dcw03 08 landscapes

8/6/2019 DCW03 08 Landscapes

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The long days of summer are ideal for exploring the many different types oflandscape, says Steve Bavister

COVER FEATURE

YOUR GUIDE STEVEBAVISTER

Steve Bavister is an experienced photographic journalist and freelance photographer. He iseditor of The Photographer, a leading magazine for professional photographers, and author of

ten books on photography including Digital Photography and Take Better Family Photos

www.dcmag.co.uk/SteveBavister

LANDSCAPES

PORTFOLIOSTEVEBAVISTER

heres something special about landscape

photography. While many people enjoy shooting

portraits, sport, architecture and still-life, theres

something infinitely exciting about scenic work. Maybe itsbecause a landscape can change dramatically through the

seasons, or even throughout the day. Or perhaps its the

chance to get out among the elements and get a fantastic

landscape print for your wall. Either way, summer is a great

time for landscape photography the long days give you

more time to travel and explore.

Different landscapes demand different techniques,

which is why most photographers never get bored of this

kind of work. When we talk about scenic photography,

the archetypal tourist spots spring to mind Dartmoor, the

Lake District, Snowdonia, the Yorkshire Moors, and huge

stretches of Scotland.

Gaining confidenceIts a good idea to start with places like these because itstacks the odds in your favour and means youll be inspired

to try more challenging locations. In the same way that its

easier to get a fantastic portrait of someone photogenic,

coming home with some top images will give you the

confidence to do more landscape work . Youll probably have

to devote a weekend at least to these trips (unless you live

near a natural beauty spot) so, for most people, its not

practical to do regularly. Thankfully, there is bound to be some

great material closer to home

The lie of the landT

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WHY WE CHOSETHIS PICTURE

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Beyond the shore, thingsbrighten up, so take a fewbracketed shots to ensureyou get the exposure right

The characterful rocks givea great sense of depth tothe image. Use a wide-angle lens for best effect

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COVER FEATURE LANDSCAPES

WoodlandOne option open to everybody even in urban areas is

small pockets of woodland, which can provide somefascinating landscape images. There are bluebells in

spring, poppies in summer, fungi in autumn and bare

branches in winter, which means theres something

worth photographing throughout the year.

In dense woodland, light levels can be low, so you

may need to increase your ISO setting or take a tripod.

Full-powered bursts of flash tend to look harsh and

unnatural, but you may find it useful to switch to fill-flash

to cope with the high-contrast range, especially where a

shaft of light breaks through or the sky can be seen

through a canopy of leaves. Wide-angle settings are

particularly valuable in woodland, because they help to

open out the perspective.

Arable landscapesArable landscapes, where crops are being grown in

fields, are relatively accessible (unless you live

right in the heart of a big city). These provide an

interesting range of textures and colours, especially

now that old friends such as barley and wheat have

been joined by the vivid yellow of oil seed rape and

the purple-blue of linseed. If you can find an elevatedposition at a distance, its possible to show the

geometrical shapes and patterns created by things like

hedgerows, fences, banks, walls and dykes. If you

exclude the sky and choose a telephoto lens setting to

compress perspective youll be rewarded with an

interesting, abstract composition.

Coastal landscapesA completely different landscape is revealed where land

meets the sea. Youll find everything from undulating

dunes to volcanic rock and craggy cliff faces. Youll need

to take care to protect your camera from sea spray

and sand, both of which can play havoc with your

equipment. Down on the beach you can take wide-

angle shots with sand in the foreground and water in

the distance experiment with the position of the

horizon to see what works best. Nothing beats sun rising

or setting over water; and all you have to do is find a

location that faces east or west and be there at the right

time of day

Water, water everywhereIf the tides up or the winds strong you can playaround with your shutter speeds when photographing

surf breaking over rocks: fast speeds freeze the

action; slow speeds transform the sea into an

atmospheric froth. You have the same choice wherever

theres moving water, from the trickle of a stream to the

torrent of a waterfall.

In fact, whether you like to pack a rucksack and

head off for a riverside ramble or prefer to sit by the

edge of a lake until the light is right, youre bound to

be rewarded with some fantastic images anywhere

There are bluebells in spring, poppiesin summer, fungi in autumn and barebranches in winter


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Trees are extremely versatile elements in landscape work. Photographed from a distance

they add scale and structure, and provide a focal point. Grouped together in a copse orwood, they offer a wide range of compositional options with those in the foreground

pin-sharp and those behind out of focus. A telephoto lens setting compresses the

perspective and makes trees that are some distance apart look like they are close

together. Single trees look fantastic silhouetted again a sunset or stormy sky, especially

when the branches are bare, stark and graphic. With tall trees, using a wide-angle lens

and tipping the camera back will make them appear to go off into the distance. Many

trees have blossom or fruit, which contrasts wonderfully against a deep, blue sky and

the same is true for leaves that are backlit. Many trees have ornamental bark, and going

in close will enable you to capture some rich, detailed texture shots.

THE MAGIC OF TREES2

theres water. Because its sometimes transparent and

sometimes reflects, water possesses a myriad of subtle

moods that can take a lifetime to capture while just a

slight breeze will send any reflected image shimmering

into abstraction.

Extreme landscapesIf youre the adventurous type with a passion for

extreme sports, then youve got great source material at

your fingertips. Youll be able to capture some rare

landscape shots and share the experience with friends

and family later on. High altitudes mean that you can

capture mist drifting across mountain peaks. If youre

pot-holing, flash will be pretty much essential, and you

may need to crank up the ISO setting.

The intimate landscapeSometimes the sense of a place is better conveyed bymeans of a more intimate composition a close-up

rather than the whole of the scene. A collection of shells

or stones, perhaps with water cascading through

them, is often better than including the beach in its

entirety. A small clump of wild flowers is more evocative

than the whole of a meadow. An abstract texture or

pattern in which its not obvious at first glance what the

subject is, will be more intriguing to viewers than a

simple record shot.

Digital cameras are perfect for this kind of approach

because their close-focusing capabilities enable you to fillthe frame with fascinating details. The secret of success

lies in thinking small in seeing beyond the obvious

and selecting just a tiny section of the scene. Pictures of

this kind are best shot under flat, shadowless lighting,

which reveals the maximum amount of detail with

subtle tonality cloudy days are best.

The power of lightNo matter what kind of landscape you like to

photograph, its a good idea to do some research before

you head out. While you can just turn up at a spot thats

known to be photogenic and start shooting, youre more

likely to get good results if youve spent a few minutes

studying maps and guides ahead of time that way

youll know where the best vantage points can be found

and when the suns coming from the right direction.This is important because lighting is absolutely crucial

to success. Its one of the contradictions of landscape

photography that fantastically photogenic scenes can

look totally uninspiring when the light is flat, while a

vista you wouldnt look at twice can be brought to life by

gorgeous light.

Many factors affect the way the scene is illuminated,

including the season, time of day, weather conditions

and location. As a rule of thumb, its best to shoot

landscapes on a bright day before 10am and after

3pm. At these times the sun is low in the sky,

throwing long, moody shadows, and the light is warmand attractive.

The middle of the day is best avoided because the

light tends to be harsh and neutral-to-cool in tone. While

overcast conditions can work well with certain subjects,

sunlight is usually necessary to inject sparkle. The main

exception is stormy conditions, which can add real drama

to a landscape.

Of course, you cant control the weather the secret

lies in being at your location when conditions are at their

best, and sometimes you have to be patient and wait for

the sun to break through.

Composition mattersAfter light, composition is arguably the most important

element in landscape photography, and what you

select from the vast panorama in front of you and

how you arrange it can make the difference between a

winner and an also-ran. At its simplest, composition

is about deciding which lens to use, whether to shoot

an upright or horizontal picture and where to place the

various elements. But the real challenge is how to retain

a sense of depth how to capture a three-dimensional

scene so that it works in the two-dimensional form of


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GOING THE EXTRA MILEIf you want to capture stunning landscapes youve

got to be prepared to wander off the beaten trackfrom time to time. For example, in the main

image above, wading right into the cornfield was

the only way to capture such a dramatic, looming

perspective. If youre planning something similar,

do remember to get permission beforehand.

Youve got to be flexible about when you

shoot, too. The best time to shoot this scene was

at the crack of dawn, when the warm light

bathed the entire cornfield in a beautiful, golden

glow. A warm-up filter was used to enhance the

effect further.

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In lowland areas such as The Fens, where its as flat as a pancake, producing dramatic

landscapes can take some doing because theres not a lot to work with. One

approach is to make a virtue out of a necessity, and switch your attention to the

enormous area of sky thats revealed through the lack of undulation. Instead

of having a supporting role in the picture, it becomes the star the whole pointof the picture, with just a little of the ground included to act as a reference point.

Obviously, a plain blue sky wont hold anyones interest for long, so youll need to

shoot on days when theres something more interesting going on. Fluffy clouds usually

work well, especially if you fit a polarising filter over the lens to increase saturation or

deepen the blue in the computer, making the white really stand out. Using a wide-angle

lens and tilting the camera back will exaggerate the perspective, making the clouds look

more dramatic. Heavy cloud cover doesnt work as well because there isnt enough

contrast. Sunrise and sunset can be effective, providing you can find something of interest

to create a silhouette.

THE SKY'S THE LIMIT2

a screen image or inkjet print. The secret lies in having

something in the foreground, otherwise everything

can look a long way off in the distance. You might be

able to frame the scene with an arch or overhanging

tree, or organise things so that theres a bush or rock in

the foreground.

In situations such as this, the wider the lens thebetter and here those people with digital SLRs will

have the advantage, because optics are available with a

wider angle of view. This is particularly true of full-frame

SLRs, such as the Canon EOS1DS and Kodak Pro 14n,

though these do require an extremely deep pocket or an

obliging bank manager. Telephoto lenses are great for

picking out details in the distance or compressing

perspective for creative effect.

No matter which lenses you use, its important to

have a focal point something that draws the eye in

like a tree or a building.

Using depth of fieldIts useful to have a working understanding of depth of

field (one of photographys more tricky concepts)

and be able to put its principles into practice. As

youll have noticed, the way a landscape appears in

a photograph can be very different from how it

looked to you when you took the picture. When you castyour eye over a scene, everything in it seems more or

less equally sharp, but sometimes in the finished shot

only part of the subject appears acceptably sharp. This

zone of sharpness is called the depth of field, and it

extends in front of, and behind, the point on which the

lens is focused.

The size of this zone is determined by three main

factors: the aperture setting; the lens used; and your

distance from the subject. Varying these elements

gives you almost complete control over the depth of

field in a picture.


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dcw03 08 landscapes

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