Landscape Photography - My Thoughts

Landscape Photography - My Thoughts

As a landscape photographer I am constantly looking for places to photograph. So where do I look? Well the most obvious one is I look for places whilst out and about and if I see one then I whip out my mobile phone and take a quick shot of it so that I have it geotagged and I can find it again later! Something that I have noticed, that since taking up landscape photography, I have taken far more aware of my surroundings, I spend half my time looking over my shoulder to see if there’s a composition!

Where else, well online most defiantly, there are literally millions of images and lists of wonderful places to photograph, most are in other counties or to far away for a day trip but there are still thousands in your own counties. If I see a picture that really like then I try to find its location and then go and try to recreate it, maybe put my own spin on it.

A case in point is the picture to the below, I had seen a video of a guy, doing a shoot from this exact location in the winter and wanted to get a similar shoot, what I forgot was that in the summer the grass is taller and the shoot from here just wouldn’t have worked, so after a quick rethink I went back over the bridge and finished up with second shot below.





I guess at the end of the day everywhere is a potential location, its just about finding the right composition and then getting there for the light to be in the right place.

In the last month I have climbed the Pen Y Fan in Brecon twice and on both occasions I’ve had limited visibility, good thing or bad thing? Well arguably its a good thing, after all who wants a clear blue sky, in my opinion a landscape photograph needs something to add drama and its normally the weather. As it says on my About Me page, “ A nice view doesn't make a great photograph”.

I suppose the other question is what is the definition of a landscape photograph? Well this is the Wikipedia definition. “Landscape photography shows spaces within the world, sometimes vast and unending, but other times microscopic. Landscape photographs typically capture the presence of nature but can also focus on man-made features or disturbances of landscapes.”.

I had it in my own mind that landscape photography had to be great big vistas taken from high mountains but that clearly isn’t the case. A landscape could be taken from the front of your house looking down the road (Urban Landscape Photography).

Equally, I’m always asking people if they like a photograph that I’ve taken. In reality, does it even matter what others think of your pictures, so long as you like it, that’s all that matters! That’s the beauty of it, photography is just art and art (like food) is subjective.

So in the short while that I’ve been doing landscape photography, what lessons have I learned aside from how to use my camera:

A nice view doesn’t make a great photograph!

Composition

Lighting

Plan your shoot

Equipment

Camera bags are a waste of time for being in the middle of nowhere, buy a rucksack and some padded bags

Tripod, make sure its a robust one

Lenses, I have 10-18mm, 18-55mm, 24-70mm and a 70-200mm and take all of them every time!

Filters, I carry three variable ND filters, which fit the four lenses

Remote shutter release

Clothing

Waterproof jacket and trousers, just because it’s not raining now……

Boots, waterproof ones, even in summer you can get heavy dew in the early hours. If your shoot means a long walk, then wellies won’t do.

Food

Coffee/tea (its cold in the mornings).

Get rid of excess packaging before you leave the house, saves carrying it around all day

Safety

Mobile phone

Head torch

Tell somebody where your going or leave a route with them and don’t change your mind without letting them know.

Quality vs quantity - success comes from focusing on a few compositions and doing them well!

Revisit locations, each season will have it’s own way of presenting that piece of landscape to you

Sunsets are easy, your already awake!

Sunrises are hard, be prepared for some sleepless nights in pursuit of a great sunrise shot

When you have a great shot, you will know!

Tags: Landscape Landscapes Landscape photography