How to change from a novice photographer to a novice landscape photographer

Lead: In fact, for a long time after graduating from college, I was a frog sitting in a well, just taking pictures with a camera. It was not until I moved to California two years ago that I got serious about landscape photography. I was a novice photographer at that time, and now I have finally taken the scenery into the door. Share it with everyone now!

About basic knowledge

Find a sister/man who supports you.

3000 words are omitted here. .

Okay, don't be ridiculous. In fact, landscape photography is very hard, and many times I can only go alone or with gay friends. If you have a partner, her/his support is very important. I am grateful to have such a person.

1. The importance of light

If you think that you can't take beautiful photos because: a. your equipment is not good enough, b. your post-PS is not good enough, and c. your photography skills are not good enough, then these ideas are probably wrong. What is the first reaction of many people when they see beautiful photos? Have you ever photoshopped your photos? ,? Nice color, huh? , or? Why can't I shoot the effect of others? ,? I've been to that place. It's not as beautiful as the photo? .

In fact, the biggest difference between landscape photos and ordinary travel photos is not the other, but the light. The most important thing in landscape photography is good light, and good light is usually within one hour before and after sunset, which is the so-called golden hour. It can be said that 80% or even more excellent landscape photography works were completed during this period. No matter how awesome the scenery is, it is often a picture that comes out of the camera when you meet the pale sunshine of NPC at noon. Taking pictures here? That's all. So next time, if you think. Why are those photos more beautiful than what you see? Try to wait for the warm sunshine or gorgeous sunset glow in the sunset, maybe you will have the answer.

Battleship Sunset

Get up early, full of longing for darkness.

If you realize the importance of light, maybe you will say? I've been there, and I haven't met a good light? . I'm sorry, good light didn't come, but it did. It is difficult to meet good light when going back to the hotel to play cards and watch movies in broad daylight. Since the best light is at sunrise and sunset, this means that if you want to make a good movie, you must get up before sunrise and go home after sunset. Sunset may be good for many people, but getting up early at sunrise is terrible for many people.

If winter is fine, summer is a painful season for photographers. They always get up at 4 o'clock at sunrise and go down the mountain at 8 or 9 in the evening. Whether you can do it or not depends on your determination, but it is also a good measure. If you don't have the determination to endure hardship, I can say with certainty that you can't walk on landscape photography.

Morning in Hayden Valley

Depend on the weather for food.

It is not enough to have determination and perseverance. Landscape photography is a business of watching the weather and eating. Whether the weather is good or not determines the quality of the light and the quality of the photos. It is not uncommon to wait outside for a morning or night and get nothing. Therefore, when to take a photo is best asked by the university. For example, the coastline of the San Francisco Bay Area is foggy in summer. If you go to the seaside every day in summer, it may be useless.

For the weather, at first you may think that sunny days are good weather and cloudy days are bad weather. Actually, it's not. Pure sunny days mean that the light will be yellow and there is no content in the sky, which is not a good thing for many subjects such as coastal and lake photography. Continuous rain is certainly not good, but the heavy rain that comes and goes often means changes. If some sunlight can be scattered at sunrise and sunset, the light will be spectacular. Generally speaking, as long as the clouds are not too thick, there will always be a glow, which is the best situation in most scenes.

I saw you in the eyes of the earth.

About shooting

1. Shoot wherever you want.

Many people ask me how I know so many places I have photographed. Actually, this is not easy to answer. Generally speaking, this piece about the shooting location is slowly accumulating. For the concept of big scenic spots, such as so-and-so park and so-and-so coast, it is not difficult to find these places. Generally speaking, it is the same as understanding tourist attractions. You can get a lot of information from the internet, books and even friends around you.

Grand fountain geyser sunset

Write a composition

Compared with other photographic subjects, landscape photography is doomed to imitate other people's composition in many cases. There is a reason for a photography classic, and I don't think it is necessary to avoid it. I never shy away from classics. In fact, 80% of my photo compositions are found in other works on the Internet, sometimes by accident, and more often by imitation.

On the other hand, imitation before innovation is a reasonable way to reduce costs. When you have photographed some classic places, start to go to other places that you seldom go to. There are many ways to write a composition, such as dichotomy, for example, composition is subtraction, which can be found online.

However, it is worth mentioning the concept of scenery, because it is often overlooked when you first touch the scenery. Landscape photography is mainly wide angle. Wide-angle photos can cover many things. Sometimes, in order to avoid the monotonous picture and too few elements, the background should be used reasonably. If the subject of a photo is a vision, it is good that the vision is well-defined, but if the level is not clear or the elements are monotonous, the vision is often the necessary background. A bunch of flowers, a stone and a dead wood can often play a very good role in setting off or even making the finishing point under wide-angle magnification. On the contrary, if the foreground is a photo of the subject, a good foreground background is also important.

Sunrise in North Peak

expose

How to measure light reasonably? The answer in the digital age is quite simple: just look at the histogram, first automatically expose one to ensure that there will be no dead white or black, and if there is, increase the compensation accordingly. As for the aperture shutter, I usually use A file. Set the aperture at about F 1 1-F 16, and then automatically calculate the shutter. It's another matter to photograph the starry sky and the current. If you need to consider the shutter speed, you need to adjust the aperture and ISO accordingly. At these times, M files are often used.

In peripheral exposure, the spacing is generally above 1, and I seldom use 0.3 or 0.7. If the object moves when the exposure is surrounded by strong wind, then the aperture or ISO should be sacrificed to make the shutter faster. This part is actually very general, so I won't say much. I put the matters needing attention in shooting various subjects in the last part. Regarding the peripheral exposure, I put it in the part of synthesis after exposure.

Grand teton national park's light and shadow

About equipment

1. cameras and lenses

I actually pay little attention to cameras and lenses. The requirements for cameras and lenses in landscape photography are actually very simple (not to say that the price is not expensive, but that you won't have too many choices). From the just-started D90 to the full-size D800, I actually didn't have any problems when choosing the camera and lens, and I didn't ask anyone.

For beginners, the mid-range SLR like D90 is actually quite enough, and I am confident to go to the full range when necessary. For the lens, in addition to the medium focus, the wide angle is also necessary, and the telephoto is based on personal shooting habits. As for which shot to choose, it's entirely up to you, and the cheap one may not be impossible. For example, I use 16-35 for wide angle, which is the cheapest in Nikon wide angle. I also know that Canon's 17-40 is actually very good and cost-effective. Starlight and aperture don't need to go 16-35. Generally speaking, if you think the photos are not good, you should find fault with yourself first, and then with the camera and lens.

Bay bridge at night

Step 2: Filter

It is essential to shoot landscape filters. Generally speaking, there are three kinds: 1. Polarizer CPL, eliminate water reflection, enhance sky color, and so on. 2. The function of the medium gray filter ND is limited, but it is usually needed when it comes to the flowing water coast. Many times it is also used to expose clouds in the sky for a long time. Personally, I think Band 4 (1.2) is more practical. 3. The medium gray gradient filter GND is a magical thing, which reduces the contrast between the top and bottom of the picture. It can be said that this thing is the core equipment of landscape photography in the past.

Although the post-technology can completely replace the medium gray gradient in theory, in fact, the boundary line of composition is often not too complicated, and it is more convenient to use the filter, which saves a lot of post-work, so I always take it with me. Generally, the second gear (0.6) and the third gear (0.9) are more practical, and the different themes of soft edge and hard edge have different needs, which are generally needed. According to my own experience, GND and ND must be plug-ins. For CPL, it is best to have both plug-in and ring-mounting, which is convenient. When only CPL is used, it is sometimes unnecessary to wear a filter holder.

As for filter brands, LEE and Singh-Ray are the best plug-in brands. If economic conditions permit, try to go to these two brands. If you try it at first, you can consider Hitech and Cokins. CPL with ring can consider b+w.

The wind and fog dispersed the cattle and sheep.

4. Equipment, prices and decisions

In fact, I encourage everyone to buy equipment, unless the economic conditions permit, and on this premise: you are determined to spend time and energy to take good pictures. Photography products are generally worth a penny. Now we are using Lee's filter, Gitzo shelf and Markins Yuntai. I feel good. I often go out. I don't complain that these things are easy to use and can be used for a long time, so I don't think I'm wasting money. If you feel that you are not determined enough, just tinkering and trying to pat casually, there is no need to buy an expensive product line, otherwise it will be a waste of money.