BoogschutterLandscape Photography: A Beginner's Guide with Essential Tips
Landscape photography is about taking great shots of the vast natural spaces in front of us and giving the viewer a sense of being there.
Capturing meaningful shots of our beautiful nature requires a strong sense of scale as well as an understanding of when to take advantage of the greatest light. We’ll cover all you need to know about landscape photography including what it is, what lenses and gear to acquire, rules for great composition, and more. We’ll also go through some professional advice on all the types of landscapes you can come across to achieve the best shots for the given scenery.
What Is Landscape Photography?
Landscape photography is the practice of photographing natural scenery such as rivers, lakes, oceans, hills and mountains, valleys, and forests. The goal is to capture the beauty and grandeur of the natural world through the lens of your camera in a way that makes the viewer feel they are there.
Landscape photographs often center on natural scenery but can include buildings, roads, and other human-made elements that are part of the larger view. In fact, urban scapes are considered a genre of landscape photography.
Composition is important in landscape photography, and many photographers employ the rule of thirds in which they mentally consider the photo frame divided into a grid of nine squares and place the key element of the image at one of the four intersecting lines around the center of the grid. Notice how this picture is composed so that the rock structure is off-center, adding visual interest and causing your eye to move across the image.
Popular times to capture landscape photos are the golden hour, the first and last hours of sunlight, the blue hour, the hour before sunrise, and the hour after sunset.
Landscape photography typically uses a narrower aperture to produce a deeper depth of field, so that details in the foreground to the background are sharp.
What are the Types of Landscape Photography?
Here are common landscape photography types or genres.
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Sunset landscape photography - During the sunset golden hour, you can capture landscapes at their most beautiful. Shooting at this time is popular because it provides warm, vibrant colors and dramatic lighting, which enhances the scene's natural beauty. You can expect stunning contrasts and shadows, making the environment appear more lively and three-dimensional.
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Mountain landscape photography - Mountain landscapes highlight the majestic height and bold terrain of mountain ranges like the Rockies and the softer, glade-covered slopes of ranges like the Smoky Mountains, both showcasing their rich beauty. The use of wide-angle lenses is commonly used to capture the vastness of the scene, while the changing light throughout the day can highlight different aspects of the landscape.
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Forest landscape photography - Forests are considered one of the favorites for photographers, enabling them to capture the dense, lush environments, with a focus on the interplay of light and shadow among the trees. There are countless options for imaginative compositions due to the foliage's diverse textures and colors.
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Desert landscape photography - Desert photography focuses on the harsh, arid beauty of the landscapes it provides, often focusing on sand dunes, rock formations, and sparse vegetation. The harsh light and unique textures found in the deserts often create striking and dramatic images.
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Beach landscape photography - Beach photographs create a calming effect due to the peaceful elements of coastal regions like the crashing waves to quiet shorelines, dunes and grassy knolls. The interplay of water, sand, elevation and sky offers a variety of composition opportunities, especially around sunrise and sunset.
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City (urban) landscape photography - Urban landscape photography focuses on capturing the architectural beauty and vibrant energy of cities. Skyscrapers, streets, lights, vehicles, and urban parks create visually interesting and eclectic cityscapes.
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Night landscape photography - This type of photography captures landscapes under the night sky, often featuring stars, the moon, and other celestial objects and phenomena. A popular technique used is the long exposure which can produce eternal and intriguing photographs by revealing elements that are invisible to the human eye.
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Winter landscape photography - Winter photography focuses on the beauty of snowy and icy landscapes, emphasizing the stark contrast and serene atmosphere of winter scenes. Snow-covered trees, frozen lakes, and frosty details create a unique and tranquil aesthetic that no other landscape exudes.
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Black and white landscape photography - Black and white photography focuses on emphasizing the textures, contrasts, and shapes found in a scene by eliminating the distracting effects of color. This approach can emphasize the composition and light in the photos while giving them a timeless, dramatic vibe.
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Abstract landscape photography - This is a unique type of photography because it promotes originality and a different perspective on natural scenes. This is accomplished by focusing on the patterns, shapes, and colors found in a landscape.
What Kinds of Lenses are Needed for Landscape Photography?
The best lenses for landscape photography are wide prime lenses, wide-angle zoom lenses, and mid-range zoom lenses. Each gives you unique capabilities to capture an expansive landscape.
Wide prime lenses: A wide-angle lens (35mm or less) or ultrawide lens, like a 14mm or 16mm prime lens, gives you the ability to capture wide horizons for example when shooting in the desert, toward the mountains or ocean, or capturing a city from a distant hill. Their wider maximum aperture than wide angle zoom lenses gives you increased capacity to shoot in low-light and golden hour times.
Wide-angle zoom lenses: Good choices are 16-35mm or 24-70mm zoom lenses. They are versatile in that you can pull back to extend the boundaries of the landscape, delivering a sense of its vastness. Or you can move in for shots of an interesting section or feature within the landscape.
Mid-range zoom lenses: A 70-200mm zoom lens offers excellent depth of field for getting detail in a deep landscape and you want sharp focus from the foreground to the background.
Why is a Tripod Important for Landscape Photography?
Tripods are responsible for stability which in turn will enable photographers more freedom with exposure settings.
A tripod enables you to take higher-quality shots at lower ISO settings. They’re also excellent in preventing camera shake, allowing the use of slower shutter speed without the fear of getting blurry shots. Slower shutter speeds are required when wanting to achieve a greater depth of field. Later on, we’ll cover specifics about camera settings. However, you should be aware that tripods give you far more options when it comes to settings.
When to Use ND Filters or Polarizing Filters for Landscape Photography
Neutral density filters, or ND filters, are crucial for controlling light in landscape photography because they let you use longer exposure times without overexposing the image. These filters are perfect for creating smooth, flowing water effects in rivers, waterfalls, and oceans by extending the shutter speed.
Polarizing filters improve colors, raise contrast, and lessen glare and reflections. They are extremely effective at reducing reflections on water surfaces, intensifying the blue of the sky, and deepening the blue of the sky. These filters help produce more vivid and eye-catching photos.
What Are Common Composition Rules and Techniques for Landscape Photography?
Here are landscape photography rules and techniques that will take your landscape photos from good to great.
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The Rule of Thirds: The rule of thirds involves imagining your frame divided into a 3x3 grid and placing key elements along the lines or at the intersections rather than dead in the center of the frame. Doing this creates an engaging composition that encourages the viewer to look side to side and/or up and down to take in the whole scene.
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Make use of “leading lines”: When available in the shot, capture natural lines like rivers or human-made lines like roads or train tracks to direct the viewer’s attention across or through the image. This is used to add depth and directs attention to the focal point.
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Include foreground: To make the landscape even more interesting try adding foreground features that introduce a greater sense of dimension into the scene.
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Frame the shot with natural or manmade elements: Tree branches and canopies, cave openings, arches, windows and doorways all offer interesting opportunities to frame a shot when composing it.
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Look for symmetry and patterns: Rippling waves, rows or crops, wind-produced ridges in sand and reflections of a hillside in a lake are the kinds or elements that generate beautiful compositions. Depth and layering with pieces in the front, middle ground, and backdrop can provide a feeling of scale and immersion. Shooting at a specific time of day can also help you achieve a specific look of the landscape, capturing its beauty at the right time, known as the golden hour technique.
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Take advantage of golden hour and blue hour lighting: These hours just before and just after sunrise and sunset produce some of the most beautiful natural lighting of the day.
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Achieve balance: Look for ways to include features on either side of the shot that provide visual balance, even if they aren’t the same size.
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Try various viewpoints: Shoot the same scene from a low vantage point, mid vantage point and high point. For example, capture white-capped waves from the beach and from various elevations on a dune overlooking the water.
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Include contrast: Juxtapose dissimilar elements like sunlight and shadow, smooth sand and choppy water, and firelight against a dark sky.
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Layering the shot: Depth and layering with pieces in the front, middle ground, and backdrop can provide a feeling of scale and immersion.
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Work with different aspect ratios: a wide 16:9 panoramic ratio captures breadth, while a classic 3:2 ratio delivers balance. Many DSLR and mirrorless cameras have aspect ratio settings with common options being 3:2, 4:3, 16:9, and 1:1.
Where to Focus in Landscape Photography?
Where to focus in landscape photography depends on what you want to capture and how you want to compose the shot.
In general, it's recommended to focus roughly one-third of the way into the frame, what some call the midground of the view. This ensures that both foreground and background details are in focus, giving the shot excellent balance and depth.
This is similar to hyperfocal distance, which is the distance at which to focus to produce the greatest depth of field, delivering both foreground and background elements in sharp focus. While calculating hyperfocal distance is technical, many landscape photographers take the time to do it.
The formula is:
H=f2/NxC
H is the hyperfocal distance. F is the focal length of the lens. N is the aperture or f-number. And C is the circle of confusion for your camera’s sensor. Hyperfocal distance calculators and smartphone apps are available to help.
For scenes with prominent foreground elements, you may need to alter the focus point slightly to ensure that they are clear and precise. Apertures of f/8 to f16 increase the depth of field, which helps to keep more of the picture in focus. Using manual focus can also help. Ultimately, it's best to focus on the elements that you want the viewers to see first when looking at your shoots.
What Are General Camera Settings Rules for Landscape Photography?
These general rules for camera settings for landscape photography are ideal starting points. As you develop your skills, you’ll learn to use and adapt them to produce the images you desire.
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Aperture: Use a smaller aperture or f/stop setting to produce greater depth of field, which is an essential component of most landscape shots. Common f-numbers for landscape photography are f/8 and f/16, though you might want to explore smaller settings like f/22, but beware of diffraction at that setting and smaller.
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Shutter speed: Use common sense and established rules for shutter speed. Use a fast speed to freeze moving objects, or slow it down to allow for artistic blur. Low-light conditions also require a slower shutter speed - and possibly a tripod to prevent shake and noise.
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ISO: Shoot in a low ISO of 100 or 200 when there is enough light to allow a proper exposure. Raise it in low-light conditions. In general, keep the exposure triangle of aperture, shutter speed and ISO in mind as you balance your settings.
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White balance: The Daylight setting is a good choice when there is plenty of natural light. You’ll have to adjust it when light conditions are variable or when you wish to capture a specific feel in your image.
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Use the one-third rule or hyperfocal length: If you calculate hyperfocal length, that’s the best setting for landscape photos. However, focusing one-third into the scene is an acceptable alternative that yields similar results.
What Are the Recommended Camera Settings for Sunset Landscape Photography?
Recommended settings for sunset landscape photography start with an aperture setting of f/8 to f/16 which will provide excellent breadth and depth of field detail sharpness. You’ll have to adjust shutter speed as the light rapidly changes during the sunset. Slow down the shutter speed once the sun has set in order to capture enough light during the sunset afterglow. Start with a 100 or 200 ISO, which you might have to raise as the sun sets. Experiment with various combinations, take lots of shots, and you’ll get the image look and quality you want.
Start with the Daylight or Cloudy white balance setting to best capture the rich color tones a sunset delivers. As you gain experience using white balance, you might want to set a custom white balance to creatively alter the results.
What Is the Golden Hour in Landscape Photography?
The golden hour in landscape photography is the time just after sunrise and just before sunset. At these times when the sun is low in the sky, it generates soft, warm, and diffused light. This time of the day the light enhances colors, adds a pleasing warmth to the scene, and creates long, gentle shadows that add depth and dimension to the images. The lighting conditions that the golden hour creates helps to eliminate sharp contrast and highlight delicate features in the environment, making it a great time to capture breathtaking and emotive images.
Why Do I Need to Post-Process Landscape Photos?
Post-processing landscape photos is necessary for refining the image to best depict the beauty of the landscape and emphasize the details that evoke the most connection with it.
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Improving color and contrast: Color accuracy can be improved through adjusting white balance and tone. Or you can create artistic highlights or deepen contrast between light and dark within the image to emphasize dimension and depth. Color saturation is often adjusted to make colors richer while maintaining an authentic look.
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Correcting exposure: Over- and under-exposed images can be fixed for proper exposure. Additionally, landscapes covering vast areas have a dynamic range that may include very bright and quite dark areas. Post-processing can be used to provide balance.
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Adjusting detail: Post-processing allows you to sharpen and enhance details in the landscape such as the texture of the natural elements or distinctions between elements like trees, flowers, animals, and within bodies of water.
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Fixing lens issues: Lens distortion, vignetting and color aberrations can all be repaired or at least improved in post-processing.
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Changing the composition: An image’s composition can be improved with cropping and straightening horizons or by changing the aspect ratio.
Additional post-processing is used to reduce noise, recover detail, and add creative effects to suit your style. Your post-processing capabilities are far greater when you shoot in RAW, which is what professional landscapers almost always do.
What are Common Types of Post-Processing for Landscape Photography?
The most common types of post-processing include adjusting exposure, contrast, and white balance.
These are primarily done to ensure the image accurately reflects the scene's lighting conditions. Other post-processing steps can be taken to enhance color vibrancy to your shots. Heightening colors through saturation adjustment can make the photo more vivid. Final touches can include sharpening and noise reduction to improve clarity and reduce graininess, and adding filters to create a compelling final result.
Can Adjusting White Balance in Post Processing Produce Creative Landscape Photos?
Yes, adjusting the white balance in post-processing is often used creatively. White balance affects how warm or cool your pictures look. For example, by adjusting the white balance, you may modify the overall mood and tone of an image, making a scene look warmer, with golden hues or colder with blue shades. White balance allows you to emphasize different aspects of the landscape, such as enhancing the warmth of a sunset or the coolness of a winter scene. Adjusting it properly can make your photos more expressive and artistic.
Who are Some Notable Landscape Photographers to Follow?
Here are well-known landscape photographers and where you can follow them.
Nigel Danson (@nigeldansonphotography) is a British landscape photographer who specializes in images with contrasting light and shadow, bringing out the beauty of scenes you might at first think to be dull.
Rachel Jones Ross (@rachel.jones.ross) captures beautiful landscapes that often incorporate the night sky.
Tobias Hägg (@tobias.hagg) is a Swedish photographer renowned for his aerial landscape photography that exhibits grand scale and beauty.
Peter Lik (@peterlik) is known for using techniques and filters to produce images with a surreal, captivating vibe.
Michael Shainblum (@shainblumphoto) is known for bold landscapes with high color saturation. His compositions are considered strong and inspiring.
Dustin LeFevre (@dustinlefevrephotography) is best known for his landscapes of the Southwest US featuring rich textures, patterns in nature and intriguing use of light and shadow.
Erin Babnik (@erinbabnik) is a master in composition and the use of color, taking the ordinary and making it special.
You might also enjoy following these landscape photographers on social media: Peter Iversen (@madspeteriversen), Daniel Kordan (@danielkordan), Mikko Lagerstedt (@mikkolagerstedt), and Mark Gray (@GrayMarker99).
What Are Popular Landscape Photography Hashtags?
Check out these hashtags to find beautiful shots posted on social media, gain tips on becoming a better landscape photographer and learn where you can find spots near you that are well worth checking out with your camera and favorite lenses. Or use them yourself to get your images in front of more sets of eyes.
General: #landscapephotography #landscapephotos #landscapepics #mylandscapephotographs #landscape #landscapelover #landscape_photography #landscape_lovers #landscapesilove #naturography #outdoorphotos #sky #clouds #mountains #forest #beach #landscapes #getoutside #earth #earthlovers #earthpix #earthporn #nature #naturephotography #naturelover #travelphotography #beautifuldestinations #canon #nikon #sony.
Specific and seasonal: #sunrise #sunset #goldenhour #waterfalls #rivers #lakes #oceans #desert #snow #mist #fog #winter # spring # summer #autumn.
Landscape photography hotspots: Let others know where you’ve been taking landscape shots like #yosemite #denali #lakemichigan #everglades #hawaii #iceland #grandcanyon #machupicchu
