Taking great landscape pictures can seem so easy compared to shooting action photography or taking pictures of children or animals. However, any photographer that’s lugged their equipment to the top of a beautiful vista only to end up with sub-par photos can tell you that there’s a lot more to great landscape photography than simply showing up. Here are a few things to keep in mind that will help your photos turn out fantastic.

Think Details

With landscape photography it’s all about the details. The more detail you can capture in your image, the better it’s often going to look. Detail and depth of field are both increased by longer exposure times, so try to use the highest F-stop value (22 on most cameras) whenever possible. This will let in more light into the camera and give you more options for exposing the film. If you want to use a slower ISO film (around 100) this will also pull in more detail but be careful as slow films may not be the best for all lighting situations.

Hold ’em Steady

Even though a slower shutter speed will give you greater depth of field and detail, increasing the exposure time has its own problems. At a shutter speed of about 125, even the most steady handed photographer will struggle with “hand shake” blur so it’s best to mount your camera on a tripod or brace it on a sturdy object. If you’re using the bulb setting on your camera or a super slow shutter speed you may also want to consider getting a cable release. A cable release will help prevent the image from being ruined because of your hand movements pushing the shutter button.

Find a Focal Point

Picture an empty room with no windows- pretty boring isn’t it? Landscapes are exactly the same as any other photograph – you need a subject to make it interesting. No matter what kind of landscape you’re taking, you want to have some type of focal point framed in the image. This may seem strange, but simply pointing a camera at a mountain and hitting the shutter isn’t going to automatically result in an amazing photograph. Think of the “story” of each photograph, and try to tell it in the frame.

Always Have Your Camera Ready

Landscape photographers don’t have the luxury of scheduling appointments or building their own light environments. You have to be willing to work with factors outside of your control and capitalize on these factors when they work in your favor. Shooting images in the early morning hours compared to dusk is very different and has a very limited time frame for you to take the perfect shot. If you want to take incredible landscape photographs, it’s a good idea to keep your gear bag packed by the door in case something interesting starts happening outside.

Patience is Always a Virtue

Although it may seem strange that landscape photography requires grabbing an interesting shot on short notice, landscape photography actually requires a lot of patience. Every fascinating picture captured by a landscape photographer’s lens, will often never be seen the same way again so you often have to be willing to wait it out.

Landscape photography is deceptively complex. From an outsider’s perspective, it seems like all a photographer needs is a camera and some hills or a waterfall; understanding how the time, weather, and composition of these photos influences the final product is the mark of a true professional. With those few things, you’ll have everything you need to start taking quality landscape pictures.

Author Bio: Autumn Lockwood is a writer for Your Picture Frames. Shop online and see our selection of jeweled picture frames . Come visit our online selection of cute jeweled picture frames and quality vintage picture frames or call 800-780-0699.

Category: Arts and Crafts
Keywords: landscape photography tips,landscape photography techniques,photography 101,learn photography