In my most recent column, we explored the best techniques for photographing “people”. This month, we’ll look at some of the tools and techniques required for photographing “places” while on the road.
Landscapes: How frustrating it can be to live in the Blue Ridge Mountains, surrounded by natural beauty, but always falling short of that epic landscape photograph. There is a reason for this: landscape photography is not as easy as it may appear, despite having such an abundance of awe-inspiring subject matter to work with! Here are a few tips on capturing that elusive winning landscape:
• Try to include a “point of interest” in the frame (e.g., a barn, tree, rocky out-crop, etc.) that draws the viewer in – and keeps them there!
• Look for color contrast to add interest to the photograph.
• Use a narrow aperture to provide depth-of-field / focus.
• Use a tripod and cable release to limit blur due to camera shake.
• Consider using a polarizing filter, or graduated neutral density filter.
• Employ the “rule of thirds” in your composition (but know when to break the rule).
• Take advantage of early and evening light.
• Experiment with different lenses and lens focal lengths.
Cities: Personally, I find that there are more opportunities in an urban environment than there are in nature, but perhaps that’s the Northeast coming out in me, and my familiarity with the likes of New York City and Philadelphia! In any event, here are a few things to think about when you find yourself in a place with more concrete than greenery:
• Work with architectural lines and shapes in your composition, remembering that the relationship between these lines and objects to the frame edges is crucial to the effectiveness and balance of the image.
• Be aware of the perspective of your content and lines, keeping in mind things such as convergence, divergence, perpendicularity and symmetry.
• If you are going for perfect symmetry in the shot, be sure to nail it!
• Shoot wide for cityscapes, and tight for architectural detail.
• Be aware of the light direction and contrast, and observe shadows to ensure that they are not distracting from the subject matter.
• When shooting inside, decide whether a flash would be useful (if allowed), or if you are better off working with the ambient / available light, while possibly using a tripod (if allowed) to deal with slow shutter speeds.
• If night photography is your thing, start your work in the twilight and shoot into the darkness. Chances are, the shots taken before the sky turns total black will be your best shots.
Tune in next month for Part 4 of our Travel Photography feature (“Things”).
Looking for more insight? Check out the ”Got f-Stop?” photo blog at www.gotfstop.com
David Simchock is a professional photographer and instructor based in Asheville’s River Arts District. For more about David, including his popular Vagabond Vistas Photo Tours, visit www.DijonCreative.com.