Landscape. Composition and light in the landscape. How to photograph a landscape correctly and what you need to know to get masterpieces? landscape photography from a to z

Landscape photography is an exciting passion for many photographers. But it can be much more complex than initially imagined. It just sounds simple: find a beautiful spot, take a few shots, and come home with a piece of art in your camera. Australian photographer Andrew Goodall has been shooting landscapes for about 20 years, runs a gallery focused on this genre, and has listened to many similar opinions over the years, but considers landscape photography worthy of a thorough study of the process.

In fact, making a good image of a spectacular landscape is a difficult task. A person can see the potential and beauty of a place, but capturing them in a photo as a memorable image is a completely different matter, especially if you work in a place that has already been photographed a thousand times. You have to find a way and make a frame that will be different from the rest. Andrew Goodall gives four tips for those who want to take their landscape photography a little further than others.

Do not try to put everything in the frame

Some breathtaking panoramic views are so large that it is simply impossible to fit them into one photo - unless you use a wide-angle lens. However, in this case, the whole picture will be reduced in size, as well as the grandeur of the entire landscape being shot. It is much more efficient to use another technique: the concentration of the composition around one of the key, interesting points of the landscape. On the one hand, viewers will recognize the area and the view, and on the other hand, they will look at them from a new angle. In this case, a large lens can be used to bring out the features of the scenery, capturing details that a "wide angle" would inevitably lose.

Look at the landscape from a different angle

Why do so many photos of amazing architectural monuments look the same? Just because they shoot them from the same points. It's easy to get a good picture from the popular observation deck - it was, in fact, equipped in the most suitable place for this. The trouble is that it is almost impossible to make a unique image from it. Try to find a new angle. Even if you have to walk around to find an interesting position, do it. Of course, we do not offer to illegally enter a closed area or risk your own neck, but in most cases you can find an alternative to the usual angle without risking your life and those around you.

Let the environment work for you

Anyone can take a shot of, say, a mountain range - but what about the same ridge or slope shot through the branches of trees in the foreground or from the side of a meandering river that skirts a hill? Any landscape can be photographed from different angles, and the most obvious one is not always the best one. Be a little explorer - look for interesting foregrounds in nature, and you can add personality to the image and create something really unique. To take a photo that is worth keeping as a keepsake, you need to put in some effort.

Be aware of changing environments

Shooting landscape objects in the most suitable or, conversely, rare lighting is a real professional balancing act. First of all, you need to choose the time of day. Ideal, as a rule, is the light in the early morning or late evening, when it is soft, colorful (the so-called golden hours). The trouble is that almost all photographers know about it - how can you surpass them? The way out is to call on the help of the weather. You can capture something very special at the moment of the onset of a storm front, with beautiful clouds in the sky, or even when a rainbow appears. By choosing the right moment, you will get a unique shot.

Knowledge of all the above nuances determines the level of professionalism and involvement of a landscape photographer in the process. The more effort you put in, the greater the reward will be. You can spend a lot of time waiting for the right moment, but once you get a truly perfect shot, you will realize that the wait was not in vain. The best confirmation of audience recognition is to hear people say "I was there, but I couldn't shoot like that."

And the last thing: if you want to achieve good results not only in the open air, but also during post-processing, you should pay attention to modern editing tools.

The famous American photographer Ansel Adams, who became famous all over the world for his black and white landscape shots, once said: “Landscape photography is the main test for the photographer and often his main disappointment.” And this, perhaps, is the truth. How often we, noticing a beautiful view, believe that it is enough just to start on the shutter button, capture what we see - and you will get a masterpiece. However, a masterpiece most often does not work out, because in a landscape photographer it is not enough to be just a mirror for nature, he must learn to express himself through the landscape.

Photographer Declan O'Neil shared his 10 secrets to creating expressive landscape photos.

1. What can you say about the landscape through photography?

It takes time to read and understand the landscape. You just have to stand and watch how the light changes contours and shapes. As the sun moves, forests and rivers are illuminated every minute in a completely new way and sometimes completely transformed. Light creates its own mood and emotion in the landscape. The landscape can be compared to a huge canvas on which light paints its complex and amazing picture.

In this case, photography is about capturing how light transforms a landscape. Therefore, the decision about what to photograph and what composition to build should be dictated by the question: “Does this photograph say something about light and landscape?” This simple question helps to reject a lot of losing and empty compositions and choose the one that is perfect.

2. Learn to get up early!

If I have a choice between sunrise and sunset, I always choose sunrise. I have nothing against sunset photos, but I find it difficult to add something new and original to the thousands of sunset shots that I have already seen. Dawn light, on the contrary, always brings surprises! It is very difficult to predict what exactly you will receive while you stand and wait in the predawn darkness.

It's kind of like taking pictures of wild animals - because you can get the shot you've always dreamed of, or get none at all. Dawn light can be completely different - from smoky pink to warm yellow.

Keep an eye on the weather forecasts - because if you happen to live in areas with cold nights and clear skies, you can sometimes catch amazing cloud and haze effects that are sure to clear by the time the rest of the world wakes up.

3. Imperfection is good.

One of the main challenges of landscape photography is that you have to deal with a huge dynamic range. This makes it very difficult to control the balance of light in the frame. ND filters sometimes help, but are often inconvenient or inappropriate for a particular place and time. Sometimes you have to completely abandon shooting due to too large a dynamic range.

You can, of course, use HDR technologies, but they most often give themselves away and can violate the integrity and honesty of the image. Many images can be light balanced when processed on a computer. However, sometimes photography only benefits from not being able to capture the full dynamic range. Most likely, such a photo will not be accepted for participation in various competitions, and for sure there will be sections in it from which it will be impossible to isolate at least some details. Perhaps, technically, the photo will turn out to be very poor, but a black silhouette on a light background very often unimaginably attracts attention to itself and seems to call for a closer look. Sometimes you have to give up the opportunity to capture a perfectly lit shot in order to draw attention to the potential of the subject itself.

4. Look back!

It's so easy to see the winning shot and forget to look around. Watching a sunset or sunrise, people usually point their lenses towards the sun and again take thousands of pictures, millions of which they have already seen from their friends or on the Internet. However, often it is enough just to look back to see something completely new and missed by everyone! After all, instead of photographing the rising or setting sun, you can capture what it illuminates at that moment.

The obvious shot is not always the best. Learn to look carefully.

5. Use planning software.

There are many programs that can help you when shooting outdoors. Perhaps one of the more useful ones is The Photographers Ephemeris. In short, it allows you to select any location on the planet - and shows you where the sun will be on any given day and at any particular time. In this way, you can choose the best day and time to shoot in a certain location and choose a specific shooting point with the most advantageous lighting. If you're serious about landscape photography, this is the tool you need.

Another tool that can help you a lot is a terrain map. A good map will help you predict what the landscape will look like and give you some idea of ​​what will be in your field of vision. The ability to understand these detailed topographic maps will help you save a lot of time and not travel around the area in search of that very - perfect shooting point!

6. Equipment is not that important.

The best equipment doesn't guarantee you the best pictures, just as the best pen won't automatically let you write that great novel you've always dreamed of. The equipment is just a device that allows you to convey to others what is in your head. If you have your own opinion and if you have something to say (see point 1) - then you can use anything from a smartphone to Nikon D800.

Remember that it is you who is composing your future shot, and the camera is just capturing it. More megapixels or a faster lens will never help you make a composition more expressive and full.

7. Don't try to "paint" the landscape with your camera.

On the Internet, photos that have undergone the strongest post-processing or created using ND filters that make water look like smooth silk have become more and more fashionable lately. Why not let nature express itself naturally? Believe me, she knows how to do it perfectly and without the use of all sorts of filters. The same goes for post-processing. If used sparingly, it helps to emphasize the natural beauty of nature, if overused - we are already starting to change the landscape and paint it completely different from what it really was.

Real photographs always leave their mark on our consciousness and subconsciousness. This is why heavily photoshopped, idealized images of landscapes often leave us cold. They tell a fictional, not a real story. We immediately notice the false orange sky and the oversaturated color of the grass. Photos can be metaphors, but they should be metaphors that appear in the mind of the viewer, not in the imagination of the photographer.

If you still want to convey your vision of how the landscape looked - perhaps you should try your hand at drawing?

8. Bad weather is good weather.

Clouds and rain are not the most inspiring weather conditions, but they bring with them opportunities much more interesting than any cloudless day. It takes patience and optimism to walk with a camera in the rain all day, but more often than not, you will be rewarded. If you look around carefully, you will certainly find amazing shots created by clouds and rain!

Good day. Today I'm going to talk a little about my approach to landscape photography.

The landscape for me is probably the most favorite and pleasant type of shooting, because, while photographing, I at the same time relax my soul, enjoying the beauty that nature has created. Photographing nature is an incredible pleasure - climbing into its quiet corners, you get such a boost of energy and vigor, which then lasts for a long time. The wind in the face, the sun on the lips, the legs shaking from fatigue in the evening and the heart filled with love for everything around - what could be better?

For beginners, as a rule, it seems that there is nothing easier than shooting a landscape. I remember one of the beginner amateur photographers on the Photomonster forum wrote that there is nothing difficult in shooting landscapes, the only difficulty is to get to the place of shooting. At first glance, yes: here is a pond, here is a forest, here is a road, here is the sky with clouds floating on it - just take the camera and shoot. But, basically, after the first such shooting, it becomes clear that it is not so easy to find an interesting plot, it is difficult to see the unusual in the ordinary, even to compose the frame correctly, to make the right accent is not always possible for a beginner. After all, it is very important for a landscape painter not only to capture the beauty of some picturesque corner, but to be able to show the mood of nature itself, its state, the harmony of color and light - all together this is the key to the success of landscape photography.

Landscape photography equipment

So, I'll start with what is necessary for shooting landscapes in terms of equipment and what I mainly use. In principle, you can shoot on any device, but, of course, full-length cameras in this regard provide more creative opportunities when shooting. I usually shoot nature Nikon D800 E. Landscape painters use different lenses, up to long-focus ones - the main thing here is to know the goals and objectives that are set. But still, landscapes are more often shot with wide-angle optics - it is this lens that allows you to capture the breadth and expanse of the nature being photographed, and it is this lens that gives the sharpness that is so necessary for such shooting throughout the frame.

Initially, I shot landscapes with a lens Nikon AF-S 24-70mm f/2.8G ED. A wonderful lens, I can’t say anything bad about it - many of my shots were taken with it. For example, here are these:

Gradually, I began to miss the angle of this zoom lens, and was purchased Nikon AF-S 14-24mm f/2.8G ED. Now I mainly use it when shooting landscapes - a super-sharp wide-angle lens is exactly what a landscape painter needs. Here are some examples shot with this lens:

Now let's talk a little about tripods. A tripod is an indispensable part of a landscape photographer's equipment, it gives much more control over shutter speed and is especially important when shooting poorly lit scenes such as sunrise and sunset. I have two tripods in my arsenal and, as a rule, I take both of them on trips (of course, if these trips are by car). One tripod is heavy and reliable - Manfrotto 055XPRO3. I use my head with it Manfrotto 410 Junior- very convenient compact 3-axis tripod head, which has a mechanism for precise positioning in three directions; pan, front and side tilt. I usually use this tripod if shooting takes place close to the car, for long distances it becomes too heavy a burden. Therefore, I have another tripod for hiking, it is lighter, but quite reliable and has never let me down. This is about Fotopro X5IW+52Q. What else I like about this tripod is that it easily turns into a monopod and becomes my indispensable assistant when shooting sports.

It is highly desirable to have a cable release or remote control to avoid camera movement when the shutter button is pressed and to prevent blur (especially at slow shutter speeds).

About filters. What, in my opinion, is necessary to have when leaving for a landscape shoot. First of all, of course, it is a protective filter - without it, nowhere. It will protect the lens from dust, moisture, and possibly save the lens if it falls (though this has never happened to me - I take my equipment very carefully, but no one is safe from this). Since I often shoot in the mountains, I use multi-coated UV filters as a protective filter, which not only protect lenses from mechanical and other influences, but also help to retain “soft ultraviolet”, and in the mountains they help fight bluish haze and a decrease in contrast.

The second filter that I put in my backpack is a polarizing one. It helps well to fight glare on the water, saturates the photo with a range of colors. I used to use it very actively to darken the sky, but recently I use it much less often - I increasingly resort to shooting with exposure bracketing and, if necessary, take the sky from a darker frame.

For a wide-angle lens 14-24 I use all the same filters, but through this mounting system:

I used to love experimenting with Cokin filters (when I shot only with a 24-70 lens). Here is an example using the orange gradient filter:

I gradually moved away from using Cokin filters - I stopped liking the result, the filters, together with the entire attachment system, take up quite a lot of space in the backpack, and “winding up” the right colors is not a problem during post-processing.

Of course, a landscape painter also needs ND filters with different stops (ideally, you probably need to have one variable density ND filter - it will allow you to replace a whole set of ND filters of various densities and will not take up much space). An ND filter will help limit the amount of light when you need to use the widest aperture to reduce the depth of field. Most often, such filters are used to lengthen shutter speeds when shooting water - to obtain the effect of "milk rivers".

Now about the shooting itself. More often than not, landscape photographers shoot with the camera held horizontally, because it is in this position that we can create shots with wide and far-reaching landscapes. However, a horizontal landscape shot is not always a prerequisite for getting an interesting shot. If the scene you see requires vertical shooting, then all the accepted rules are thrown back. For example, if your subject is a lone tree, rock, or other tall object, you might want to consider vertical framing. I don't often take vertical shots, but sometimes it happens, like in these shots:

Landscape composition is the foundation of photography, and this is usually where the difficulty comes in. When shooting landscapes and creating composition, I took a few simple rules for myself.

1. The frame must be harmoniously filled, i.e. it should not be overloaded with unnecessary details. Even when framing at the shooting location, you should try to cut off all unnecessary elements. The edges of the picture should not outweigh each other - the composition should be balanced.
2. No matter how wonderful the composition is, but the light when shooting is one of the most important conditions for obtaining beautiful shots. In cloudy weather, you can rarely get interesting pictures, so you often just have to wait for good lighting. To get beautiful landscape photos, it is necessary that the main objects in the picture are highlighted by lighting - highlighted. And, of course, the best time to shoot landscapes is in the morning and evening, when the sun is not in a high position - it is at this time that it casts side shadows that create the impression of volume and depth.
3. You need to compose the frame, usually using the “rule of thirds”. Most amateur photographers, of course, know it: we shoot in proportions of 1/3 earth and 2/3 sky, or, conversely, 2/3 earth and 1/3 sky.
4. In order for the landscape to “play”, an interesting foreground is needed - a “stroke”, an accent is needed. Such an accent can be a stone, tree, flower, any snag, etc. It is the presence of the foreground that allows you to more realistically convey space in the landscape being shot and get the so-called “presence effect”.
5. We apply the rule of the "golden section" for accented objects - we place them exactly at the intersection points. Blindly, mindlessly obeying this rule, as well as all others, is not worth it - you should always approach the shooting of each landscape individually, thoughtfully.
6. A landscape shot should be multifaceted in composition, i.e. it must have a foreground, middle ground, and background. In this case, the focus must be necessarily in the foreground.
7. Use the play of light and shadows - this is what often gives the photo a "zest", originality.

Of course, all the rules that I adhere to are not a dogma or an indisputable truth, but you need to know them and in most cases they help when shooting landscapes. But the main assistant for the landscape painter, of course, will be his own perception of the picture he sees, his inner sense of building a composition. The composition must be learned to "see" - if a person has at least a little artistic taste, this can be gradually learned.

Most landscape photographers like to shoot nature during golden hours. at dawn and dusk. Photos taken during these periods of time take on an absolutely magical look - the sun is close to the horizon, so the lighting is soft, diffused, everything around is filled with amazing color shades from golden yellow to crimson red. True, it is not always possible to “catch” the beautiful colors of sunrise and sunset, therefore, if possible, it is worth coming to the place chosen for shooting more than once. For example, not the first time I managed to capture the beauty of the dawn over Birdew - I left three times at 3.00 am (the road is not close), but in the end I was lucky to see and shoot a beautiful sunrise:

Interesting sunrise shots can be obtained by shooting near water bodies. In the dawn hours, as a rule, there is no wind, the water surface is completely calm, and the unusually soft colors of dawn can create magic and make even the most nondescript pond or lake mysterious. Here is such a golden dawn was filmed on one of the lakes of the Altai Mountains:

Sunsets are no less interesting to shoot than sunrises. The main advantage of shooting is that you don’t have to get up in the middle of the night and rush headlong, but you can safely get to the right place during the day and slowly prepare for the sunset. The sunset glow sometimes simply amazes with its variety and splendor of colors. Twilight creates absolutely magical pictures, enveloping the sky with unusually beautiful lighting in color and tone, therefore they are able to give landscapes emotionality and expressiveness. By the way, the most interesting and beautiful sunsets happen during weather changes, for example, a blood-red or purple sunset necessarily precedes the windy weather the next day. I managed to shoot such a sunset on Lake Teletskoye, this sunset shooting was not planned, accidental (the wayward spirit of Lake Teletskoye made us wait a long time for the moment when it was possible to go on a small boat on the way back to our parking lot), but for me it’s just " played into the hands":

Sunset colors are so diverse and uniquely beautiful that they can work wonders, turning absolutely nondescript daytime landscapes into interesting paintings. How here, for example, a completely unremarkable place near the river in the evening became interesting precisely because of the sunset light:

What is the best time of year to shoot landscapes? Yes, all year round. Of course, in warm weather it is much easier and more pleasant to do this (especially in Siberia, where I live), and good lighting in summer happens much more often than in winter, and the colors are more saturated and diverse, but in the cold season you can also get beautiful landscape shots - you just have to wait for the weather to be favorable for shooting. And someone will ask what favorable weather means in winter, and I will answer - when the temperature on the thermometer drops and the lower the better. In this regard, I’m probably crazy, but when weather forecasters warn of a severe cold snap, and most of the people, wrapped in warm blankets, drink hot tea with lemon at home, I collect my equipment and rush thousands of kilometers so that in these frosty days have time to shoot unusually beautiful winter scenes. Here, for example, this landscape (on the street minus 30 °):

I will dwell a little on the technical aspects of landscape photography. I always shoot nature in manual mode (M). For the most part, landscape shots require a large depth of field, so to achieve greater depth of field, the aperture should be covered. I usually use f / 8-f / 11 in fairly good lighting, I clamp it harder when shooting sunrises, sunsets, when I shoot the sun in backlight so that “rays” appear. If the task is to blur the background and at the same time highlight the object being shot, then the aperture must, of course, be slightly opened. Exposure will depend on many factors and tasks set during the shooting. If the shooting takes place in quiet, calm weather, the shutter speed is not so important - we set the desired aperture and, guided by the exposure meter indicator on the camera, set the desired shutter speed. If it’s windy outside, then it’s better to shoot at shorter shutter speeds in order to “freeze” the picture, so to speak, without giving the breeze the opportunity to “smear” leaves, grass, etc. in the picture. Light sensitivity (ISO) is usually set low to avoid digital noise. Many people recommend using a value of 100 when shooting landscapes. But lately I have been increasingly using slightly higher values ​​(200-400), which, in my opinion, gives a better study of the background of the photo. But I still prefer to shoot sunsets and sunrises at ISO 100. Another thing that is definitely important is to turn on the indicator of overexposed areas, the so-called “flare” mode, and, of course, shooting in RAW (I don’t even think about this worth talking about).

In conclusion, I want to say that shooting nature is like getting into another world - a world of amazing, unique beauty, filled with extraordinary colors that the world around us is so rich in. The main thing is to be able to "see" this beauty. If a beautiful view of nature delights you, while your soul sings, and your heart is filled with love and bursts out of your chest, then this is the first step to success in obtaining beautiful pictures. I wish you all interesting stories and successful shots!

Landscape- This is one of the most popular and widespread genres in photography. Sooner or later, all the masters of their craft pass through the passion for landscape photography. And there are reasons for this: when shooting a landscape or panorama, you can get gorgeous results even without the use of expensive equipment and a specially equipped workshop or studio with special lighting. All that is required to create a masterpiece is a camera and, preferably, a tripod, as well as certain professional skills and a fair amount of patience. It should be noted that very often the final result depends not only and not so much on the camera, but on the skill of the photographer. Of course, any photography is, first of all, a creative process, but there are a number of rules, the observance of which will allow you to avoid common mistakes made by novice photographers.

Lighting

The object of attention of the landscape photographer, first of all, is nature. Of course, the landscape can be urban, and rural, and sea; it can be panorama or macro photography; buildings, animals and even people can be present in the pictures, however, the main difference here is the absence of artificial studio lighting. Landscape photography is done in natural conditions. This means that the issue of illumination should be approached very seriously, since the final result often depends on the light, or rather on the play of light and shadows. The most favorable for shooting landscapes are morning and evening, when the sun is low in relation to the horizon. It is at this time that the most contrasting images are obtained with a rich and varied play of light and shadows. As a rule, at noon, such results cannot be achieved due to the blinding sun and the almost complete absence of shadows - the pictures come out bright, but lifeless and “ flat". Not the most successful time of day is also late evening, after sunset. To shoot at dusk, you need a powerful device with a good lens and a noise reduction system, as well as, preferably, an external flash. Otherwise, the pictures will be blurry, grainy, with a lot of digital noise. It is equally important to choose a suitable position in relation to the light source, in particular the sun. It is not recommended to shoot against the sun, as you risk getting completely overexposed photos. Ideally, the light source should be behind the photographer.

Shot composition

An equally important condition for obtaining a truly successful landscape is the composition, that is, what gets into the frame and how the objects in the frame are located in relation to each other. It is not enough just to choose a picturesque area - often beautiful landscapes in the pictures seem banal, and, on the contrary, in the most ordinary environment you can create a real masterpiece. To do this, you need to understand what exactly is the main subject of the picture, why you are shooting it, and due to which the photo can become more expressive. It is necessary to remember some golden rules of the photographer:

. Rule of thirds. When building a picture, try to mentally divide the frame into three equal parts horizontally. If you want to draw attention to the landscape, then it should take up two-thirds of the picture. Conversely, if it is necessary to emphasize the beauty of the sky, the horizon line should run along the lower horizontal line.

. golden section rule. In the same way, mentally divide the picture into three parts horizontally and three parts vertically. The most significant objects should be located at the intersections of these virtual lines. It is best if the main object is one, for example, a tree, a house, a stone or a flower. ()

. Diagonal rule. Objects such as a road, river, path are best placed diagonally across the frame. The picture will look more lively and dynamic.

And finally, one important nuance for a professional landscape photographer is the mandatory use of a tripod. Without this accessory, it will be very difficult to create a truly professional picture, since ideal lighting conditions are rare in nature, which means that even a slight hand shake can provoke blurry and fuzzy pictures.
Of course, all these rules are just the basis of your creativity. However, their application in practice will greatly facilitate the process of mastering the technique of landscape photography.

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