Worlds Hundred Greatest Waterfalls, The: Volume 2

Reviewed by Bryan Swan

Yoshikazu Shiarakawa is a famous, well renowned Japanese photographer who has undertaken very ambitious projects in the past and who has consistently produced some of the most impressive photographic works of the modern age. In 2003 he began a project to photograph 100 of the most impressive, tallest, widest and most storied waterfalls on the planet, for which World Waterfall Database founders Bryan Swan and Dean Goss were hired as consultants. The project was completed in 2007 and was launched with a lavish exhibition that traveled around Japan for several months. The books, divided into three volumes, span about 175 (give or take, depending on the volume) pages, have dimensions of approximately 17x12 inches and are printed on exceptionally high quality, very heavy paper. Though seeing the books will give a much better idea of the quality here, hopefully you get the idea that this is not a casual product by any means.

Volume two of the series is dedicated to the American continents, covering a wide range of subjects stretching from Alaska to Argentina and all points in between. Unlike Volume One of the series, this tome features half of the waterfalls ranked among the World Waterfall Database's Top 10 on earth, including out number one pick in Iguacu Falls on the border of Brazil and Argentina. Like Volume One gives homage to Victoria Falls over a length span of pages, Iguacu is given over 50 pages with which to awe and inspire, and Shirakawa's treatment of the thunderous cataract is nothing short of jaw dropping artistry.

Because of the extensive mountainous landscapes covering the Americas, the waterfalls throughout are of more substantiality than in the other regions of the world and it shows throughout the remainder of the book. The lofty waterfalls dotting the Guyana Shield in Venezuela and Guyana such as Kerepakupai Meru - more commonly known as Angel Falls - and its neighboring cataracts in Canaima National Park are all illustrated with a level of detail we were not previously privy to. The other juggernauts of the South American continent; Kaieteur Falls in Guyana, San Rafael Falls in Ecuador and the newly popularized Gocta Cataract in Peru are all given the signiature Shirakawa treatment. Further north the glacially spawned rivers of Canada produce some of the best waterfalls in North America, standing ground against the more famous entities in California's Yosemite National Park. And of course what waterfall book featuring the North American continent would be complete without the mighty Niagara - which Shirakawa does a remarkable job at photographing so as to exclude all signs of the rampant commercial development which kept it off of our Top 10 list.

As mentioned above, World Waterfall Database founders Bryan Swan and Dean Goss were consulted for this project and upon publication we were somewhat dismayed to find that one of the greatest waterfalls on earth, Virginia Falls in Canada's Northern Territory was left out because of its largely isolated nature and difficult access. There are several other waterfalls we felt should have been included here as well (though some we were not aware of at the time) but were omitted in favor of waterfalls with better name recognition.

As exceptional a product as this is there are a few downsides. First off, the books are quite expensive (at least new), running roughly $330 USD. Secondly, because they were produced by a Japanese photographer, they were printed in Kanji (with a few captions the exception) and are largely unavailable outside of Japan (again, at least new). Second hand copies may eventually show up online but we have yet to see them at the major outlets.

So, while the price point may put this product out of the reach of the average individual (and you may need to find a good orthopedic surgeon should you drop one on your foot), the dazzling quality and presentation of this book make it a worthy investment for anyone interested in the subject matter.