Everybody loves fall color reflections, and I just got a letter in my mailbag asking about driving across 6 states to get reflections of fall colors. I’m not positive but there are millions of fall color reflections in New England. I’m posting four locations where you can find superb fall color reflections today, with a couple of bonus ones with tips on photographing reflections.

1st location for beautiful fall color reflection

Dixville Notch, New Hampshire

One of my favorite standard places to go in mid-late September is Dixville Notch. This was the home of the Balsams Hotel at one time and it’s under new management but the reflection of the lake is still there and completely free.

Dixville Notch is easy to find but it is North of the White Mountains. So even for me, it’s a waaaaays up there, if you travel up I-93 till it runs out, you will jump off onto Route 3 and take that North through Bethlehem, Lancaster, Bloomfield, till you hit Colebrook (a short 60 miles) and then you head east on Route 26 for about 10 more miles and you have arrived at Lake Gloriette on the northside of the road (several places to pull over and park) If you want to see what this area looks like from a drone. Take a look at this gallery Dixville Notch in New Hampshire.

2nd location for beautiful fall color reflection

The Beaver Pond-Woodstock New Hampshire

I’ve been to the beaver pond many times and most times I try to get there at dawn or at least in the early morning. Each of the times that I found a mirror-like autumn reflection of colors the air was very still. Each of the times I found it like this, it didn’t last long so take pictures first and enjoy it later. Remember, as the sun comes up and warms the air, the wind will pick up and your reflection blows away on the ripples. 🙁 Read more about Kinsman Notch which is over the Beaver Pond here.

if you don’t know where Kinsman Notch and the Beaver Pond are? Click the link to read my article that has directions.

3rd location for beautiful fall color reflection

Haley Pond, Rangeley Maine

This pond has access issues. You are going to want to stay at the Rangeley Inn, in Rangeley Maine. You see, with Haley Pond, there is no public access to the pond. We were staying at the Rangeley Inn and I got up early the following morning and I decided to walk out behind the Inn to the pond. It looked very grey and overcast and I almost didn’t go. As you can see from this image, the sun was trying to burn off the fog as soon as it started to clear the eastern hills.

There is a B&B that I see on Google Maps, and other than these two options, I don’t see any good access points to view this pond. Lisa and I recommend the Rangeley Inn and you can find the write-up of the Inn on our Hotel page.

4th location for beautiful fall color reflection

Echo Lake, Tyson Vermont (Route 100)

In Vermont, Lisa and I found Echo Lake which is in Tyson Vermont. This lake is a long narrow lake and you can find it by simply traveling along Vermont’s Route 100. You can also find a few smaller roads on the other side of the lake and there is an entrance at Camp Plymouth State Park. I see a pay kiosk but if you arrive early in the morning, there may be nobody to collect. As you can see here, there was a little breeze so the reflection is not quite perfect… More on that below.

What makes good fall color reflections?

• Size matters
• Suns direction
• Artistic reflections

First! Size matters, at least as far as lakes & ponds are concerned. Smaller lakes and ponds are the first places that come to my mind when I’m searching for likely spots to find fall color reflections. What I mean is if the lake is huge and the fall shore is too far away, you won’t get good reflections. I like to see the reflection of the trees in the water and if they are too far away they lose the impact.

Second, reflection tip: The sun’s direction is very important. (I’ll be referring to the image below). If the sun is above the horizon, you want the sun at your back or at least to the side. you basically do NOT want the sun in the image. If the sun is causing a light streak on your lens you need to move so that the sun is more behind you or put your hand out to the side of your lens to block the sun’s rays.

Like I said if the sun is coming up you want to be in Camp Plymouth SP looking North, West, or South with your back to the East. If it is in the late afternoon then you want to be on the side with Route 100 behind you. But you will have to shoot earlier in the afternoon because the tall hills are between 1,000′ and 2,000′ high. The sun will drop down behind the hills by 3-4 PM in the afternoon. Questions? leave a comment.

Third, Artistic reflections: These are not big sellers but I find the abstract nature of them to be very pleasing. Here in the following image, you don’t have the trees on the far shore and you just get the reflection of the colorful light reflecting on the stream surface. Because the water in this stream is moving you also get abstract variations in the reflection. The wind plays a big part in your reflections. In the image below there may be wind but there is also a current moving the water.

Like I said, I don’t have this hanging on my wall but when it comes to C4SC (Color 4 the Sake of Color) I just enjoy having it as my wallpaper on my computer.

Jeff Foliage Folger

Autumn is a state of mind more than a time of year – Jeff Foliage

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