Top Tips For Stunning Landscape Photographs
Use FiltersThe most common filter you need when shooting Landscapes is the Neutral Density Graduate or ND Grad. These darken the sky whilst leaving the ground unaffected. Place them over a bright sky so that you balance out the exposure between the sky and ground. This helps your camera capture a more pleasing range of tones and your image appears balanced. ND Grads come in various strengths 0.3 (1 stop), 0.6 (2 stops) and 0.9 (3 stops) are the most common. The 0.6 is probably the most useful of the three.
The other filter to consider is the polarising filter. These are most commonly used to darken blue skies and give them more impact but they also have other uses that are often overlooked. Because a polariser will cut out 3 stops of light your exposure time will increase. This can help you blur moving water such as rivers and waterfalls. The polariser will also allow you to cut reflections from surfaces such as water, which can make some images more appealing. Two other characteristics to consider are that polarisers can reduce haze and saturate colours. They are ideal to use in woodland areas when the air is damp with water.
Use a Tripod
It"s remarkable what an effect using a Tripod can have on your work. Your images will be clear and crisp but you will also slow down and take more time to compose them. It"s too easy to rush hand held shots and fail to compose them to best effect. It"s also doubtful that you will be able to handhold a shot as steady as you can with the camera tripod mounted. Remember that when shooting Landscapes you will tend to use small apertures which increases shutter speed. It"s better to use a tripod than increase the ISO and hand hold the shot.
If you are buying a tripod ensure you look for one with a quick release plate which attaches to the base of your camera. This will make the tripod easier to use. The other vital accessory to use with any tripod is a remote camera release. This means you can take your shots without needing to touch the camera and reduces still further any possibility of moving the camera.
Pick the Subject to Match the Light
When we venture out to shot in the Landscape we often have a fixed idea in mind about the type of shots we want. When the weather and light don"t play ball we end up with poor pictures. You can"t control the weather and light but you can control what you shoot. Some subjects suit certain light and weather more than others. Wet weather can make for great woodland scenes. Warm light at the beginning and end of day is best for the wide open views. Direct light during midday can help bring out texture on surfaces. Dull overcast weather is good for shooting detail in the landscape. Pick the right subject for the light and you will have more success.
Use your Histogram for Exposure
Getting the exposure of your image right is a key skill. You might be able to improve the exposure in Photoshop later but it"s much better to get it right in camera. The light meter in your camera gets you in the right ballpark only. Don"t trust it but instead learn to read the histogram. If the histogram indicates a poorly exposed picture use the exposure compensation function until you get it right. And please don"t rely on the image in the viewfinder to tell if your exposure is correct, only the histogram can do that.
Dodge & Burn in Photoshop
With dodging and burning you can darken and lighten selected areas of your image. Remember, your eye is drawn towards lighter areas and away from dark areas. You can use this to hold your viewers attention in the picture by adding a vignette around the outside of the image. You can use it to emphasise important features more than others. Best of all dodging and burning when done well makes your images appear instantly more dynamic and appealing.
So that"s it. 5 top tips that you should look to incorporate into your photography. Make then second nature to you then you can focus on developing other key skills such as composition.