. The colors of the lake, the movement of the outlet stream, and the quiet of the morning made it an enchanting moment.
Purchase
Rocks and Flowing Water Nisqually River Mount Rainier National Park by Michael Piraino
By Michael Piraino
I spent hours exploring the Nisqually watershed from Mount Rainier to Puget Sound, and what a great time of year to do so. The Nisqually River, seen here flowing mightily as the winter’s snow feeds the flow, is one of the least developed and healthiest rivers in the Pacific Northwest. It’s a river of significance and meaning, linking the glaciers of Mount Rainier to the Billy Frank Jr. Nisqually National Wildlife Refuge, and the waters of Puget Sound and the Salish Sea. This is a place where you can talk to spirits and hear their replies.
The Nisqually River Council is working to protect this beautiful watershed of glaciers, forest, and wetland.
Autunno glorioso
Un fiume grandioso e vibrante scorre
Oltre rocce perfette
Glorious autumn
A grand, vibrant river flows
past perfect rocks
Purchase
Creek and Fall Foliage in Eastern Sierra Nevada Mountains, 2013
By Michael Piraino
Eastern Sierra The aspen trees have spectacular fall color all along the creek and canyon. This photo was taken at the trailhead at 8,000 feet in October 2014. It’s a peaceful spot to meander around and sit and enjoy the sights and sounds of the creek.
Purchase
Merced River Rapids and Reflections, Yosemite Valley, 2019
By Carin Piraino
Winter reflections on the Merced River. These rapids almost disappear in the fall, when the river is much lower. Springtime is great for catching waterflow photos, while the fall features dramatic reflections in the calmer portions of the water.
Purchase
Autumn Reflections, Merced River, Yosemite Valley, 2016
By Carin Piraino
We had explored along Tenaya Creek but kept returning to this little spot along the Merced River, further west in the valley. Brilliant blue sky and shimmering green reflections were mesmerizing.
Purchase
Spring, Yosemite Valley, 2011
By Michael Piraino
Fluidity. This is a small, but beautifully peaceful spring in Yosemite Valley. It flows strongly but gracefully with rich green reflections in the spring and early summer, as in this photo taken in June. By fall, it can slow to a trickle, but still puts on a show when the fall leaves paint the surface of the water.
Purchase
Hraunfosser Waterfall, Iceland, 2019
By Michael Piraino
We went to meet some beautiful Icelandic horses, planning to take a ride, but the weather was too wild and cold. The table owner recommended we visit a nearby waterfall named Hraunfosser, or “Lava Falls.” It was the most unusual and interesting waterfall we’ve ever seen. Actually a series of many falls, each fed by a creek running through a lava field. The lava field was formed by a volcano that sits under the glacier that feeds these streams.
Purchase
River and Mountains, Mount Aspiring National Park, New Zealand, 2016
By Michael Piraino
The wild, scenic and ancient Matukituki Valley in New Zealand’s Mt. Aspiring National Park (Māori name Tititea “steep peak of gleaming white.” The park is part of the Te Wähipounamu World Heritage Area, a label that means its preservation is important to the interests of all humanity. Serenity should be the name of the drive up the valley; there is no development in the upper part of the valley, other than a few sheep farms, and you drive along the crystal waters of the river as you head toward the mountain.
We spent several hours here photographing this stream flowing into the Matukituki, with the sun lighting the snow capped mountains in the distance.
Purchase
Laurel Creek, Great Smoky Mountains National Park (Shaconage, “Place of the Blue Smoke,”) 2019
By Michael Piraino
A simple celebration of moving water, sunlight, and reflections of forest colors. The long exposure helped bring out the flow of water as I saw it. New research shows that experiencing natural water (a creek, lake, waterfall) for two hours per week has a substantial positive effect on mental health. This beautiful little creek, which I photographed on a bright June day, sure fit the bill. Oddly, though, few people stopped to appreciate this scene; most were urgently on their way somewhere.
Purchase
Creek and Waterfall, Mount Rainier National Park, 2016
By Michael Piraino
Unconventional View; Van Trump Creek above Christine Falls. This view of the pools and small falls is easily overlooked, but with the late spring runoff filling the creek, it was vibrant and lively. Just stepping off the trail reveals a world of color more brilliant than what the larger falls provide.
Purchase
Huangguoshu Waterfall and the Rhinoceros Pool, China, 2013
By Michel Piraino
Songful waters at Huangguoshuo Falls, Baishui River, China. At 255 feet tall, it is one of the largest falls in Asia. The entire scenic area includes the largest waterfall cluster in the world.
Purchase
Waterfall, Mount Rainier National Park, 2016
By Michael Piraino
Silver Falls on the Ohanapecosh River in early summer. Snow melt fills the river and makes the falls especially tuneful at this time of year.
Purchase
Waterfall and Storm Clouds, Iceland, 2019
By Michael Piraino
Godafoss, the “Waterfall of the Gods” is impressive even on a day of dark clouds. Its blue glacial water is still vibrant, contrasting with the ominous clouds above. The water in the pool below the falls creates interesting designs, with ever changing curves, swirls.
According to Icelandic myth, a chieftain decided to convert to Iceland to Christianity, and threw the old Norse pagan idols into the falls.
Purchase
Fern Spring with Fall Foliage, Yosemite Valley, 2010
By Michael Piraino
What a graceful and peaceful scene this was, in November, 2010. Most people pass this by at that time of year because the water flow is so reduced, but I liked the little cascade among all the leaves.
Purchase
Sunbeam on Yosemite Falls, 2011
By Michael Piraino
Snowmelt provided a nice flow at the falls in early June, 2011. I used a long telephoto lens to focus on the falls, though in truth, the sun did most of the work.
Purchase
Tuolumne River Waterfall, Yosemite National Park, 2012
By Michael Piraino
Rapids and Reflections. Lyell Fork, Tuolumne River, Yosemite National Park. This is a favorite spot of ours in Yosemite, especially in the fall. Early morning here is spectacular, as the river reflects the colors of the sun on the surrounding mountains. The river flows over a series of small cascades with interesting rock formations and many places to sit and enjoy this peaceful place. There is even a small beach. I created this somewhat abstract version of the rapids to demonstrate the power and vibrancy of the stream.
Purchase
Ice and Bridalveil Falls, Yosemite Valley, 2019
By Carin Piraino
We kept returning to the distant view of the Falls following a snowstorm, because the ice patterns were so enticing, and always changing. This is a telephoto shot from the far side of the valley.
Purchase
Yosemite Falls, winter, 2020
By Michael Piraino
Yosemite Falls in an icy landscape in January. This slightly abstracted photo reflects the feeling of otherworldliness in the valley that morning.
Purchase
Little River coastline, Northern California
By Michael Piraino
Trees on the northern California coast at Little River. The river is less than six miles long, but the coastline here is hugely dramatic. I used infrared to bring out the foliage and the clouds.
Purchase