Before this post, I only wrote about travel, but today I will break the tradition and share with the readers of LiveJournal a small article about shooting landscapes, which I wrote for one of the photo magazines.
I did not explain in detail all the nuances and load photo terms, therefore plain language explained what aspects need to be taken into account in the process of shooting and in preparation for it.
The landscape theme is closest to me, so I want to talk about shooting in this genre in my article.
I must say right away that I have never studied this craft anywhere, I do not have a diploma of a graduate of a photography school. Everything came by itself. my first reflex camera I bought it three and a half years ago and still use it today. During this time, I managed to take several dozen good shots and write more than 50 photo essays. Someone even thinks that I can shoot masterpieces, but from the outside, you probably know better.
Unfortunately, I don’t have so many opportunities and free time to travel yet, but at the first opportunity I try to break out of the web of everyday life somewhere far away from the city into nature, taking my camera with me. First of all, I'm going to relax my soul, unload emotionally and be distracted. I have no thoughts in my head to shoot a masterpiece at all costs, rather, on the contrary, it seems to me that before that I had already given out the maximum of my capabilities and there will never be a better shot than before.
Very often we travel with the whole family or with friends...
Childhood spent in the summer in the countryside, apparently, left an imprint in my mind, so I shoot many of my landscapes in the Russian outback. I really like the greatness and diversity of Russian nature, the monuments of wooden architecture of extraordinary beauty, remote and half-abandoned villages and rickety huts and fences familiar to every Russian person ...
These pictures really impress me!
Professionals, on the other hand, believe that the "landscape" genre does not quite suit many of my photographs: some sites, as well as the organizers of most photo contests, define my pictures in the "architecture" or "cultural heritage" section. But I photograph what is close to me and pleases the eye, and it doesn’t matter to me what genre it is called. I would call my work simply "Photo for the Soul".
To the traditional question: "How is it filmed?" I can talk long and hard, but in the format of this publication, I would like to briefly go over the main points that allow me to take good photos.
Getting ready to shoot
I did not take a single more or less decent shot by accident. All my travels and short outings are well planned and prepared...
by the most important aspect in landscape photography, I consider the choice of shooting location (the so-called location). You can take as many pictures of a beautiful view of the park from the window as you want, trample the shore of a nearby lake in search of the perfect shot, or shoot a sunset near the nearest grove. You may be able to make a few good photos, but the most beautiful work you will only receive by moving through time and space.
In my school years, I was seriously involved in orienteering, participated in all-Russian and international competitions, and along the way was also involved in tourism, so I am relatively well versed in maps. This helps me a lot in choosing a location and preparing a route. I would even say that studying maps and terrain is a hobby of photography.
The current possibilities of the Internet are truly limitless, so all ideas are born after studying information from the worldwide network.
On the maps Google maps, Google Earth, Wikimapia, Panoramio (dead to die) - I look at photographs and unique places from satellites. On many roads, by the way, in Google maps you can "ride" in a virtual machine and preview the surroundings in advance. I look for interesting notes and articles on popular sites for photographers, travel forums, as well as in networks. There is a lot of information about the monuments of wooden architecture on the Sobory.ru website. Separately, I would like to mention reserves, national and natural parks. These territories, by definition, should be of interest to landscape painters. I put all the information received together and get the best route.
To get to some locations, sometimes you have to provide additional funds transportation such as boat, bike or ski.
If possible, it is better to visit the object before shooting, conduct reconnaissance and "try on" angles - this will not be superfluous.
I visit both objects of "pilgrimage" for photographers and places where photographers have not yet reached. I like the second option a lot more, because the output is often an unexpectedly pleasant result and always a unique picture. In those areas where dozens or hundreds of shots have already been taken before me, I try to approach shooting outside the box and bring something of my own to the picture.
8
Choosing the Time to Shoot
This is the second point I would like to talk about. I take most of my shots during the so-called "regime" time: about an hour after dawn and an hour before sunset. Soft and warm light gives the image richness and saturation of colors and details the texture of objects. Transitions between bright and dark areas are smoother.
In addition, in the morning and (rarely) evening hours, there is a high probability of fogs forming, which emphasize the depth of the image, beautifully scatter light and blur the contours of objects, making photographs more mysterious and fabulous.
Naturally, it is important to understand where the light source will be at the time of shooting. To do this, on the Internet, I look at the exact time of sunrise and sunset, and then, focusing on the sides of the horizon, I superimpose the direction of movement of the luminary on the map.
And, of course, the most important thing is the weather.
When the chosen shooting point is not far, it is enough just to look out the window and at the promises of weather forecasters on the phone. And if I have to travel for a long time, then I get acquainted with the forecast from at least three sources and look at the proposed map of the movement of atmospheric fronts. It helps to correct the route right in the direction of travel.
After analyzing the above points, I already have a clear timetable in my head and approximate pictures that will subsequently appear on the matrix of my camera. I must say that almost always it turns out to carry out the plan, but in some places you have to return again ...
Technical component
I shoot with Sony A65 and three lenses: Sony CZ16-80, Minolta 70-300, Samyang 8mm. There is also a portrait fix Sony SAL-50F18.
The first lens is universal, I shoot about 80% of all frames with it. It has excellent sharpness and color reproduction.
I mainly take landscape shots on a aperture covered up to f / 8 - f / 13 (this ensures maximum sharpness throughout the frame) with the lowest possible ISO value in auto (not always) focus mode. I set all these parameters, including shutter speed, in manual mode. If there is a need to get beautiful rays from the sun in the frame, you can cover the aperture and a little more.
I record the frame on a memory card in jpg and raw format, and I need the second one only for safety net, if I suddenly have to draw out shadows or lights. From the shadows, information is restored much better than from the overexposed areas, so most often I shoot the landscape with underexposure.
Forgive me, many photographers, but I rarely use a tripod. It is clear that at night, in low light, etc. conditions without it anywhere. But during regime hours, the light changes rapidly and, as a rule, it is enough for me. Sometimes you even have to run from one shooting point to another in order not to miss the moment. But I love to run and extra charging never hurts :) The tripod in this situation significantly reduces efficiency. Sometimes I shoot with exposure bracketing, but here, as a rule, I don’t need a tripod. Even panoramic shots in 90% of cases I do with my hands.
About panorama shooting
I do some of my work in panoramic technique - I stitch together several frames taken from one point with an overlay. Such pictures in the final version look like quite ordinary ones. And the point here is not at all the desire to shoot scenes for posters or get transcendent pixels, just a panorama gives volume, depth and sharpness to the entire frame, allows you to direct the viewer’s gaze from the foreground to the middle and background, create the effect of being in the frame, and, of course, gives wider coverage.
I really like photos with an interesting foreground, so I try to build a frame (be it a panorama or a single shot) from there. Stones, flowers, leaves, etc. can be used as the foreground. If there is nothing to catch the eye, you can improvise by dragging, for example, some snag.
Treatment
I post-process the frames in Photoshop Ps5. I mainly correct the shadows, highlights, contrast, saturation, apply filters and sometimes the technology of expanding the dynamic range of the image (HDR). I do not welcome photo collages. In Photoshop, I also stitch panoramas, mostly in automatic mode. Hands finalizing inconsistencies and geometry.
It should be noted that the use of a photo editor allows you to improve the frame, but the source must be of high quality. If the picture frankly did not work out, then no editor will do anything good out of it.
I am critical of many of my shots. It so happens that at the time of shooting you lose sight of some moments, and simply neglect some nuances. After some time, you begin to understand what could have been done better.
Here, in a nutshell, is all. But perhaps I missed something.
Summarizing all of the above, I want to say the following: if you are into photography, do it with soul, be creative and improve your skills. Choose your location responsibly, plan your route, study the weather…
I wish you all good luck, interesting trips and beautiful memorable shots!
by Sophie Ouch
For many beginners, learning to photograph begins with mastering landscape photography. Maybe this is due to the silence and slowness, which is conducive to better mastering the technique, understanding the exposure in photography and mastering photography lessons on how to photograph correctly - the same landscape.
Photography lessons are varied, tips can be found for every taste and preparedness. But it has long been known that there is never enough information, it never turns out to be superfluous for neophytes, and "repetition is the mother of learning", so we remember the important!
Tips for landscape photography, or How to photograph nature correctly
1. Making the Most of Depth of Field
Marc Adamus
While photographers sometimes want to be more creative and experiment with shallow depth of field, it's still a classic in landscape photography to have most of the image in focus. The easiest way to get more DOF is to use the lowest possible f-stop available for your compact or lens. The smaller the aperture, the greater the depth of field of the image.
However, be aware that a smaller aperture requires more time or a higher ISO. And sometimes both at the same time.
2. Use a tripod
Leif Erik Smith
A mandatory attribute in the arsenal of a landscape photographer is. You may need slow shutter speeds to compensate for the selected small aperture, and therefore additional camera stabilization. Not with every shutter speed, shooting handheld, you can get technically perfect shots. A tripod will be even more useful when the photographer uses a remote control to release the shutter to further stabilize the camera.
3. Look for the semantic center of the composition
Mitchell Krog
Every photograph needs a visual center of composition. Landscape shots are no exception, because when shooting nature, the lack of a semantic point results in a boring and rather empty shot, in which, as they say, "there is nothing to catch the eye."
pkarwski
Anything can be the focus - a building or structure, an interestingly shaped tree, a boulder or a mountain peak. Just remember to keep track not only of focus, but also of where you have a significant object. Although the reference rule of thirds is violated periodically, no one has canceled it yet!
4. Think Foreground
Daniel Rericha
One of the elements that helps your landscape take shape is a shaped foreground. Place your meaning points on the front of the picture, and you can convey the depth of the image.
5. Don't forget to turn on the sky
Trevor Cole
Another almost inseparable element of the answer to the question of how to shoot a landscape is the sky and its reflection in the water. The secret of landscape photography in most cases is that the sky or foreground dominates the picture. Look at your images, if they are not, then most likely they are considered boring and of little interest.
Ryan Dyar
If during your photo session the sky turned out to be uninteresting, don't let it prevail - move the horizon line to the upper third of the picture, first make sure that the photo does not lose even more from this.
Andrei Baciu
But when the sky is full of dramatic clouds or littered with out-of-character hues, airspace can be your ally. Give him more space in your picture, and you will see how winning such a deviation from the rules can be.
Remember filters. Using polarizers can add color and contrast to a photo.
6. Operate the lines!
myredcar
The most important question that landscape photographers usually ask themselves is: "Will the viewer see the picture in full, as I see it?"
There are many ways to convey the natural beauty of nature through static image capture. To do this, there is a technique by which active lines are included in the composition of the image. Due to them, the photographer can redirect the viewer's gaze from one point of the frame to another, rather than create a kind of closed space, "looping".
The use of lines gives a certain algorithm and adds scale and volume to the photo image. The lines themselves can be an attraction and create their own "patterns" in the photo.
Danskie Dijamco
7. Fix the movement!
Most people, when thinking about landscape photography, most often imagine a calm and passive picture. However, the landscape is different from the landscape, and you can convey the movement (of the same water, for example), which will fill the picture with dynamics and create a mood that is interesting for many viewers who will be happy to admire not only relaxing landscapes, but also consider the riot of the elements and the fury of nature.
Andrea Pozzi
For example, try to "catch" a breath of wind in the trees, the movement of waves on the beach, the stirring of water flowing under a waterfall, fix in the dynamics of flying birds and floating clouds above your head.
Carol Dorion
"Locking" means that the photographer must use slower shutter speeds (sometimes on the order of a few seconds). Of course, high shutter speeds will cause more light to enter the camera's photosensitive element, but to properly use this fact, you have options: choosing an aperture value or taking pictures at the beginning of the day or in the evening, when in principle there is less light outside.
8. Work in tandem with weather and time
The golden rule of landscape photography is: "A scene can change drastically at any given time, depending on the weather conditions".
Andrei Baciu
Many aspiring photographers tend to go on a photo walk on a sunny day because they think that this is the best time to create photo masterpieces. In fact, a cloudy day or even a rainy and thundery day, in addition to the possibility of getting the camera wet and feet wet, gives the widest opportunities to get beautiful photos filled with mood and ominous overtones.
Bill Church
How to shoot a landscape in such weather? Look for storms, wind, fog, dramatic clouds, sun through dark dark skies, rainbows, sunsets and sunrises, and work with these changes in weather and conditions rather than waiting for the next sunny day with dull blue skies.
Greg Gibbs
And another wonderful piece of advice from a professional landscape photographer: "Never shoot during the day. There is no duller photo. Your golden time is at dawn or dusk. There is no better light when landscapes come alive."
9. Praise for the horizon
Christian Bothner
The oldest advice, but it is good because it does not lose its relevance today. Before finally pressing the camera shutter, check the horizon line.
It should not divide the frame clearly in half, it should not be tilted, it should not be completely absent from the landscape shot. Of course, rules are there to be broken, but in the case of the horizon, the rule of thirds works like never before.
Tramont_ana
10. Change your point of view!
Even when there are vast expanses of unprecedented beauty before your eyes and it seems that you just need to raise the camera and a beautiful image will appear in it by itself ... stop. And think. Look at the area through the lens, turn back and forth, change the angle, shift the horizon line, or try to include additional elements in the composition.
Auttapon Nunti
Do not rush to press the shutter button, you always have time to do it when photographing a landscape!
The concept of landscape as the basis of the composition of a park or garden. Types of landscapes: simple, complex, panoramic. The degree of closeness and dismemberment of space.
SCENERY- space as a separate element of the landscape, limited by the limits and conditions of visual perception. The landscape evokes a feeling and mood that is perceived similarly to an artist's canvas. According to the spatial principle, landscapes are divided into open, half-open, half-closed and closed. The closed landscape is characterized by the predominance of three-dimensional elements (woody plants) with minor planar, horizontal ones, which limits the possibility of a wide and free view of the space; these so-called “shade areas” exclude visual connections between the components of the landscape. In regular parks, an example of a closed landscape can be a bosquet, in landscape parks - massifs and groves. Open landscapes are distinguished by the predominance of planar elements, "areas of light", and close visual connections between landscape elements. Examples include meadows, lawns, large flower beds.
When planning to create beautiful landscapes in your garden, you must always remember that both in nature and in the garden they exist according to the same laws as picturesque paintings framed and hanging on the wall. And the composition of landscapes is determined by the same factors, the most important of which is composite node .
Landscapes are visually perceived in space in different ways, depending on their complexity:
Simple landscapes usually have one plot with a single
composition node;
Complex landscapes are usually two-, three-plot, they combine
are not united by one idea and form a single whole, for example, a view of
Temple of Friendship in Pavlovsk, opening from the old Sylvia,
includes three compositional nodes: the temple building itself, the bridge
Rossi and the Slavyanka River (Fig. 75);
Panoramic landscapes cover a circular picture with multiple
compositional nodes and consist of several simple
big pictures.
LANDSCAPE PICTURE- a part of the park (garden) space, visually separated from the general park (garden) space and conventionally enclosed in a "frame" that limits the field of vision and has a certain compositional structure. Unlike a painting, a landscape painting is three-dimensional and can be perceived by an observer from several points.
Scenery- an integral part of the landscape, which can be perceived as an artistic whole space. A mandatory feature of the landscape is the predominance or presence of natural components.
Composite node- this is the center where the main objects of the image are located. Note, in brackets, that it does not have to be in the geometric center of the image. And anything can serve them. For example, several trees or one standing alone (tapeworm), the plane of a lawn or a bright spot flower, the surface of a pond, a waterfall, a stream, a gazebo entwined with climbing roses, etc. and so on. What to consider:
First, the distance from the observer to the picture. But since our landscape, unlike a picturesque landscape, is not flat, but three-dimensional, then, depending on the depth of space, you can be guided by the distance either to the compositional center of the picture, or to its foreground, or, more rarely, to the background (background). Let's say it's good to admire a small flower garden from a distance of several meters, and a tapeworm or a group of trees of the first magnitude (lindens, oaks, pines) - from a distance of several hundred meters. Secondly, the width of the picture. This is the distance between the objects that are the "frame" of our picture. Let the line connecting them be drawn only conditionally.
Thirdly, the height of the picture. This value is determined by the height of the elements of the landscape. But, like any artist, the designer necessarily takes into account the "air", including the sky and the plane of the earth (water) in the composition. And finally, the horizontal angle of perception of the landscape. A full circle - 360 ° - is seen only by visitors to man-made circular panoramas and climbers standing on the peak of the mountain. Typically, the viewing angle ranges from 15 to 60°, and its optimal value is 23–28°. The 28° angle is used by landscape designers as an initial measure of the perceived landscape.
Open and closed landscapes.
In a closed landscape three-dimensional elements (woody vegetation) prevail with insignificant planar, horizontal ones, which determines the limited view of space. In the overall composition of the park, closed and shaded landscapes form areas of shade.
In an open landscape the dominant role is played by horizontal surfaces - meadows, reservoirs, which leads to significant visibility into the distance and breadth. \ open landscapes form the brightest parts in the overall composition of the park.
The following forming elements are used in the construction of spatial plans of landscape paintings:
Frame- the purpose of which is to limit the lateral and upper parts of the first plan in order to isolate from the general space of the park a site on which it is desirable to justify the viewer's attention.
backstage- side curtains or screens, which are an element in the construction of the second spatial plan of landscape paintings.
Dominant paintings or compositional focus - the most expressive part of the landscape painting, concentrating the main attention of the viewer.
In the formation of a landscape, an infinite variety of compositions can be created with different spatial plans and dominant objects, the choice of which solution is determined by both the natural situation and the artistic concept.
When organizing a landscape, one should follow the rule of "saving attention" of the observer, excluding from the field of view all unnecessary elements that can disrupt or distract attention from the main thing. The parks are characterized by the versatility of landscape construction and the periodic change of paintings, which is revealed by the visitor during a walk.
The composition of the open spaces of the park. Parterres, glades, water surfaces. flat structures.
Forest park, park and garden landscapes are areas with a functional-figurative characteristic; having their own physical, biological and emotional appearance. This is the human environment. Landscape is a visual, contemplative concept, the perception of the area is similar to the picture.
Water and water devices are essential components of the natural environment. Water lowers the temperature of the air, increases its humidity, significantly affects the microclimate. Depending on the regime of the feeding surface runoff, water bodies are flowing, drainless and with a slow runoff. Rivers, streams, reservoirs on rivers, ponds on small rivers are flowing water bodies. Ponds arranged in gullies, ravines, depressions in the terrain, as well as digging ponds on level ground, belong to drainless reservoirs. The supply of water bodies with water is rain, snow, glacial, underground. River water supply is usually mixed.
The most common water features of the park are ponds and lakes.
The shape of reservoirs is compact, curved, elongated, complex.
Glades, lawn. Almost all landscaped facilities need open spaces of a larger or smaller size, on which grass grows densely. Grassy coverings are divided into lawns and meadows (glades, lawns. Ornamental lawns are divided into parterre and ordinary. Parterre lawns are placed in the most important, front places. They should always seem like even green carpets. Meadow lawn is no longer a lawn, but a meadow. This picturesque open-plan park glades, a natural meadow with wild flowers. Special attention when designing large gardens and parks. The ratio between them and wood massifs determines the artistic appearance of individual sections and the park as a whole. It is generally accepted that in terms of width, glades with an average width of 80-120 m have the greatest landscape advantages.
The size of the glades depends on their purpose and the size of the landscaped object.
The glade should reveal the space of the park. The perception of the landscapes of the glade largely depends on the routing of the tracks. (the path leads straight to it, rests against it. The path approaches tangentially) The decorative effect of its edges plays a huge role in the perception of the meadow. Park glades have an aesthetic purpose - to bring space, light, warmth into landscapes.
Glades in the landscape of the city park are of great compositional and functional importance. They are necessary in the composition as open spaces, contrasting with arrays of plantings, and are used for walks, games and sports.
Depending on the use, glades have a lawn cover of different composition.
Partners. Parterre is a decorative composition located on a horizontal plane, made of plants, inert materials and water. Parterre may consist of one, two, four or more elements.
From the windows of buildings, the parterre should be perceived as a whole. The main requirement for the stalls is its one-time and complete visual perception.
In the parterre drawing, plant motifs are used: stylized branches, leaves, flowers of plants arranged in various combinations. The background for the drawing in most cases is sand, crushed stone of various inert materials.
The pattern of classical parterres quite evenly fills the area allotted to it, leaving no large free gaps.
An integral part of parterres are perimeter borders (bands), which perform not only a protective, but also a decorative role.
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35321 Improving knowledge 0
Shooting landscapes can be divided into several components, the main ones being landscape photography and urban landscape photography. The first part of our lesson will be devoted to landscape photography.
Shooting landscapes is one of the most difficult and problematic areas of photography. I will say that for me, an experienced photographer, shooting a landscape still causes difficulties. It's not that difficult from a technical point of view - just have a tripod, a wide-angle lens and pay more attention to exposure. So what makes this kind of photography so challenging?
First of all, landscape photography must be creative in order to capture the mood and convey it to the viewer. If technical side If the question can be described, then the creative part of photography can only be advised - you need to develop your vision for truly unique shots.
Equipment
Let's start with the simplest. Which lens to choose? While great photos can be taken with any lens, it is still preferable to use wide-angle lenses. They allow you to capture the space of the landscape, emphasized perspective, which adds depth to the image. If you are using a DSLR camera with an APS-C sensor, then look for a 10-20mm wide-angle lens; for full-frame cameras, there is a choice of 12-24mm, 16-35mm, 17-40mm lenses. The zoom lens is comfortable to use, however best quality provide lenses with a fixed focal length. In the range of EGF 12-24, a wide viewing angle is provided, and 16-35 and 17-40 provide a significantly smaller viewing angle, but they provide less optical distortion, especially at the corners of the image. Using ultra wide-angle lenses and a lens like " fish eye” will make the pictures more expressive and original. But shooting all the frames only by “fishing” will not be interesting, so it is good as an addition to the main lens.
When shooting landscapes, small apertures are almost always used to obtain a large depth of field: usually f / 11-f / 16. It is recommended to avoid very small apertures such as f/32, as this will result in poor image quality due to diffraction (an effect that reduces the sharpness and contrast of an image).
When shooting landscapes, only manual focus should be used, especially when shooting subjects in the foreground close to the camera.
The ISO sensitivity must be set to the lowest that the camera allows, usually ISO 100-200. It is not recommended to use the ISO 50 extension available as an option on some cameras due to the reduced dynamic range. Shooting at ISO 100, the image will be virtually noise-free, with a wide dynamic range and excellent image quality, which can be sharpened in processing without fear of strong noise. Shutter Speed: As you can imagine, the combination of a small aperture and low ISO values will give you a long shutter speed. Depending on the illumination, the shutter speed can be from a fraction of a second (1/250 or 1/500) to several seconds or even minutes.
If you are serious about landscape photography, you should understand the need to use a tripod. A tripod is the main element that provides sharp, detailed shots, especially with long exposures. Moreover, a tripod allows you to carefully select and think over the composition. Using a tripod, it is possible to use a special technique that allows you to take amazing pictures: at sunrise or sunset, take a couple of shots of the same scene - the first exposure to the sky, the second to the foreground, then combine them - you get an original frame with the widest dynamic range. When shooting handheld, it will be impossible to shoot two absolutely identical shots.
When shooting landscapes, it is recommended to use filters - polarizing, and. UV and protective filters are useless as they can reduce image quality, reduce sharpness, and increase the chance of flare. When choosing filters, it is important to keep in mind that their use on ultra wide-angle lenses (18 mm or less) can lead to an undesirable effect of uneven frame illumination and vignetting.
Getting ready to shoot
In many ways, the success of photography depends on how well you prepared for it. You need to carefully consider what might interfere with the shooting or force you to return. The more possible nuances you take into account, the more likely it is that you will focus entirely on shooting. Solve organizational issues: how will you get to the shooting location, where will you stay. If you are not planning to stay overnight, you still need to consider an overnight stay - you may not calculate the time, circumstances may change.
Dress in a way that clothes and shoes do not create inconvenience. Take an umbrella or a hooded jacket with you. Consider protecting your equipment in case of heavy rain. Have a flashlight handy. However, try to get out of the forest or mountains before dark, as spending the night there is not the best option. Get a map of the area, navigate by it and by objects that cannot be confused. It's good to have a compass at your disposal.
Don't forget to bring water and food with you. It is better not to go to distant and deserted places alone. Make sure the account mobile phone had money and his battery was fully charged. If you go by car, check the "spare tire", fill the tank with gasoline, do not leave in a broken car. Tell friends, relatives exactly where you are going (going) and the estimated time when you will return.
Check camera settings, battery charge, and memory card space before shooting. It is optimal to shoot in RAW by setting the white balance setting to auto, then you will select the desired balance in the converter. By using different settings white balance, you can achieve more attractive colors.
Light
Light is an essential element in landscape photography. The right light can transform even a nondescript subject, while the wrong one can ruin even the best scene. Interestingly, many novice photographers believe that a clear sunny day and a cloudless sky are excellent conditions for shooting - but they are not - these are the worst conditions you can imagine for shooting landscapes. The best light is not bright, midday, but the soft light of sunrise or sunset. Shadows are crisp, colors are warm, rich and pleasing to the eye. Experienced photographers call this time .
You need to get up early and stay up late to capture the landscape in this light, but the result is worth it. Sometimes, you can get fantastic shots even before sunrise - it's quite possible to take beautiful landscape shots even at night. When possible, capture the moon in the frame - it will make it more interesting.
If you can't or don't want to wait until sunset or sunrise, shooting at noon is another strategy for getting the best lighting. If the sky is cloudless, try to exclude it from the frame as much as possible and, conversely, if the clouds form an intricate pattern, be sure to make the sky part of the composition. A polarizing filter in this case will help emphasize the contrast between the clouds and the sky and make the colors more saturated.
Another way to get a great shot is in black and white. From a photograph taken even at poor lighting, you can get a great picture by converting it to black and white, but not all pictures will benefit from "discoloration". In black and white, frames that are rich in textures, edges, and other contrasting elements clearly win, while others may look “flat”. In any case, do not hesitate to experiment with contrast during post-processing in a graphics editor (not in-camera!).
Midday shooting, at sunset or sunrise - is not the only time when a photographer can take a good picture. Even when the sky is covered with clouds or in heavy rain, you can get a great shot. Clouds and stormy skies will add the appropriate mood to the photo, allowing you to give landscapes an unusual look.
Mood
The same places can look very different. Weather, time of day and many other factors affect the environment - it is never the same.
The two pictures show the same waterfall. The first picture was taken in the summer, on a sunny day - the waterfall is almost invisible, and the light is not very pleasant. In short, this is a typical shot taken by a typical tourist. The second picture was taken on a day when no one would have thought to visit this waterfall. A cold autumn day, fog and rainy weather, which intensified the waterfall, filled the picture with mood - it fascinates.
Do not be afraid to shoot in the rain or snow - professional lenses and cameras are dust and moisture resistant (you can find out from the description of your photographic equipment), and even if not, you can get 100% protection from moisture by buying a special plastic or polyethylene casing.
Use a gradient filter to reduce the brightness of overcast, colorless skies and bring out the texture of clouds. This will give your picture extra dimension. When blue sky fragments are included in a cloud break, the effect of the gradient filter on them will be equivalent to the effect of the polarization filter.
Seasons
Each season of the year brings its own gifts to the photographer, so don’t put off shooting landscapes only for summer vacations.
SHOOTING IN AUTUMN, IN CLOUD WEATHER
When photographing rain, it is necessary to stop the lens a lot in order to shoot at a slow shutter speed. In this case, the raindrops will turn out in the form of stripes that will create the impression of rainy weather in the picture. You just need to make sure that rain drops do not get on the lens. Droplets will result in blurry images.
Spectacular landscapes can be shot in foggy weather. The impression of fog can be enhanced by placing a mesh of rare silk fabric in front of the lens. To convey the depth of space, some dark object must be placed in the foreground frame.
WINTER LANDSCAPE
On bright, sunny days, the contrast of the landscape is very high, which is caused by a combination of dazzlingly bright highlights in the snow and, say, dark trees, especially conifers.
It is better to photograph the winter landscape in the morning or in the evening, when the oblique rays of the sun create elongated shadows - this enlivens the composition and well emphasizes the texture of the snow.
Snow in a winter shot should be well-detailed. Therefore, when photographing a landscape in which snow takes up most of the frame, the exposure is determined by measuring the brightness of the snow. If the snow and dark objects in the scene are equivalent from a visual point of view, the exposure is determined by their average brightness, but taking into account the greater detail in the snow compared to dark objects.
Composition
1. Rule of thirds
Good composition is an essential part of landscape photography, but it is the most difficult task. There are a few "rules" that will help you improve your composition, but you must constantly develop your "creative" eye in order to get decent shots.
The most common mistake beginner photographers make is placing the horizon in the center of the frame, resulting in a static and unbalanced image. The first step in improving composition is shooting the landscape according to the rule of thirds. We have already covered it in our previous composition lessons, but it will not be superfluous to remind. It's very simple - mentally divide the frame into three parts horizontally. And shoot in proportions 1/3 foreground, 2/3 sky or vice versa - 2/3 foreground, and 1/3 sky. In other words, create an asymmetrical composition.
Naturally, the rule of thirds will not be a panacea for all photographs, but you need to remember about it.
2. Foreground and perspective
One of the most effective ways create a strong composition - use a wide angle of view and place some object (flower, stone, etc.) in the foreground. This object, combined with the perspective enhanced by the wide angle lens, will give a sense of depth.
Depth of field should include all objects. Therefore, it is recommended to set the aperture value to f/11 or f/16.
3. Other elements of the composition
In nature, there are many elements that help create an expressive composition - diagonals are the most influential of them. Use diagonal lines to draw the viewer's attention to the subject. If you take a closer look, you will see that everything around is subject to certain guides. Look for guides and try to fit them into the composition.
Patterns (repeating shapes) and textures are other elements in the composition. It is not easy to see natural patterns in nature, but various textures are common: small particles of sand, tree bark, stones and many other interesting objects will help make the picture more interesting.
The main thing in the frame
Determine what will be the main thing in the frame. It can be a lonely tree, a rock, a mountain, a picturesque forest, a slope, a road. Using the composition grid on the LCD monitor (viewfinder), divide the frame into thirds and position the main subject at the intersection of the vertical and horizontal grid lines.
Try to make sure that there are three plans in the picture: foreground, middle and far - so the landscape will look more voluminous, and the space will be transferred better. The foreground must be drawn clearly, in detail, the background may well be blurry, hidden by atmospheric haze.
Try not to make the landscape "empty". Empty space is best filled, if possible. In the sky, this filler can be clouds. In the foreground - shrubs, tall grass, stones, leaves, branches, animals.
Do not try to put everything you see in one frame at once, get rid of the random and monotonous space that inexpressively fills most of the frame - water, sky, foliage. Leave only the most important, beautiful and interesting. Look for open spaces in the forest.
Too dense foliage, branches create variegation, small highlights and very thick shadows that look like “black holes” in the photo - such pictures look worse than a carefully thought-out composition.
If you can't find the fill, crop the image to highlight the more interesting part of the landscape. You can walk a little and take different shots - straight or at an angle, from a low point. Climb a hill, a hill, any building - from there you can take a multi-dimensional panoramic picture.
When choosing a subject, look for the main element of the landscape that will be emphasized, as well as the way that the environment will emphasize and complement it. When composing a shot, make sure that the subject fits harmoniously into the plot. For example, the tree should not grow from the bottom of the frame - leave some space at the bottom; don't cut off the top of the mountain, leave some "air".
When photographing a landscape, always pay attention to the fragments, because it is not at all necessary to shoot only wide shots. A careful look can highlight an interesting part of the landscape, beautiful and expressive details. But do not get carried away with strong zooming - here you need to maintain the integrity of the fragment, otherwise the picture will turn out to be torn out of general plan abstract piece, devoid of meaning.
Panorama
Finally, practice shooting panoramas. Here you should be guided by several rules. All future frames of your panorama should have the same scale of the subject being photographed, so do not focus closer or further than it. The aperture value should be left constant. Frames need to be done with some overlap on each other. Otherwise, due to the lack of information at the edges of the frames, the panorama stitching program will not be able to assemble the final image.
You can use the bracketing feature in your camera to avoid exposure errors.
Shooting water
If it is necessary to photograph water, covered with ripples or a small wave, then it is taken with counter-side illumination at an angle of 35-45 ° to the optical axis of the lens.
Water against the light is photographed when the rays from the sun, hidden by a cloud, fall on the water, creating expressive brilliant stripes. But you need to make sure that the sun does not fall into the field of view of the lens.
The sea is better to shoot from a high point. Then the water space occupies a significant part of the frame, the photo is more expressive.
The surf is usually photographed from a low point with a shutter speed of at least 1/1000 s.
It is better to remove flowing water with a short shutter speed. In this case, there is a slight blurring of the image, which creates the impression of water movement.
Mountain landscape
In the mountains it is better to shoot early in the morning. During these hours, the air environment is transmitted most effectively. Cloudy weather also contributes to more expressive shots.
On sunny days, the subject should be chosen with a dark foreground, the brightness of which determines the exposure. In this case, the distances will be somewhat overexposed and come out on the print lighter than the foreground, which will emphasize the depth of space, fill the landscape with a feeling of air, spaciousness.
Side lighting is considered the best, as it emphasizes the shape of the mountains, and the haze illuminated by oblique rays creates the impression of depth. When the sun is behind the camera, the image becomes flat. When - in front, the picture turns out to be very contrasting, details, especially in the foreground, disappear.
Photographing a mountain landscape during the day at a high position of the sun brings out the details of the image, without sufficient contrast.
When determining the exposure, it must be taken into account that the intensity of sunlight increases with height in the mountains, and it acquires a different character than on the plain. With height, there is a decrease in the brightness of shadows and an increase in the brightness of light areas of the landscape. Therefore, when shooting a distance without a foreground, the shutter speed is reduced compared to shooting on a flat area: at a height of 500 m by 1/4, 1000 m - by 1/2, 2000 m - by 3/4, 3000 m - by half.
To get glare on the surface of the glacier, you should photograph with backlight.
The main question of the topic: how to learn to see beautiful landscapes?
A beautiful landscape is based on the fact that the plot unites everything in the frame and subordinates the environment to a common idea - the author's thought, creating a certain mood, emotions, and conclusions in the viewer.
Good luck to you and all the photographic!
Have you ever looked at photos of good landscape photographers and wondered how they find such beautiful places to shoot? Or maybe you want to take a trip to take pictures, and are not sure that you will find the best locations?
You are not alone. It takes work to find the best locations to shoot, and every landscape photographer goes through this process. The tips in this article will help you.
1. See landscape works others photographers
First step to search beautiful places for landscape photography, it's viewing the work of other photographers. You can find a lot of photographers on 500px, Instagram and Flickr, so it will be relatively easy to find those who have worked in the regions you are thinking of.
Viewing the work of other photographers helps you in two ways:
- It helps you find the most iconic, popular and exciting filming locations.
- This gives you an idea of the potential of the place that you have in mind (for example, you are looking for a place to shoot long exposures, or you prefer to work in black and white).
It's a good idea to browse local photographers. Locals have a big advantage over tourists. They know the area better and are familiar with photogenic but relatively unfamiliar places. Perhaps they have been living there for many years and have built up a sizable base. Their portfolio contains photographs taken at different times of the year. All of these things help create an impression of the area and its potential for landscape photography.
I went through this process when I traveled through northern Spain last year. Looking through photos from local photographers helped me find locations like this one.
2. Get out and explore
Once you arrive at a location, curiosity is your key to finding interesting items and places to photograph. If you've done your research, you already know the most iconic and popular places - they probably attracted you in the first place.
But what about other locations? Not so famous? You can only find out through research. It depends only on your desire to be able to see what is around the next corner, or where that path will lead.
I took this photo while walking along the path behind my parents' house. This is not a well-known area, and you will have to try to find other photos taken here. Yes, she has big potential and i was able to take pictures like this
3. Create list great places
When you look at the work of other photographers and read about landscape photography, you will learn about interesting places and locations.
I suggest you make a list of the places you would like to visit one day. The world is huge. And on the Internet you can find out about a large number of places. If you don't take notes when you find something interesting, you might just forget about it later and never find it again.
Over time, you can return to the list and look again for places that seem most interesting to you. For example, you have the city of Venice on your list. Whenever you find interesting photo And good article about photos in Venice, add them to your file. Then, when the time comes, you will have your research almost ready and an idea of what you want to get.
Do mine list
Another approach is to create a list of places you would like to visit. Do not censor this list - these are ideas, not statements. You can then explore them and take notes by finding useful information. This gives you time to think about how much time you need in the area and how to fit that into your schedule. You can think about time and money, and gradually make plans.
Places on my list include the Torre del Paines mountains in Patagonia, the Italian Dolomites, and the deserts of the US Southwest. What are yours?
Picos de Europa in northern Spain, where this photo was taken, was also on my list.
4. Find mine personal sight
One of the dangers associated with studying the work of other photographers is that it creates a desire to take photographs in the same places. There's nothing wrong with shooting iconic places, and sometimes it's just the right thing to do to move on and look for less recognizable places. But the danger is that you forget to look elsewhere for new and interesting places.
Photographer Cole Thompson has experienced interesting idea which he called "photographic abstinence". He never looks at the work of other photographers, as he wants to find his own locations and personal vision of the landscape. There is a lot of truth in this idea and maybe you should try it for yourself. This is the opposite approach to the advice given at the beginning of the article, and it may be right for you.
Personalize
Last year I visited my family in Norfolk, England. Check out the work of local photographers and you'll find plenty of shots of the sand dunes, wide beaches and beach huts that are typical of the area.
I refrained from visiting these places and took a walk with my camera around the outskirts of the village. This beginning was not intentional, but after that I saw that most of the work is based on photographing elements of the landscape that were personal to me. I ignored the iconic places, those that are for sale in local galleries, and photographed landscapes in a more personal way to interpret.
I ended up taking pictures like you see above and like this one.
Wherever you go for landscape photography, and no matter how famous and recognizable these places are, I encourage you to seek and find your own vision.
Conclusion
These ideas are just some of the ways to find interesting places for landscape photography.
