How to take a charming scenery photo

Keep your depth of field open

This is the first law of landscape photography. When photographing landscapes, people usually try to make the scene in front of them as clear as possible. The simplest method is to use a thin aperture to deepen the depth of field and put more foreground backscenes into the lens clearly. Note that the smaller aperture will reduce the amount of light coming into the photosensitive kit or film. If you are not shooting on a sunny day, such as a cloudy day or a darker day, you will probably need to increase the ISO or take a longer exposure time (slower shutter speed, please refer to exposure education) to compensate for the loss of light. Of course, you can also try shooting landscapes with large aperture and shallow depth of field, sometimes with unexpected effects.

Use leg stand

As mentioned above, when shooting with a thin aperture, slow shutter speed is needed to compensate for the amount of light. Reduce the chance of hand shock (refer to the safety shutter). But how easy is it to make long exposures just by shooting in hand? So you need to use the tripod to stabilize the camera and reduce vibration during long exposures. In addition to the tripod, you can also use other camera add-ons, such as wired or wireless shutter controls, to reduce the amount of vibrations your hand makes when you press the shutter, ensuring that the picture is not "blurry." Another trick is to use the camera's timing function, so you can press the shutter button with your hand shaking, but after 10 seconds the phone has stabilized.

Look for focus

Every photo needs focus, and landscape photography is no exception. Without focus, the photo will become empty and boring, and the viewer's gaze will be hard to find. The focus of landscape photography can be varied, whether it is high buildings, characteristic architecture, huge trees, delicate flowers, odd rocks, or beautiful silhouettes. When you find the ideal thing to focus on, think about where you want to put it in the frame.

Consider prospects

"Foreground" is important to people and photos. Before you take a picture, think about what interesting things you can put in the foreground to catch your eye. A good perspective can lead the viewer into the world of the photo, creating rich layers and a sense of space for the photo.

Keep an eye on the sky

The sky is very important for landscape photography. Most landscape photography focuses on foreground or sky. If there is only one of the two, the photo will be boring. If you take a picture of a gray day, it is best not to highlight the sky, you can put it in the upper third of the golden section. The big premise, of course, is that you have to have a foreground to catch the audience's attention. If you encounter a beautiful sky, such as a magnificent sunset, rainbows, etc., you can highlight the sky and put the foreground one third below. In addition, the use of some equipment such as polarizer, or post-production, can enhance the sky color and contrast highlights.

Line

When photographing landscapes, the photographer should ask himself a question, how to lead the audience to appreciate the photographs? There are many methods, one of which is the prospect mentioned above. Another good method is to use lines. Lines can create a sense of space and enhance layers and depth. And no matter the combination of lines or the shape of lines themselves can be used as the focus of the photo.

Capture dynamics

When one thinks of landscape photography, one usually thinks of peaceful and harmonious static pictures, but the scenery is rarely as quiet as a mirror. On the contrary, there are many colorful dynamics, such as swing trees, wave beats on the shore, falling waterfall, flying birds, the sky surging with wind, etc., all of which can become the focus of charm. To capture motion, you can use a slower shutter speed, sometimes taking as long as several seconds to expose. But the slower the shutter, the more light the sensor or plate will absorb, requiring a smaller aperture or filter to reduce light intake, or choosing to shoot at a softer time of day, such as dusk or early morning.

Spend time with the weather

The landscape can change with the weather, so choosing the right time to shoot is the first step in getting the heart shot. Many beginners will think that the sunny day is the best time to take the scenery, but the cloudy day can bring a special atmosphere or a sense of shock. Storms, mist, rainbows, sunrises, sunsets, the "Jesus light" or the stormy sky all have unique personalities that are more striking than a clear picture, but it's important to remember when shooting bad weather that safety is Paramount.

Catch Golden Hours

Some people prefer to go out at dawn or dusk rather than take pictures during the day. The reason is that the sun's rays can bring more vitality to a tree or log. Therefore, dawn and dusk are known as Golden Hours (aka magic Hours). Golden Hours is popular for a number of reasons, first because the Golden sunlight can add color to the surrounding scenes. The other is the Angle of the setting sun, which can best reflect the texture of the scene.

Keep an eye on the horizon

It may be a bit of a cliche to pay attention to the horizon, but that's what landscape photography has to do. The first is, of course, whether the horizon is flat, and of course, post-production can make up for the slight imperfections of the shoot. The second is to pay attention to the position of the horizon in the composition, to highlight the sky or the foreground? Would you like to put the horizon above or below the golden section? Of course, the rules can be broken, but there are some excellent landscape photography using the golden section.

Change perspective

Take a bus to the destination, get off and walk to the ideal place, pick up the camera, look left and right at the viewfinder, focus back and forth, "crack" press the shutter, pack and go to the next destination. Is this your usual action for photographing landscapes? But if you want to make a surprise photo, take a few extra steps. After taking a panoramic view of an ideal spot, look around to see if there are any novel views you can take of the same landscape, such as walking to a high spot for an aerial view or, conversely, walking to a low spot for an elevation view. Practice the different Angle of view to train a pair of sharp photography eye, can let you take more unique photos!