Digital Landscape

Capture Great Cityscape Pictures

noreply@blogger.com (admin1) — Mon, 02 Sep 2013 19:46:00 +0000

Stockholm, Sweden

Vancouver, Canada

Beauty in the concrete jungle Landscape photography has never been more popular than now as more and more people get caught by the photography bug. Not only that, but more of us are travelling widely and the great tendency is to capture visual images of the places we visited. Other than taking breathtaking pictures of mountains, rivers and beaches, another area where you can capture fascinating and captivating photos is in the cities.

City landscape photography can be a very rewarding venture. There's a gazillion of photographic possibilities for those with great imagination and creativity. Below is a contributing article introducing to beginners how, what and where to look for great city landscape shots that can make your picture worth more than a thousdand words! Read on...

The Kremlin, Moscow, Russia

Landscapes of the City: An Introduction

Beautiful city landscapes grace the cover of glossy picture books, millions of postcards sold in tourist shops throughout town, and vivid, oversized posters that you place on your wall. Carefully planned-out, intricate landscapes are not just for nature and the countryside anymore; most cultures today find some sense of beauty in the bustling, concrete world of the city and in the diverse, busy people who live there.

For this reason, grand, expansive skylines and intimate portraits of a street corner are capturing the hearts of city and country lovers alike. City landscape photographs are not difficult to create, and are sure to be appreciated by everyone who sees them.

Why spend your time in a detailed photographic study of a city? One major reason people do this is that of tourism. Capturing a cityscape on film glorifies the city in question (at least, in most cases!) and makes people remember it. It may inspire tourists to travel there for the first time, or may remind potential return visitors of the charm of the town they visited. This is the reason for all the books, postcards, posters, coffee mugs, and countless other images that signify a city.

If you take a stroll around a tourist center of a town, it is hard NOT to notice all the city landscape photography around you.

The more these images travel around the country and the continents, the more they will inspire visitors to do their own traveling. Images often feature famous landmarks and signature architecture because these are the most commonly visited sites in a city.

If you are taking your photographs specifically for tourism purposes, make sure to take advantage of digital technology to filter and clean up the images so that they are flattering. Go ahead and make Broadway Street a little cleaner than it really is. Take out those slight shadows that distract from the church steeple. This type of cosmetic altering is important if you’re really trying to sell the city.

Taj Mahal, India

Capturing the spirit of a city...
Not all city landscape photographers make their art for business or tourist reasons. Some simply want to capture the spirit of a city they admire, perhaps their hometown. These photographs usually focus on the simple and characteristic beauty of a city.

City landscape photography is also commonly used for charity purposes. You could use your photography to draw attention to a specific problem found in one or several cities. For example, you could focus your scenes on areas of the town where problems like hunger, disease, or poverty are common.

The city landscape is still the main attraction; you are simply using this to draw attention to something that goes on here. In this sense you are not photographing just a city, but a society.

Your reasons for doing your art will likely determine what you choose to photograph, but there are many options. You could stick to the major monuments and tourist attractions of a city, like the Eiffel Tower, the Empire State Building, or the Taj Mahal. These attractions are well-visited and admired both for their histories and for aesthetic reasons. However, you are definitely not the first to have this idea. The tourist attractions will produce beautiful photographs, but your pictures will likely look similar to thousands of pictures taken before yours.

Petronas Twin Towers, Kuala Lumpur - Credit: Joga

Other good subjects are locations or buildings that capture the spirit of a city. These are not always the same as the tourist attractions just discussed. Ask yourself where locals in the city like to go. This could be a beautiful marina, a quaint historical area, or just a funky bohemian street. Find the areas that are important to locals. These could be religious, historical, economic, or stylish.

As far as what you will need for city landscape photography, let’s start with the right equipment. Take into account the scope of your shots, how much you want to include, and the time of day.

Have a good idea of what kind of picture you want to take. Do you want an elevated viewpoint or do you want to be right down in the street? Make sure you get the information you need ahead of time. What will the weather be like at that time of day? Will there be many people around? What will the light be like?

Carefully considering these points will offer you the best chance to capture a signature landscape piece of your favorite city. Put it on a few postcards and posters, and you are on your way to sharing this sentiment with others who will soon get to know and appreciate the city you love.

Chia-Yi City Park, Taiwan

Hiroshima Castle, Japan

Article supplied by Roy Barker. These tips will be handy for both the amateur photographer and someone starting a photography business . They are guides or tips for you to experiment with and enjoy the journey.

Be A Digital Landscape Photographer

noreply@blogger.com (admin1) — Thu, 22 Aug 2013 19:45:00 +0000

Photo credit: wili_hybrid

If you have no experience but you're thinking of venturing into landscape photography and make it a career, even as a part-timer, there are a few steps you need to take to learn the ropes.

Basically, you need to read books, take a course and visit relevant websites.

There are many books in the market spotlighting digital landscape photography.

There are two books that I can recommend to open your eyes and broaden your views.

To get a good start, Digital Landscape Photography Step By Step, by Michelle Perkins, is a compact book but it is packed with great advice about composition, the technique behind photographing sunsets, night work, and creating black and white images.

The next book with a straightforward title, Step-By-Step Digital Landscape Photography, by renowned photographer Tim Gartside, provides detailed info about this subject.

Gartside's book includes topics such as software manipulation of images, but also guides the novice through composition and the basic techniques of digital landscape photography.

If you are serious about landscape photography, you should take a course.

It will be to your advantage to learn what film to use, how to work with sunlight or other natural light, how to achieve a sense of balance and scale, how to shoot running water and other landscape photography issues that you might face.

You can also find many groups and message boards on the Internet that are designed for landscape photographers to meet, share photos and tips and ideas.

Once you have gone through the beginner's stage, then it's time for you to practise your landscape picture-taking and build your portfolio.,

To see how much you have achieved, it will do you some good to send some of your best photos to photo contests or magazines. These are good ways of breaking into the world of professional photography when you have no experience.

Photo credit: Vince Alongi

Here are some tips on digital landscape photography that might help you to get started on the right footing:

1. Point your digital camera lens upwards, and capture more of the sky. This can signify openness, freedom, and wide expanses - the effect you are striving to achieve in digital landscape photography.

2. The best time to shoot landscape pictures is during the first 2 hours and last 2 hours of daylight.

3. For panoramas: Meter all scenes beforehand and use the one with the least exposure. Then take all scenes with that constant setting.

4. Shooting in below zero degrees? You should keep your batteries warm by alternating sets between the camera and your inner pocket. Below zero temperatures shorten battery life.

5. Setting White Balance: For nature photography set WB to daylight.

The wonderful thing about digital photography is that you can be anywhere to capture beautiful scenes whether in the country or in the city.

You can travel the world to take great pictures. Or you can find beautiful landscapes right where you live.

All you need is to have an eye for such scenes. As one photographer puts it: "If you can open your eyes to the beauty and see it, then other people can see it in your photography."

Digital photography is amazing, it's an art form, it's emotional, and it's great fun and joy to be able to capture memorable landscape scenes. It's an exciting,fullfilling career.

Photo Credit: Steve Webel

Bad Weather Conditions - A Photographer's Dream

noreply@blogger.com (admin1) — Mon, 01 Aug 2011 15:54:00 +0000

photo credit: overgraeme

Bad weather is a good thing. Braving bad weather when everyone else is running for cover can sometimes have its advantages. These advantages come in the form of snow, lightning or rain photographs. Some amazing photographs can be taken during bad weather.

Usually, the more difficult or rare it is to take a photograph of something, the more demand there will be for it. This concept alone can open up a large market for you as a photographer. You will see a greater demand for the photographs and can charge a significantly higher price per photograph.

Photographing the Rain

A compelling effect that the rain causes is imparting a sheen on the surfaces that it falls on. In big cities, the rain can make streets shine and make buildings look darker. The grass in a big field out in the country can shine with the moisture that settles on it.

Drops of water on the leaves of trees can sparkle under the correct lighting conditions. If the sky is dense with rain clouds, then they can act as a great natural diffuser to the light. By blocking out and spreading the light evenly across the sky, the clouds aid the photographer by diminishing shadows.

Two great forms of photography truly stand out in bad weather.

Wildlife or nature photography and portrait photography. In nature photography, the animals tend to huddle and curl up to remain warmer and dryer. Together with the wet surroundings, these shots can be very powerful. When considering portrait photographs, more striking ones can be obtained because the diffused light tends to dominate the subject rather than the gloomy surroundings.

To compensate for the gloomy weather, you will have to adjust your camera accordingly. Increasing shutter speed and aperture are some of the adjustments that photographers make during bad weather photography. Other items such as waterproof backpack for your cameras and lenses, and an umbrella or other appropriate shield for the top of your lens to keep it dry are essential. Carrying a tripod will also help you take those shots with long exposure times and eliminate blurry pictures.

Photographing Lightning

One of the hardest phenomena to capture, lighting can provide very powerful photographs. The way a bolt of lightning can light up a scene is almost magical. In order to capture lightning, you need two things: a tripod and a long shutter speed. The ‘bulb’ option in your shutter speed is most effective in this case. Having your camera on a tripod with the shutter held open as long as required is a method of capturing lightning. As soon as the lightning flashes and passes by, release the shutter to get the brightest possible picture.

Photographing Snow

The whiteness that snow can add to a photograph often provides great contrast and a wintery feeling. Normal colors show up very clearly against a snowy backdrop and are quite striking. Snowy nature photographs can often sell for great amounts of money because of the rarity and risks involved. Taking pictures of animals such as penguins or polar bears in the harsh, snowy locations is often fraught with a great deal of risk and difficulty. This justifies the high price that can be charged for such pictures.

Capturing bright white snow is not as easy as it may seem. This is because the large areas of brightness in the picture tend to impart a much darker and shadowy effect to other objects in the snow. Experienced photographers overcome this problem by overexposing the photograph. This still allows the snow to be as bright as it was, but also correctly exposes the other objects in the picture. One other thing to consider is your camera’s white balance. Sometimes, snow has a way of throwing your white-balance off. Make sure you select an appropriate setting to suit the snow or switch to an automatic white-balance setting.

Chasing Storms

Some daring photographers have devoted their lives to photographing some amazing and dangerous weather patterns that Mother Nature throws at us. They photograph tornadoes and hurricanes and are often perilously exposed to this weather themselves. If executed well, then these photographs can fetch top dollar when they are sold to newspapers or magazines. Often, viewers will have very strong feelings when they look at the photographs of extreme weather such as this. It puts everything into perspective when they get a chance to look at the destructive powers of mother nature.

To minimize the risks involved, some photographers will stay fairly far away from the thick of the storm that they are capturing. They will setup and take photos of the storm from a distance. All they would need is some protective material for their cameras and a cloth for wiping down the lens before taking photographs. Other photographers will keep their equipment directly in the path of the storm. This type of photography requires strong equipment and different photography techniques. The cameras are encased in protective cases and are usually placed on tripods which are drilled into the ground to offer stability. They are then operated via remote control so that the photographer can stay at a more safe distance away from the storm.

In Summary

By looking at bad weather as more of an opportunity rather than a hinderance, you can maximize the subject matter that you photograph. Some very powerful and compelling photographs are of inclement weather such as rain or snow storms. To capture milder versions of the storms, it is highly recommended that you carry waterproof, protective material and a tripod along with you always. This will help you capture the perfect storm should one turn up out of nowhere. Successful photographers are well prepared photographers and don’t let opportunities pass them by.

If you’re thinking about improving your outdoor photography you should first consider your knowledge of manipulation etc. Here is a great source of good tricks and techniques to make your creative shots even better.

Hope this has helped in some way. If you only learned one thing, you’re in front right?!

The author: Roy Barker is an established photographer from Australia. He contributes information based on photography to help those who have a passion for it.

12 Common Digital Photography Mistakes

noreply@blogger.com (admin1) — Sat, 26 Sep 2009 07:55:00 +0000

With digital cameras at their most affordable, anybody can be a photographer these days. Problem is, it takes more than a camera to take good pictures.

It takes a certain eye, a way of seeing things, to take pictures that make people go "Wow!". Fortunately, it can be learned. And the more you practice, the better you'll get.

If you're interested in becoming a good digital photographer, I recommend the "Shoot Digital Pics Like the Pros," a free report.

Start by taking a look at these most common mistakes people make when taking digital pictures:

1. Not knowing your camera

If you never read your digital camera's manual and learn its features and how to use them, you won't be able to make the most of it.

2. Not using a tripod

Tripods allow you to take the sharpest pictures even in low light. Use one as often as possible.

3. Not giving the camera time to focus

Digital cameras need time to properly focus and get the right exposure. It can take a fraction of a second or a couple of seconds. Account for this when taking pictures.

4. Relying too much on zoom

Using the camera's zoom feature makes the picture grainier. Get as close to the subject as possible.

5. Taking pictures against the light

This makes the subject dark and the background too bright.

6. Relying too much on the flash

Natural light gives the best pictures, so use it as much as possible. Flash tends to make images look harsh.

7. Not taking enough pictures

It's almost impossible to take the perfect shot at one try, so take many pictures. With digital photography, this doesn't cost you extra. Try different angles and compositions.

8. Always putting the subject dead center

Learn the rule of thirds in composition, and you'll have more interesting pictures.

9. Forgetting to check the horizon

When taking pictures with the horizon showing, make sure it's level.

10. Selecting a low-resolution setting

Your camera will allow you to select different resolutions. Don't be tempted to choose a low resolution just to save on memory space. Instead, buy additional memory for your camera and always take your pictures in high resolution.

11. Trying to take too much

Don't try to include too many things in one picture, such as people and scenery. A picture is more effective when it's focused on a single subject.

12. Not using the camera

You'll never know when a good photo op will come up, so have your camera with you at all times.

It may seem like a lot to think about, but with practice, these things will become second nature.

For those who want to learn even more digital photography techniques, check out the free report, "Shoot Digital Pics Like the Pros." It's a short but info-filled guide that will have you shooting digital pictures like a pro in no time.

Find out more about "Shoot Digital Pics Like the Pros" here:
www.learndigitalphotographynow.com

Stock Photography

Histogram Digital Camera Photography Tips

Take Better Pictures with Your Digital Camera

noreply@blogger.com (admin1) — Tue, 30 Dec 2008 10:43:00 +0000

Photo credit: zoutedrop

By Dan Feildman

Be smart with photography Photography is both about knowing how to use a camera and also knowing how to make decisions. Today's media projects images that can be difficult to understand, and learning photography can help you to understand what you're being shown every day on television, on the internet, and in movies.

Photography is a good way to occupy your time, especially if you are a teenager, as it is fun and harmless. Besides that, it's a great way to bring a community together for a project, such as photographing activities and gatherings.

When you buy a digital camera, you have to know how to take care of it to keep it in its best condition. In order to have the clearest photos possible, you must make sure to regularly clean your optic lens and keep from leaving fingerprints on it. If this happens, parts of your pictures will be blurry, and dirt can build up over time. Not all cleaning products are suitable for a camera lens, so make sure that you don't use tissue paper, any household cleaning solutions, and definitely not saliva. Instead, you should buy the proper products at a camera store, in order to keep your camera at its best.

Understanding how your camera focuses will help you get better pictures. Just about all digital cameras these days have autofocus with two-step shutter release.

In dark lighting, you will notice that when you press the button halfway down, a red light appears for a moment, but not in areas that are lighter. Then, when you press the button down fully, there is a flash. When you hold down the button halfway, that focuses the image, and when you depress it fully, the camera takes the focused image. If you want the subject of your photograph not to be in the center but still focused, first center them in the middle of the picture and focus the frame by pressing down halfway. Without removing your finger, reframe the picture with your subject in the right position, and take the picture. Your subject will still be focused.

One aspect of taking a pleasing photograph is depth of field. When you look at a picture, you will notice that all the area surrounding the focused subject is also focused. This area is called depth of field. In order to change the way the depth of field in a picture is seen, focused, and lit, you must change the width of your lens. The wider the lens is, the smaller the depth of field will be. To decrease the depth of field you can also move closer to your subject. To increase it, you can use a smaller lens or move further away from your subject.

A great technique that helps photographers create eye-catching pictures is the rule of thirds. This is a composition technique, create a pleasing balance between the different objects in a photograph. In order to use the rule, divide your screen into six different parts: three horizontal sections, and three vertical. The focal points, where the eye is attracted when it first looks at a picture, are where the lines intersect. Placing the subjects of your pictures at or near the focal points can help create a balanced and attractive picture.

Landscape photos are very popular and can be very nice-looking. The whole photograph will need to be in focus, unlike some pictures where only a certain part is in focus. In order to have the picture completely focused, you'll need to have a short focal length. This will create a larger depth of field, and everything will be focused. In order to creating a pleasing balance between land and sky, or water and sky, you can use the rule of thirds. Furthermore, if you want a sense of three dimensions, you can have a subject in the foreground.

A tripod is a good investment in photography, especially if you want to take panoramic pictures. You'll have to set your tripod in a place where you can swivel the camera smoothly from left to right, and not up and down. You will have to figure out where you want your pictures to overlap, so that you don't have huge gaps in your resulting picture. Once you figure that out, you can swivel your camera in one direction, clockwise or counterclockwise, to take the pictures you want. Once you're done, all you have to do is put them together with a simple graphics program or photo-editing software.

Recommended for better help:
Need to improve your digital photography techniques? Pick up your Free digital photography tips for better photos …almost instantly.

"Finally... Learn How To Work That Darn Digital Camera Like A Pro"

How to Capture Great Landscape Photographs

noreply@blogger.com (admin1) — Sat, 02 Aug 2008 17:40:00 +0000

Renown photographer Ansel Adams has this to say about landscape photography:

"Landscape photography is the supreme test of the photographer - and often the supreme disappointment."

Photo Credit: Sunset on La Digue, Seychelles - tiarescott

Shoot breathtaking pictures If you follow this site, you will get to know and learn more about this genre of photography as we bring you tips and more information that will truly enhance your skills in taking landscape pictures. You don't need to be a professional photographer to shoot breathtaking pictures of majestic mountains, cascading waterfalls, meandering rivers. wide open plains and more.

As professional photographer Roy Barker will tell you, it's easy to capture landscape pictures because "they are all around us."

"Landscapes are pretty permanent; they don't move, and so all that is necessary is to get there with a camera," says Barker.

If you are an aficionado of landscape photography and you want great pictures, the advice to put a great deal of effort into a shot is something to remember. For a landscape photograph to be something out of the ordinary, perception and technique will be the order of the day.

Read what Roy Barker has written about the art of landscape photography...

Basic techniques for taking

great landscape photos

Photo Credit: Inside Mongolia - tiarescott

People often enjoy good landscape photographs because of the almost magical nature of the photos to transport the viewer to the location that was photographed. Although seemingly simple to take, only photographers who are aware of some key techniques will take very good landscape photos.

If you look at a few of the really great landscape photographs, you will be able to identify a certain amount of common elements to them. There is a foreground portion, appropriate composure or framing and they will all draw on the rule of thirds one way or another.

The foreground

When you consider landscapes, they are often vast, breathtaking areas which can be awe-inspiring when you are physically present. To reproduce this effect in photography, you need to present the viewer with a sense of dimension. The best way to do this is to include an element that can be easily distinguishable in the foreground.

This way, you show your viewer the true size of the landscape and they will be able to relate to it better. One main point to remember in landscape photography is that your pictures need to be in focus from foreground to background. The way to do this is to shoot with a narrow aperture. This is also referred to as using a high f/stop.

You need to scout your landscape area first for elements which you can use as foreground elements. Consider the following example: you’re shooting a lovely vineyard located in a mountainous region. One element you can easily include is an individual grape vine. Since the vineyard will be scattered with these vines, you can frame your photo to have one or two of these vines in the foreground. Since there will be so many of them, the viewer will be able to follow the line of vines towards the distance thereby gaining a sense of understanding of the vastness of the vineyard and landscape itself.

Different photographers prefer different elements to depict as their foreground. Some other examples of this are using a car to photograph a long, winding road or a boat on a beach. These elements themselves can be the subject of the photograph as well.

Otherwise there are instances when an old metal railing is used in the foreground to photograph a big city in the background. If executed correctly, mis-matching foreground and background elements can be quite compelling. Think Central Park in New York City with grass and trees in the foreground and big buildings in the background.

Composition

Composing or framing your photograph is another way you can draw attention to where you want your viewer’s eyes to go. It adds more context to your subject. Framing elements can be objects like trees, a window or doorway. Some photographers use the technique of placing the branches of a tree on the upper part of the frame that seem to ‘point’ to the landscape you are photographing. Having framing elements in your photographs to ‘lead’ the viewer’s eyes to your subject or by surrounding your subject is usually a good technique to learn.

When framing your subjects in this manner, make sure you don’t make the mistake of drawing attention to your framing elements by not focusing correctly. Since you’re taking landscape photography, use a high f/stop to gain good focus on both your foreground and background elements. Ideally, you would want your framing elements to be a little less prominent than your subject. One sure way of doing this is to use the light creatively to render the framing elements slightly darker than the subject. Think of an archway which is slightly shadowed which leads to a large garden and castle.

The Rule of Thirds

This often misunderstood and badly used technique is practically essential in landscape photography. Because of the nature of landscape photography being so wide, a certain amount of structure is required. Achieving this structure is easy by applying the rule of thirds. The basic idea of the rule of thirds is that the frame can be divided into 3 horizontal and 3 vertical sections. The ideal locations to place the important points of your composition is where these lines meet. In landscape photography, the rule is invaluable to photographers who need to determine where to place foreground and horizon. It can either be 1/3 sky or 1/3 land.

You can get instant access to more detail at the Science of Landscape Photography.

PhotoCredit: River at dusk in Japan - Visuallens

About the author: Roy Barker works in the Profitable Photography Business . His site is dedicated to coaching you in starting your own photography business but places a strong emphasis on profitability issues and guidelines.

Know How to Control Your Depth of Field

noreply@blogger.com (admin1) — Sun, 27 Apr 2008 17:58:00 +0000

A rocky vantage point of view from Mt Kinabalu - Photo by angela7dreams

Control your images As you progress with your photography you'll likely "wake up" one day realizing that you need to have greater control over your images.

Basically, this means controlling the depth of field by adjusting the Aperture-Priority mode. That done, the camera will ensure proper exposure by automatically adjusting the shutter speed.

In the previous post, we touched on the Landscape mode which is the other extreme from the Portrait mode, the later being designed to produce images with minimum depth of field.
As we know by now, the Landscape mode produces images with maximum depth of field. In the following article, Al Sanchez explains further the meaning of depth of field and how a photographer can make the best use of it.

Sun Moon Lake - Photo: Enid Yu

Using Depth of Field - Digital Photography Easy Tips

Depth of field is something that you really need to know about in digital photography. It is something that you know about already but may not know the name of.

The depth means the distance from the closest part of the photo and the part of the picture that is the farthest away that are all in focus. This is the area of the photograph that is clearly in focus.

A general idea of the range of the photo that is in focus is to see that the one-third in front of the object photographed and two-thirds behind the object is in the same depth of field.

The depth of your image is based on a lot of things. It can be affected by various things such as using the zoom button on your camera or changing the lens to a different type.

The depth is influenced mainly by the lenses focal length, the aperture of the lens being used, and how far the subject being photographed is from the camera.

The depth of area in focus can be manipulated by you as a photographer. You can choose to make it very large and have everything in focus or have a small area of the picture in focus.

The lighting and the aperture of the lens will make a great impact on the depth that the photo has. A smaller aperture f-stop will make you have a much larger depth range whereas a larger aperture will give you a smaller range of area in focus.

If you want to have a shallow depth of field then use large aperture numbers like F/2.8. This will make the subject in focus but everything else very out of focus. A large aperture like this will make very extreme blurred backgrounds that are unrecognizable. You can also make it slightly out of focus by using something a little smaller.

An expansive depth can be achieved by using a smaller aperture like F/16. This will give you a picture where mostly everything is in focus. Be sure, however, when taking pictures like this to bring a tripod. Many landscape photos do require tripods since they use very small aperture values that require longer exposure times.

About the author: Al Sanchez has a great program that teaches you how to take better photos. He also teaches people how to sell pictures online.

Using Landscape Mode for Great Outdoor Pictures

noreply@blogger.com (admin1) — Sat, 26 Apr 2008 15:33:00 +0000

photo credit: Bruce Tuten

The Landscape Mode When you are on the Great Outdoors and taking pictures of majestic and panoramic sceneries, the thing to remember is to keep as much detail in an image as possible - and that's when the landscape mode in your camera is your best pal.

What this means is that you can maintain crisp focus for all objects in the scene, near and far. This landscape mode will minimize the aperture which will result in maximum depth of field.

Also remember that while the landscape mode is designed for vast scenic landscape photos, it can be used in any situation where you want everything in the photo to have good focus. So when you hit the trail to the Great Outdoors, keep this in mind.

In the following article, Suzanne VanDegrift gives you some insights into some great places where outdoors and photography are a perfect match.

Photography and the Great Outdoors

Combining photography with the passion of hiking, biking and mountain climbing can result in the most incredible photographs imaginable. Whether it's ice climbing in the Rockies, with your camera bag packed safely away, until you reach the summit where you have a breathtaking panoramic view of the frozen earth spread out as far as the eye can see.

Or a leisurely springtime hike up a flower carpeted Pocono hillside with your camera close at hand to catch that pheasant or covey of quail. The outdoors and photography are a perfect match.

If you're a week-end photographer who can't wait to get out of the city and become one with nature, there are countless opportunities that will allow you to fulfill your desire to "get away" and get that "shot of a lifetime".

Consider those who are lucky enough to live in Seattle, Washington where you can leave work on a Friday afternoon and be standing on the majestic and rugged coastline, removing your camera and tripod from their bag in time to be setting up to focus on one of the most beautiful sunsets on earth.

The next morning, while enjoying your first cup of coffee, you could be snapping pictures of the Grey whales which migrate north along the Washington coast between February and April every year.

photo credit: laurenz

Or maybe mountain scenery is your first love and you are fortunate enough to live in the Yellowstone area of Montana were the wildlife is phenomenal. Grizzly, coyote, elk.... big horned sheep playing on the mountainside. Buffalo grazing peacefully, as they must have a 100 years ago.

This is truly Big Sky Country where you can catch a glimpse of a graceful eagle gliding silently through the trees. These are pictures most people can only see in a magazine, not through their camera lens on a brisk autumn morning.

Remember it's important to research not only where you're going to be photographing and what camera equipment you'll be using, but also the bags, backpacks and pouches to which you entrust your valuable cameras, lenses, tripods and accessories

photo credit: miguel vieira

The touring bicyclist needs to invest in a dry sack in the event he encounters inclement weather, but the young photographer hiking through the Sierra Nevada, in search of the various species of blooming cactus, probably would be in need of the backpack with room for her water bottles. Look for quality, durability and functionality.

Whatever your passion, wherever you call home. There are beautiful pictures waiting to be taken. That horse pasture you are fortunate enough to pass on your way to work every day. Stop; take a good look. I bet you'll see a terrific photograph. One you'd probably be in awe of if you saw it in a magazine. So pack up those camera bags and keep your equipment handy. You never know when that one perfect picture will appear.

About The Author: Suzanne VanDeGrift of Web Submission Services, Inc has developed this article for http://M-ROCK.COM , manufacturer of highly functional camera bags and backpacks which combine superior quality with a professional appearance.

Get Cool With Landscape Photography

noreply@blogger.com (admin1) — Fri, 25 Apr 2008 08:38:00 +0000

Photo: cairnsie16

Photography covers a very wide field - from travel photography to nature, portraits, wildlife, etc. You name it, if you have a camera it's up to you to decide in which photographic direction you want to go. Whether you are an amateur or a professional photographer, you will find your photographic niche. Here, photographer and author Colin Hartness writes about Landscape Photography which is one of the most enjoyable niches in the field of photography and the rewards that go with it if you have the inclination to go down this road.

By Colin Hartness

There are many different types of photography. You can take pictures of anything and there is someone out there somewhere who would like to see the pictures that you take. So, photography is a great field to get into.

What is landscape photography?

Landscape photography is a great field of photography, especially if you love nature and if you love to travel. You can travel the world taking pictures of beautiful scenes across many countries. Of course, this is landscape photography on a big scale. Not many people are lucky enough to start off traveling the world.

But you can find beautiful landscapes right where you live. That’s the great thing about nature, it’s everywhere, and landscapes are everywhere. And that same sunset behind the mountain that you’ve seen everyday since you were a kid may look pretty amazing to someone who has never been to the mountains. Seeing the sun rise up out of the oceanfront may be absolutely astonishing to someone who has never been to the beach. It’s all relative.

What you may see every day is someone else’s treasure. If you can open your eyes to the beauty and see it, then other people can see it in your photography. It can be simple and everyday or it can be vast and amazing. It’s all about the great pictures you take. You may see a night city skyline, a series of lightening bolts or an interesting cloud; it’s how you take the picture that makes it beautiful to someone else.

photo credit: Nicholas_T

How to Learn Landscape Photography

If you are serious about landscape photography, you should take a course. You may have already had a course in photography but you will want to take one specifically for landscape photography so you can learn how to get the best pictures possible. You will want to learn what film to use and how to work with the sunlight or other natural light. You will also learn about achieving a sense of balance and scale, how to photograph running water and similar issues that a landscape photographer might face.

If you can’t find any appropriate classes in your area, you can find them on the internet. You can also find many groups and message boards designed for landscape photographers to meet, share photos and tips and ideas. You can get tips and advice for your questions if you join these groups. You can also view the work of others, some that may be much more experienced than you. You can learn from them and their photos.

How to Make Money with Landscape Photography

If you are considering landscape photography as a career (even part time), the first thing you are going to want to do is learn as much about it as possible; read books, take classes, visit websites. Then you are going to want to practice, and build a portfolio. Your portfolio should be updated often and only include your absolute best work. You may want to send some of your best photos to photo contests or magazines. These are good ways of breaking into the world of professional photography when you have no experience.

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