My
first love in photography when I first got my trusty old Minolta SLR as a
teenager was landscape photography. There’s something about
getting out in nature with the challenge of capturing some of the amazing
beauty that you see. Perhaps it fits with my personality type – but I loved the
quietness and stillness of waiting for the perfect moment for the shot, scoping
out an area for the best vantage point and then seeing the way that the light
changed a scene over a few hours.
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| Photo by Adib Efendi |
Landscape Photography Tips
1. Maximize your Depth of Field
While
there may be times that you want to get a little more creative and experiment
with narrow depth of fields in your Landscape Photography – the normal approach
is to ensure that as much of your scene is in focus as possible. The simplest
way to do this is to choose a small Aperture setting (a large
number) as the smaller your aperture the greater the depth of field in your
shots.
Do
keep in mind that smaller apertures mean less light is hitting your image sensor
at any point in time so they will mean you need to compensate either by
increasing your ISO or lengthening your shutter speed (or both).
2. Use a Tripod
As
a result of the longer shutter speed that you may need to select to compensate
for a small aperture you will need to find a way of ensuring your camera is
completely still during the exposure. In fact even if you’re able to shoot at a
fast shutter speed the practice of using a tripod can be beneficial to you.
Also consider a cable or wireless shutter release mechanism for extra camera
stillness.
3. Look for a Focal Point
All
shots need some sort of focal point to them and landscapes are no different –
in fact landscape photographs without them end up looking rather empty and will
leave your viewers eye wondering through the image with nowhere to rest (and
they’ll generally move on quickly).
Focal
points can take many forms in landscapes and could range from a building or
structure, a striking tree, a boulder or rock formation, a silhouette etc.
4. Think Foregrounds
One
element that can set apart your landscape shots is to think carefully about the
foreground of your shots and by placing points of interest in them. When you do
this you give those viewing the shot a way into the image as well as creating a
sense of depth in your shot.
5. Consider the Sky
Another
element to consider is the sky in your landscape.
Most
landscapes will either have a dominant foreground or sky – unless you have one
or the other your shot can end up being fairly boring.
If
you have a bland, boring sky – don’t let it dominate your shot and place the
horizon in the upper third of your shot (however you’ll want to make sure your
foreground is interesting). However if the sky is filled with drama and
interesting cloud formations and colors – let it shine by placing the horizon
lower.
6. Lines
One of the questions to ask yourself as you take Landscape shots
is ‘how am I leading the eye of those viewing this shot’? There are a number of
ways of doing this (foregrounds is one) but one of the best ways into a shot is
to provide viewers with lines that lead them into an image.
Lines give an image depth, scale and can be a point of interest in
and of themselves by creating patterns in your shot.
7. Capture Movement
When most people think about landscapes they think of calm, serene
and passive environments – however landscapes are rarely completely still and
to convey this movement in an image will add drama, mood and create a point of
interest.
Examples – wind in trees, waves on a beach, water flowing over a
waterfall, birds flying over head, moving clouds.
Capturing this movement generally means you need to look at a
longer shutter speed (sometimes quite a few seconds). Of course this means more
light hitting your sensor which will mean you need to either go for a small
Aperture, use some sort of a filter or even shoot at the start or end of the
day when there is less light.
8. Work with the Weather
A scene can change dramatically depending upon the weather at any
given moment. As a result, choosing the right time to shoot is of real importance.
Many beginner photographers see a sunny day and think that it’s
the best time to go out with their camera – however an overcast day that is
threatening to rain might present you with a much better opportunity to create
an image with real mood and ominous overtones. Look for storms, wind, mist,
dramatic clouds, sun shining through dark skies, rainbows, sunsets and sunrises
etc and work with these variations in the weather rather than just waiting for
the next sunny blue sky day.
9. Work the Golden Hours
I chatted with one photographer recently who told me that he never
shoots during the day – his only shooting times are around dawn and dusk –
because that’s when the light is best and he find that landscapes come alive.
These ‘golden’ hours are great for landscapes for a number of
reasons – none the least of which is the ‘golden’ light that it often presents
us with. The other reason that I love these times is the angle of the light and
how it can impact a scene – creating interesting patterns, dimensions and
textures.
10. Think about Horizons
It’s an old tip but a good one – before you take a landscape shot
always consider the horizon on two fronts.
·
Is it straight? – while you can always
straighten images later in post production it’s easier if you get it right in
camera.
·
Where is it compositionally? - a compositionally
natural spot for a horizon is on one of the thirds lines in an image (either
the top third or the bottom one) rather than completely in the middle. Of
course rules are meant to be broken – but I find that unless it’s a very
striking image that the rule of thirds usually
works here.
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| Photo by Adib Efendi |
11. Change your Point of View
You drive up to the scenic lookout, get out of the car, grab your
camera, turn it on, walk up to the barrier, raise the camera to your eye,
rotate left and right a little, zoom a little and take your shot before getting
back in the car to go to the next scenic lookout.
We’ve all done it – however this process doesn’t generally lead to
the ‘wow’ shot that many of us are looking for.
Take a little more time with your shots – particularly in finding
a more interesting point of view to shoot from. This might start with finding a
different spot to shoot from than the scenic look out (wander down paths, look
for new angles etc), could mean getting down onto the ground to shot from down
low or finding a higher up vantage point to shoot from.
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