The Niagara Falls is one of the most photographed tourist attractions. This means that taking pictures of the Falls is very easy, but finding a somewhat unique perspective is quite challenging. On both the Canadian and the US side of The Niagara river downstream of the Horseshoe Falls are multiple viewpoints that would yield a descent photo provided that the Sun is not shining directly into the lens and that the photographer can find a break in an endless stream of tourists taking their own photos in front of the backdrop of the Falls. From the standpoint of commercial or creative photography, the problem is that this photo would be nearly identical to thousands of other images taken by the tourists from the very same viewpoint.
In the Sun Tzu’s spirit of turning a challenge into an advantage, the issue of uniqueness can be side-stepped by including the tourists in the frame and making them an integral, if not the main, feature of the photo. This adds a human element and can also add quite a bit of commercial value for a travel photo, particularly if the subjects are fit and of middle-to-advanced age (apparently, this is age group is the main target segment for the publishers of travel brochures).
In this image, I liked how the girl in a rainbow-colored dress and the actual rainbow could be captured in the same frame.
Ultimately, to take a unique, or at least not a cliché, photo of an iconic sight, one needs an uncommon vantage point. In the case of the Niagara Falls, one option is to take a helicopter tour, which provides an opportunity for some aerial photography. A company called Niagara Helicopters operates from a small airfield located approximately 15 minute by taxi from the Rainbow Bridge. A 15-minute ride over the falls costs about $115, including a discount offered through a hotel’s concierge.
During the tour, I took photos, including the one at the top of this post, with a 24-105 mm lens mounted on a Canon 5D Mark II. I also strapped a GoPro camera to my head and let it run continuously throughout the ride. The result is this movie: