How to Take Beautiful Landscape Photos Using a Standard Point and Shoot Camera
Landscape photography is a great place to use creativity, and unique perspective, even if presented with a flat or unchallenging image. For example, you are on a road trip, you read the road sign that says “Scenic Overlook”; you pull in, get out the camera, hold it at eye height and take the picture. It is scenic; you shouldn’t have to compose the image, right? Wrong. Photographing landscapes and scenery should be a creative experience, even with a point and shoot camera. Look at the image, analyze it, look at it a different way, climb up on a picnic table or lay down in the grass, and experience the view through your own perspective, then capture that with your camera. A Few Technical Considerations Landscape photography does demand a few technical considerations and methods to keep constantly in mind. The first is to capture as much of a scene as possible in the landscape, so increase depth of field by decreasing aperture. This will affect lighting, so a photographer must take that into consideration by setting to a slower shutter speed, which leads to the next landscape suggestion: use a tripod. It is a good idea when taking landscape images to keep a tripod on hand as many images will require a slower shutter speed and the integrity of the image will only be maintained by a completely still camera, not held in the hand of a photographer who may shake and ruin the exposure. Find a Focal Point The next significant consideration in landscape photography is a focal point. That scenic overlook may be quite lovely to take-in, but photographically it may be a challenge as there is nothing for an eye to rest upon. Take this into consideration and find a point to capture within the context of the landscape, for example a farmhouse in the valley below, or a unique ridge feature in one of the hillsides, the point is to focus the eye into the image. This may be achieved also by finding a foreground as the focal point, this can be a field of flowers framing the bottom of the image, and the insertion of a foreground will always give a landscape image a tremendous amount of depth. Look for Unique Features in the Landscape or Sky A landscape photograph may also feature the sky as a focal point or dominant element, instead of a foreground. Flat, motionless or colorless skies may be enhanced by the use of a filter to bring out dramatic contrasts or tones that the image is missing. Weather is a great feature to photograph in the sky, heavy clouds or unique colors make for ideal photographic subjects. Many landscape photographers insist that the only times of day in which landscape images are appropriate for photography are the contrasting hours of sunset and sunrise. The spectrum and contrast is quite unique during these times of day, but a creative photographer can use all hours of the day to their advantage. Take a Different Perspective Finally, change the perspective. Lie down in the grass, climb on the roof of the car, and change the vantage point to an unexpected or unanticipated focus. The landscape may be unchangeable, but the way an artist views it is entirely up to the imagination and creativity with which their world is perceived. Article by Amy Renfrey
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