My usual weekend plan is to take the scenic drive through Red Rock Canyon which is less than 10 miles from home. This Saturday morning in June was like most others in that the sky was clear and mostly featureless.

I am not very excited about the harsh conditions and looking for a plan B close to home. A small waterfall or cascade marks the entry to a community and business park less than 2 miles away. I have always wanted to capture this view but lacked an exact plan on how to proceed. Also, it is near a busy street without a convenient place to park.

With only my mobile phone and a small tripod in hand, I decided to give it a try. The video was captured in 4K at 60 FPS. The final video you see here is the result and later slowed down by 50% to get the smooth motion. Otherwise, the video is straight from the mobile phone with the colors you see. Samsung S9, if you were curious?

I have been planning to try this technique for quite some time and was extremely happy with the result. I got a little lucky with the composition and framing as using the cell phone camera in bright light may come down to the "best guess" approach.

I also used a screen capture from the video to produce the photo that is posted next. Some slight editing enhancements in the picture as I never can resist. The good news is that I have cut back dramatically on my heavy-handed approach to processing.

I have driven by this location literally hundreds of times. The moral of the story may be to take a closer look around your neighborhood or community to capture the next great photo or video.

For me, it may be the best shot of the year. Comments welcome and hope you enjoy!