10 Tried and Tested Ways to Improve your Landscape Photography

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Here you will find 10 Tried and Tested ways to improve your landscape photography. Most of them are just good practice, which can easily be overlooked. Some of them are the result of experience gained over the years. But they are certainly all worth taking on board.

Think outside of the box

By all means, browse other photographers’ websites to get ideas. I certainly do. Just make sure that you don’t just copy their images. Create your own style and move it on. Try taking your images in a different light or from a different angle. You’ll find that when selling your images, people often like something a little different from the normal run of the mill. Be imaginative and think outside the box. 

Let the camera do the work

Take the best image that you can at the time that you take it. Photoshop can now turn a so-so image into something that can look quite acceptable but that can result in deterioration of picture quality if the software has been used incorrectly e.g. over sharpening.  Don’t let the availability of corrective software make your image capture sloppy by thinking that you can fix problems when you get home.

Enjoy your photography

Make sure that your photography is a pleasure. Try a new location in a different area of the country. Take your camera on holiday, join a club or try a short course or a photography based holiday. Talk to other photographers, we’re a friendly bunch always happy to pass on advice and tips. And don’t forget, you can always e-mail me!

Fill the frame

This is, I know, an old adage but still a good one. Whilst modern software allows you to zoom in and crop an image, it’s far better to capture the image that you require through the camera’s lens in the first place.

Location, location, location

If you are stuck in a period of bad weather, use the time to search out new locations that you can then visit when the weather and light improve thus allowing you to make optimum use of a day’s shoot.  Make sure that you make a log of these locations in a diary together with any notes such as time of year to visit, time of day to visit, equipment needed etc. It’s no use going to visit a logged down location in August if the purpose was to take images of bluebells in flower in May!

Don't be a headless chicken

Choose your location for the day and stay there. When the day is perfect and you have a long list of shots that you are just aching to take, it’s easy to run around all over the place trying to cover them all in one day. All you’ll end up with is a series of mediocre images none of which you are really happy with. It’s best to blitz one location and end up with just one or two shots that you are really pleased with.

Be prepared

Always have your camera set ready to take that unexpected image that may appear at a second’s notice. You will always rue the day that you missed that ‘once in a lifetime’ shot because your camera was not ready to take it.

Use best practice

If, however, you do have time to prepare yourself for a shot, make sure that you make the best use of your equipment by supporting your camera on a tripod and using a remote switch. It’s no use buying the best equipment if you’re going to leave it at home in the box.

Cleanliness is next to godliness

Always check your kit the night before a day’s shoot e.g. clean lenses and filters, charge battery pack etc...

Purchase wisely

Once you tie yourself into a manufacturer it’s very expensive to change your mind. So do your research before you buy and then make sure that you always purchase the best equipment that you can afford. The superior image quality obtained from say a Canon ‘L’ series professional lens makes this a better long-term purchase than two cheaper lenses bought for the same price.

Conclusion

If you have any comments or questions on this tutorial don't hesitate to Contact me.

Why not join me or one of my 1-2-1 or small group workshops or, if you want specific Photoshop training, check out my 1-2-1 Adobe CC Photoshop Tuition for Photographers.

© Martin Lawrence Photography 2018