The way you frame an outdoor scene can often be the difference between a mediocre shot and one that really grabs attention. In the tutorial below you’ll discover both impediments and potential solutions to composing landscape images for maximum impact.
“To do or NOT to do?” That’s today’s question, as one of Shutterbug readers’ favorite instructors reveals “seven beginner mistakes that every landscape photographer should avoid.”
We’d all love to shoot professional-quality images, but let’s face it: most of us lack the time, means, and the necessary vision to quit our day jobs and pursue a career in photography. But that doesn’t mean we can’t improve our imagery by emulating skills that make accomplished pros so successful.
Optimum image quality is the holy grail of all photographers regardless of whether they shoot portraits, landscapes, wildlife, or just about any other type of images. And when photos fail to meet expectations, it’s easy to blame our gear or the shooting conditions we confront.
Wide-Angle lenses are typically the go-to choice for experienced landscape photographers. They enable you to easily capture expansive vistas with room for cropping, and they help to tell a story about the location with your images.
All photographers run out of fresh ideas on occasion and struggle to think of something interesting to shoot. When this happens to you, how about grabbing your gear and giving cityscape photography a try?
If you’re tired of hearing the same composition tips over and over again, like the Rule of Thirds or Leading Lines, you’re going to learn some different for framing outdoor photographs in the quick tutorial below.
Selecting the appropriate shutter speed for a given scene is important for most types of photography if you want the best possible results. This decision is important with landscapes and wildlife shots—particularly when shooting hand-held, for scenes with motion, and while using long lenses.
Guess what? Even professional shooters screw up on occasion; so don’t feel too bad about making mistakes. The trick is to not make the same error twice, and one way to avoid that is to learn from the foibles of experienced pros.
Many inexperienced photographers make a simple mistake than can compromise the quality of their photos, and that’s thinking of a camera’s metering-mode options as a set-it-and-forget-it feature. If you’re guilty of this common error, the video below is for you.
Let’s fact it: Landscape photography can be really expensive. Not only do you need a good camera and an arsenal of great glass, but a solid tripod, filters, and a closet full of hiking gear and apparel for all seasons.
Apologies for the negative headline, but if your photos are really bad we think you should know why. You can thank us later for helping you up your game, after watching the video below.
If your outdoor photographs often have blown-out highlights, crushed shadows, or a combination of both, our guess is that you’re not using exposure bracketing to perfect exposure when shooting in difficult lighting conditions. The tutorial below quickly explains how it’s done.
As one of our favorite pros insists, “Lightroom’s histogram is one of the most important things to understand in photography.” If you’re new to this powerful tool, the beginners guide below from our friends at The Phlog Photography will get you up to speed in barely eight minutes.