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A landscape photo of waves
crashing against the shore Tip 1: Bring a Tripod Always
bring a tripod if you plan on shooting landscapes. Even if the day is sunny, you
may need to use a small aperture to achieve a great depth of field. In such
cases, you may be using a low shutter speed – which leads to camera shake if you
can’t hold the camera stable in your hands. Hence the need for a tripod. If you
need a good travel tripod, I recommend the Vanguard Tourist-2 – I’ve used it for
years and it functions very well. Tip 2: Cable Release One
good tip is to carry a cable release. Instead of using the timer function on the
camera, use the cable release. This ensures that you can trigger the shutter at
precisely the right timing. In turn, this leads to reduced camera shake and a
more beautiful photo. Tip 3: Use the Right Filters Filters are important when taking landscape photos. There are different types of filters that I use – polarizers, neutral density filters and graduated neutral density filters. Polarizers are useful for reducing glare from water and other reflective surfaces. These create a more well-balanced and beautiful picture. Neutral density filters will stop a specified amount of light entering the camera. I tend to use these for shooting waterfalls on a sunny day. Graduated neutral density
filters are a slight variation of this – they are dark on top and clear on the
bottom, creating a ‘gradual transition’ from the dark to clear area. These
filters are good for blocking out bright parts of a scene (say the sky) to
create a more evenly exposed picture. Tip 4: Research the Landscape One thing to do before taking landscape photos is to do some background research on the landscape. If you’re taking pictures of the Nigara Falls, or the Grand Canyon, try to do some background study on what the most scenic spots are. It’s also good to check out
the weather conditions of the place. Check up the papers – if the weather
doesn’t look good, you may want to try shooting another day. Tip 5: Lenses For shooting landscape
photos, it’s usually best to bring wide-angle lenses. I also bring along a
telephoto lens in case I want to shot some creative, zoomed-in shots. Tip 6: Composition Another
thing to remember is that composition rules are still important in landscape
photos. Make sure you have something in the foreground, mid-ground and
background. Tip 7: Shoot at the Right Time For landscape photography,
one thing I realize is that you should avoid shooting during mid-day. There is a
lot of harsh lighting and bad shadow effects during that period. Early morning
or late afternoon tends to be best. Conclusion As you can see, landscape photography poses its own challenges. However, bear the above tips in mind the next time you’re taking these photos, and I’m sure you’ll be much happier with your prints!
If you want to improve your digital photography skills, you may want to take a look at Digital Photography Success. This e-book package includes excellent step-by-step instructions on how to take pictures of beautiful landscapes, people, nature, fireworks, night scenes, etc. Learn how to shoot professional photos - just like those you see in glossy magazine covers. Related ArticlesYou may also wish to read the following related articles:
A guide to photographing fireworks © 2006 Basic-Digital-Photography.com
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