Nature Photography How To

The first thing most photographers do when out in the field shooting landscapes is to mount a wide-angle lens on their camera. But a lot more goes into making great photographs than choosing the right focal length.

The tutorial below is all about using wide-angles lenses properly, and avoiding five common mistakes that one of our favorite landscape photographers says, “I see all the time.” British pro Nigel Danson admits he’s made these errors himself on occasion, and he demonstrates how to avoid them so you don’t make them yourself.

This behind-the-scenes episode finds Danson in beautiful Gen Coe, on a splendid day in the Scottish Highlands. As you’ll see, gorgeous scenery doesn’t guarantee compelling wide-angle imagery unless you do things right. That means proper composition, correct exposure settings, and much more.

Danson demonstrates how choosing the best vantage point, either high or low depending upon the scene, will make a huge difference in your photos. He also illustrates how a small shift in position—a few steps left or right—often delivers vastly different results

Another common mistake is attempting to capture everything in an expansive scene, and Danson demonstrates the importance of composing shots selectively to avoid extraneous objects. He also includes the important reminder to photograph a setting in both portrait and landscape orientations, and then choose the framing you like best.

Danson discusses a number of other mistakes and how to solve them for images with maximum impact, and he provides a list of his gear in the description beneath the video.

We encourage you to visit Danson’s YouTube channel after watching this episode, where you’ll find more landscape photography tips.

And don’t miss the tutorial we posted recently from another top photographer, with five simple tips for better b&w winter landscape photos.