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Mastering the Basics: A Guide to Landscape Photography for Novice Photographers
by Keenan Hursh
Landscape photography is an intricate art form that enables photographers to capture the natural beauty of landscapes and showcase some truly special and magical places. This style of photography often showcases vast vistas, majestic mountains, serene lakes, lush forests, and really any other awe-inspiring natural wonders scattered throughout the land.
Landscape photography is a popular pursuit among photographers of all levels and is often less daunting than other forms of photography such as wildlife or sports. That being said, landscape photography can still seem quite overwhelming and perhaps unapproachable for anyone just getting started in their own photography journeys. For anyone hesitant to get into landscape photography, worry not! In this guide, we will explore the key factors that beginner photographers need to know when learning the basics of landscape photography. And some of this might be a good refresher for more experienced photographers as well. So, let’s get into it and go over some of the basics when it comes to landscape photography.
Landscape photography is a popular pursuit among photographers of all levels and is often less daunting than other forms of photography such as wildlife or sports. That being said, landscape photography can still seem quite overwhelming and perhaps unapproachable for anyone just getting started in their own photography journeys. For anyone hesitant to get into landscape photography, worry not! In this guide, we will explore the key factors that beginner photographers need to know when learning the basics of landscape photography. And some of this might be a good refresher for more experienced photographers as well. So, let’s get into it and go over some of the basics when it comes to landscape photography.
Choosing the Right Gear
One of the first and most important steps in learning landscape photography is to choose the right gear. If you head out into the field with a telephoto lens and no tripod, you might be disappointed. While high-end equipment can certainly enhance the quality of your images, it's not essential for beginners.
What is essential is a decent camera body that allows manual control of the aperture, shutter speed, and ISO settings as well as a decent lens that can ideally capture a wide field of view.
A tripod is also essential for landscape photography, as it provides stability, allows for longer exposures, and gives you fine-tuned control over your compositions.
When it comes to landscape photography for beginners, I think selecting the right lens is much more important than purchasing a super fancy, high-end camera.
When choosing a lens setup, a wide-angle lens is often preferred, as it can capture more of the scene and add depth to your images.
For greater flexibility, a zoom lens can also be nice. Something like a 16-35mm or a 24-105mm will give you a nice range of focal lengths to play with. This flexibility is especially nice when photographers are just getting started. A telephoto lens, such as a 100-400mm lens can also be a great addition to your kit. A telephoto perspective allows you to capture abstract scenes, which can be a nice contrast with the images produced at wider focal lengths.
And filters can come in handy as well. A polarizing filter can help reduce glare and reflections and enhance colors and contrast, while a neutral density filter can reduce the amount of light entering the camera and allow for longer exposures.
Now that you have a decent camera and lens combination to work with, what are some other accessories you may need? In my opinion, the next item on your list should be a tripod. A tripod will make your life immensely easier and less frustrating when capturing landscape images. In addition, you should also have a decent camera bag to transport all your gear and keep it safe.
So, now that you have an idea of what gear and equipment you will need, let’s get into the art of landscape photography and some key areas of knowledge that will help you capture better images.
One of the first and most important steps in learning landscape photography is to choose the right gear. If you head out into the field with a telephoto lens and no tripod, you might be disappointed. While high-end equipment can certainly enhance the quality of your images, it's not essential for beginners.
What is essential is a decent camera body that allows manual control of the aperture, shutter speed, and ISO settings as well as a decent lens that can ideally capture a wide field of view.
A tripod is also essential for landscape photography, as it provides stability, allows for longer exposures, and gives you fine-tuned control over your compositions.
When it comes to landscape photography for beginners, I think selecting the right lens is much more important than purchasing a super fancy, high-end camera.
When choosing a lens setup, a wide-angle lens is often preferred, as it can capture more of the scene and add depth to your images.
For greater flexibility, a zoom lens can also be nice. Something like a 16-35mm or a 24-105mm will give you a nice range of focal lengths to play with. This flexibility is especially nice when photographers are just getting started. A telephoto lens, such as a 100-400mm lens can also be a great addition to your kit. A telephoto perspective allows you to capture abstract scenes, which can be a nice contrast with the images produced at wider focal lengths.
And filters can come in handy as well. A polarizing filter can help reduce glare and reflections and enhance colors and contrast, while a neutral density filter can reduce the amount of light entering the camera and allow for longer exposures.
Now that you have a decent camera and lens combination to work with, what are some other accessories you may need? In my opinion, the next item on your list should be a tripod. A tripod will make your life immensely easier and less frustrating when capturing landscape images. In addition, you should also have a decent camera bag to transport all your gear and keep it safe.
So, now that you have an idea of what gear and equipment you will need, let’s get into the art of landscape photography and some key areas of knowledge that will help you capture better images.
Understanding Composition
We’ll start with the composition and framing of your images. Composition is a crucial element in landscape photography, as it determines how the elements in the scene are arranged within the frame. Determining how you portray specific elements in your image can drastically change the final results.
One of the most important rules of composition, to keep in your pocket of tricks, is the "rule of thirds." This simple rule involves dividing the frame into thirds horizontally and vertically, resulting in your image being divided into nine equal parts.
By placing the most significant elements of your scene along these lines or at the intersections, you can create a more balanced and visually pleasing composition. This is because our eyes are naturally drawn to these parts of the frame and will more easily identify subjects or points of interest.
It's also important to consider the foreground, middle ground, and background of your image when composing a landscape photograph.
Including elements in the foreground can add depth and dimension to your images, while the background provides context and helps to tell a story. I often try to frame a subject in the background with elements in the foreground. An example of this would be framing a mountain with some wildflowers in the foreground.
You can also use leading lines to direct the viewers’ attention to a subject. Let’s say you’re shooting down a beach and there’s a large sea stack or boulder in the distance that you want to highlight in your image. You could use the naturally occurring lines of the beach and the waves receding into the distance to point toward your subject.
We’ll start with the composition and framing of your images. Composition is a crucial element in landscape photography, as it determines how the elements in the scene are arranged within the frame. Determining how you portray specific elements in your image can drastically change the final results.
One of the most important rules of composition, to keep in your pocket of tricks, is the "rule of thirds." This simple rule involves dividing the frame into thirds horizontally and vertically, resulting in your image being divided into nine equal parts.
By placing the most significant elements of your scene along these lines or at the intersections, you can create a more balanced and visually pleasing composition. This is because our eyes are naturally drawn to these parts of the frame and will more easily identify subjects or points of interest.
It's also important to consider the foreground, middle ground, and background of your image when composing a landscape photograph.
Including elements in the foreground can add depth and dimension to your images, while the background provides context and helps to tell a story. I often try to frame a subject in the background with elements in the foreground. An example of this would be framing a mountain with some wildflowers in the foreground.
You can also use leading lines to direct the viewers’ attention to a subject. Let’s say you’re shooting down a beach and there’s a large sea stack or boulder in the distance that you want to highlight in your image. You could use the naturally occurring lines of the beach and the waves receding into the distance to point toward your subject.
Understanding Natural Light
Light is another crucial element of landscape photography, and understanding how to work with natural light can make all the difference in your images. Shooting on an overcast day where the clouds diffuse the light is quite different from shooting on a bright sunny day with contrasting shadows spread throughout the landscape.
One of the most desirable times to shoot landscapes is during the "golden hour," which is the hour after sunrise and the hour before sunset. During these times, the light is soft and warm, and shadows are longer, creating a more dramatic effect. I love shooting during the golden hour as the light often seems to do exactly what I want it to and the actual color of the light is very pleasing to the eye.
It's also important to consider the direction of light when photographing landscapes. Front lighting, where the light source is behind the photographer, can create a flatter image, while backlighting can create a more dramatic effect by highlighting the subject and creating a halo effect. No matter what kind of landscape shot you’re capturing you’ll want to constantly be aware of the natural light and how it’s affecting your image.
Light is another crucial element of landscape photography, and understanding how to work with natural light can make all the difference in your images. Shooting on an overcast day where the clouds diffuse the light is quite different from shooting on a bright sunny day with contrasting shadows spread throughout the landscape.
One of the most desirable times to shoot landscapes is during the "golden hour," which is the hour after sunrise and the hour before sunset. During these times, the light is soft and warm, and shadows are longer, creating a more dramatic effect. I love shooting during the golden hour as the light often seems to do exactly what I want it to and the actual color of the light is very pleasing to the eye.
It's also important to consider the direction of light when photographing landscapes. Front lighting, where the light source is behind the photographer, can create a flatter image, while backlighting can create a more dramatic effect by highlighting the subject and creating a halo effect. No matter what kind of landscape shot you’re capturing you’ll want to constantly be aware of the natural light and how it’s affecting your image.
Understanding Your Camera Settings
Now that we’ve gone over choosing your composition and understanding how to use the natural light available to your advantage, let’s go over some manual camera settings that can alter the look and feel of your image. I’m talking, of course, about the exposure triangle.
We’ll start with shutter speed, which simply controls how long your sensor is exposed to light. Landscape photography is a great opportunity to experiment with your shutter speed. With wildlife and sports photography, you almost always want to have a very fast shutter speed to capture subjects that are often far away and moving fast. Landscape photography does sometimes require a faster shutter speed to get sharp details, but you can also experiment with slower shutter speeds to blur motion or capture images in low-light conditions. Of course, if you slow it down too much you will definitely need a tripod or a way to hold your camera still while the shutter is open.
Next, we’ll discuss aperture, which controls the diameter of the hole within your lens that’s allowing light to enter. A wide aperture allows more light in and creates a shallower depth of field isolating your subject from the background, while a narrow aperture allows less light in and creates a deep depth of field bringing objects from both the foreground and background into focus. When shooting landscapes, photographers usually aim for a mid-range or high aperture so that many aspects of their image are in focus.
And finally, to complete the exposure triangle, we’ll discuss ISO which digitally controls the sensitivity of your camera's sensor to light. If you’re shooting in low-light situations you will likely need to increase your ISO and if you’re shooting in bright sunlight a low ISO will do just fine. It’s important to keep in mind that increasing your ISO adds digital noise and grain to your images so don’t go overboard. When it comes to landscape photography specifically, I would really just recommend keeping it as low as possible to avoid adding noise to your image. If you are shooting with a tripod you can always increase your shutter speed to create extra light in your image.
Now that we’ve gone over choosing your composition and understanding how to use the natural light available to your advantage, let’s go over some manual camera settings that can alter the look and feel of your image. I’m talking, of course, about the exposure triangle.
We’ll start with shutter speed, which simply controls how long your sensor is exposed to light. Landscape photography is a great opportunity to experiment with your shutter speed. With wildlife and sports photography, you almost always want to have a very fast shutter speed to capture subjects that are often far away and moving fast. Landscape photography does sometimes require a faster shutter speed to get sharp details, but you can also experiment with slower shutter speeds to blur motion or capture images in low-light conditions. Of course, if you slow it down too much you will definitely need a tripod or a way to hold your camera still while the shutter is open.
Next, we’ll discuss aperture, which controls the diameter of the hole within your lens that’s allowing light to enter. A wide aperture allows more light in and creates a shallower depth of field isolating your subject from the background, while a narrow aperture allows less light in and creates a deep depth of field bringing objects from both the foreground and background into focus. When shooting landscapes, photographers usually aim for a mid-range or high aperture so that many aspects of their image are in focus.
And finally, to complete the exposure triangle, we’ll discuss ISO which digitally controls the sensitivity of your camera's sensor to light. If you’re shooting in low-light situations you will likely need to increase your ISO and if you’re shooting in bright sunlight a low ISO will do just fine. It’s important to keep in mind that increasing your ISO adds digital noise and grain to your images so don’t go overboard. When it comes to landscape photography specifically, I would really just recommend keeping it as low as possible to avoid adding noise to your image. If you are shooting with a tripod you can always increase your shutter speed to create extra light in your image.
Experimentation and Patience
Finally, experimentation and patience are crucial elements when it comes to learning landscape photography. Just like anything, if you’re brand new you’re going to have to try all sorts of things until you figure out what works. And this will take time.
You’ll need to learn what camera settings to use under the given circumstances and you’ll need to learn how to highlight subjects and compose your images in a pleasing manner. Bottom line, don't be afraid to try different techniques and settings and don't be discouraged if your images don't turn out the way you envisioned them. With practice, you will develop your skills and start to produce more successful images.
Finally, experimentation and patience are crucial elements when it comes to learning landscape photography. Just like anything, if you’re brand new you’re going to have to try all sorts of things until you figure out what works. And this will take time.
You’ll need to learn what camera settings to use under the given circumstances and you’ll need to learn how to highlight subjects and compose your images in a pleasing manner. Bottom line, don't be afraid to try different techniques and settings and don't be discouraged if your images don't turn out the way you envisioned them. With practice, you will develop your skills and start to produce more successful images.
Conclusion
In conclusion, landscape photography can be an exciting and rewarding genre for beginner photographers. It’s a great way to capture the essence of a magical place on earth and share it with others. By choosing the right gear, understanding composition, natural light, and your camera settings, and by experimenting with different techniques, you can start to capture beautiful landscape photographs. Remember to be patient and enjoy the process, and with time, you will develop the skills to capture stunning images of the natural world.
One of the best ways to improve your photography craft is to go out into the field with professionals who can assist and educate you in real-time. At Backcountry Journeys we offer many exceptional landscape photography workshops throughout the world. Feel free to check them out and we hope to see you out there in the future!
As always, thanks for reading and I wish you the best of luck on your next landscape photography adventure!
In conclusion, landscape photography can be an exciting and rewarding genre for beginner photographers. It’s a great way to capture the essence of a magical place on earth and share it with others. By choosing the right gear, understanding composition, natural light, and your camera settings, and by experimenting with different techniques, you can start to capture beautiful landscape photographs. Remember to be patient and enjoy the process, and with time, you will develop the skills to capture stunning images of the natural world.
One of the best ways to improve your photography craft is to go out into the field with professionals who can assist and educate you in real-time. At Backcountry Journeys we offer many exceptional landscape photography workshops throughout the world. Feel free to check them out and we hope to see you out there in the future!
As always, thanks for reading and I wish you the best of luck on your next landscape photography adventure!
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AUTHOR
Keenan Hursh is a Photographer, visual designer, and creative story teller based out of Bozeman, Montana. He draws inspiration from his frequent excursions into the natural world and always brings his camera along to capture whatever adventures he finds himself in. Keenan is passionate about documenting and sharing fleeting moments from the natural world and focuses primarily on wildlife, landscape, and adventure photography.
When it comes to gear, he primarily shoots digital with his Canon EOS R5 and EOS 6D mark ii but also has several 35mm film cameras that get out every now and then.
At a very young age, Keenan started bringing a camera along on his excursions and immediately fell in love with the art of photography. He started out with his parent’s cheap point and shoot and has continuously improved his craft and gear refining his shooting style and producing more compelling and intriguing images.
Growing up in the foothills of Boulder, Colorado, surrounded by mountains and wilderness, Keenan has developed a deep passion for many outdoor activities. When he’s not out on a shoot or using his camera, Keenan enjoys skiing, climbing, hiking, backpacking, cycling, whitewater rafting, and paragliding. If he’s outside, away from the distractions of society and civilization, he’s in his happy place.
Keenan studied Emergent Digital Practices at the University of Denver while minoring in Marketing and Entrepreneurship. Since earning his degree in 2019 he was worked with a wide range of clients, companies, and organizations throughout his career. Apart from photography he specializes in content creation, writing, brand development, and graphic design.
You can view Keenan’s portfolio on his website at www.keenanhurshmedia.com
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"Backcountry Journeys offers guests the unique opportunity to explore our natural world from behind their own lens. We run a selection of hand-crafted Photo Tours, Workshops & Safaris connecting passionate people to exceptional experiences. Locations worldwide.
All Images & Content are property of Backcountry Journeys Photography Tours, Workshops & Safaris LLC - Copyright 2024
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