F. Jay Haynes photographed the Great Falls of the Yellowstone River as part of his extensive documentation of Yellowstone National Park, where he held the official park photographer concession beginning in 1884. The albumen print captures the falls in a close, frontal view that emphasizes the sheer vertical drop of the water column, framing the cascade between sheer granite canyon walls. The tonal range moves from the brilliant white of the falling water at the crest through billowing mist that fills the lower basin, rendered in warm sepia tones characteristic of Haynes's commercial park views.

The canyon walls on the right side of the frame show pronounced vertical fracturing and layered geological strata, rendered with sharp detail against the soft blur of the moving water. The falls emerge from a narrow notch at the top of the composition, and spray clouds expand outward as the water descends, dissolving into a dense, luminous mist at the base. Sparse vegetation appears at the upper rim of the gorge, and a large boulder anchors the lower left foreground.

Haynes operated a photograph studio and publishing business in St. Paul, Minnesota, and later in Bozeman, Montana, producing numbered commercial series sold to park visitors for decades. His catalog number 3575 corresponds to this view of the Great Falls, one of the most reproduced subjects in his Yellowstone series.

The reverse bears the printed imprint "3575, Great Falls of the Yellowstone. Haynes-Photo." The print measures 8 x 10 inches.