Delicate Autumn Rainbow

I was trying to capture some misty mountain autumn colors this afternoon and one of those magical things happened . . . a delicate rainbow graced the scene for about thirty seconds.

nice photo

yeah rainbow sometimes completely changes the picture. I suppose you came after rainfall since the skies are cloudy? So you intentionally included rainbow in?

Thanks. The rainbow was totally unexpected. This was taken on the TN/NC border overlooking the Watauga River Gorge and the bow is probably due to rain as well as mist from the whitewater river below. It was early afternoon, hence the “rainbow in the gorge” appearance. From what little I understand about the physics behind it there is a 40 degree correlation between you, the sun, and the rainbow.

Great moment.

Lovely capture. Congratulations on being in the right spot at the right time

Such a pretty shot! Well done.

Very interesting, never seen a rainbow over land like that.

I appreciate your kind comments. Seeing this rainbow slowly unveil itself was quite a breathtaking surprise. I wish I understood the physics behind it better. This is looking over a fairly robust stretch of whitewater and I bet that the rainbow is largely due to mist from the Watauga River below . . . hence the peculiar perspective. Thanks again!