It’s now becoming almost commonplace to meet up with folks I’ve never met (in addition to long time friends, sometimes) in the dead of night in abandoned parking lots or along deserted streets. I have to admit, it does feel kinda strange to introduce myself by headlamp, or shake hands with a silhouette I do not know, backlit by a distant street lamp. But just because I’ve never met them before, doesn’t mean we aren’t already friends! It’s just that each EXPLORE Meetup photography workshop this year has begun long before sunrise. And the EXPLORE Waterfalls & Gorges of Western Indiana on October 22 was no different!

At first, I thought October 22 was going to be too late in the fall season for fall colors. Autumn arrived early here in central West Virginia, and we were nearly past peak when we loaded up the minivan to head west several days before the day the workshop was to take place. But as we traveled across Ohio, my concern made an abrupt U turn. Maybe we were actually going to be too early for peak colors. At lower elevations, all the way to Indianapolis, it felt like the fall colors were just getting started! It had been so dry. I just decided it was going to be what God wanted it to be, and I wasn’t going to worry about. It was relieving to just leave it in the Lords hands.

Thus, anticipation was very high as we met in the dark, an hour before sunrise, in the vacant parking lot at Cataract Falls Recreation Area in western Indiana. There was no telling what the fall colors were going to be like! We would find out at sunrise.

But before the sun came up, we wanted to make the most of blue hour. So our group of 10 adventurers headed over to a covered bridge not that far from the parking lot. Having never explored this park before, I had no idea if the bridge would make a good blue hour subject. But this was an EXPLORE! That’s what we were here to do. To explore and figure things out as we went!

Turns out, the covered bridge didn’t end up being the best subject in the world. A fence went right across the path leading up to it. And the bridge itself was full of picnic tables! Perhaps we could have come up with some creative ideas if we had had more time, but it wasn’t long before the sky started to lighten up and we decided we had better head to a sunrise location!

What the sunlight revealed was absolutely stunning. Completely unexpected! There was no doubt that this portion of Indiana was in perfect peak fall foliage. And the sunrise itself was perfect too. Not clear skies, and not too cloudy. A gorgeous, subtle, pink hue blanketed the sky and landscape.

I meandered back to the covered bridge. It gave the best vantage point down the gorge where the most color was in the sky. I found a path leading down to the water’s edge. “That lone tree, reflecting in the water . . . that should really work.” By the time I found a good composition, most of the color in the sky had faded away. But I still really liked my shot!

With sunrise behind us, it was now time to explore the gorge! What we found was not what I was expecting. . . .

First of all, Cataract Falls was just a Recreation Area. Not a State Park, not a National Park. No one had ever recommended it to me (even the locals). I just happened across it on Google Maps. All the photos I saw of the place were not exactly impressive. I figured we would hang out there for sunrise because it was a good initial meetup location, and then we would head further north for the “real” photographic opportunities.

That’s why I spent a lot of time up at the first set of falls. I didn’t think there was much downstream. The first set of falls were interesting. Some were picturesque, others were not.

In general, you could really tell this place was experiencing a drought too. But at least there was some water flowing!

Then one of the photographers came over and showed me one of his photos. “Hey James, take a look at this!” He showed me what must have been a 60ft cascade. Shapely. Otherworldly!

“Where on earth is that?!” I exclaimed.

“Just right down there!”

It wasn’t long before our group had scrambled further down the gorge to photograph the beautiful, double cascade (or is that a quadruple cascade?).

And that wasn’t the only surprise. We hiked down to the lower falls too. And that was much larger than I expected! However, there was a problem there when we arrived.

The trail that led to the lower falls emptied out on the rock ledges above the falls (right where you can see the fence in the photo above). The view of the falls from up there was neat, but not very artistic. The artistic angle required one to cross the fence to explore out on some rock ledges. The problem was, there were signs all over the fence making it very clear that no one was supposed to cross that fence.

“Surely that doesn’t apply to photographers. . .” you could reason. The desire, the urge, the temptation to cross the fence was very strong. The more I walked back and forth along the fence, the more I realized how ugly my photos would be on this side of the fence and how many opportunities abounded . . . over there. But the signs were extremely clear and far too numerous to ignore. “What would God want me to do?” The answer was obvious. So, I tried to do the best I could with the perspectives I had!

Soon after, a fellow sight-seer came over to strike up a conversation. He said he lived in the area, visited this park often, and mentioned that the new fence and signs were there along the top of the cliff because the rocks along the ledges were known to give way. I suppose boundaries are around for our own good.

Soon after that, however, the scout of our group came over to inform me that he had found a trail that led down to the base of the falls. The water levels were lower than he had ever seen them, and it provided the opportunity to circle around below the ledges. This vantage point offered incredible photos, presumably even better than what I could have gotten from above. Thank you, Lord!

By this time, the morning was fast getting away from us. On the way back up to the parking lot, I snapped the following photos along the river above the lower falls. I couldn’t believe how many unique geologic opportunities this park had to offer a landscape photographer!

Time prevents me from going into all the different things that transpired that day. We ate lunch in the car on the way up to Shades State Park and then explored there for a while.

After that, we headed over to Turkey Run State Park where we took our team photo, did a senior portrait for one of the students, and ate an early dinner before heading off to our sunset location!

And what sunset it turned out to be!

Another one of those gorgeous, glowey ones that blankets the landscape in a soft pink hue.

Looking back on the photos from that day, I am so grateful for all the blessings God gave us! The Scriptures tell us that “the blessing of the Lord, it maketh rich, and he addeth no sorrow with it.” (Proverbs 10:22) I could have crossed the boundaries and ignored the warnings above the falls. Perhaps I would have survived and come away with beautiful photos! But I would have walked away with guilt. It is always, always worth it to do things God’s way.

Even if He had chosen not to make the water level low that day, it would have been worth it. But, I am grateful for His kindness to us in showing us a way to still get some great photos!

Our little group of photographers were able to take so many great photos that day. If you would like to see more of them, check out this special album! I will also throw in my favorite student photos below.

And if you would like to come on a Lenspiration photography workshop in 2025, click here to learn more about them! Right now, at this time of year, is when I am making my travel plans for next year, so feel free to reach out to see if Lenspiration might be able to come to your area.