Now it’s time to talk about what equipment is needed for landscape photography? Let’s start, perhaps, with the camera. If you get creative with your process, you can shoot a landscape with almost any camera. Of course the better camera you have, the better results you’ll get. Ideally, despite the rapid development of digital technology, large-format film cameras are still considered the most suitable for landscape photography… And what about digital SLR cameras – don’t they fit?
Dmitry Bogachuk. Kiev-Pechersk Lavra,
Nikon D80, Nikkor
18-200 mm f/3.5-5.6, f/9.5, ISO 100, panorama.
The soft light brightened up the already beautiful place, giving the picture the right mood. The high shooting point made it possible to show the immensity and grandiosity of the open view spectacularly.
Choice of Photographic Equipment
If you have visited the exhibitions of famous masters, you may have noticed that there are no pictures taken by cell phones there for some reason, and that the picture printed one meter or more along the long side looks much more impressive than the classic 10×15 cm..
Professionally scanned wide slide gives an incredible reserve of resolution for printing on large formats, and the “film-like” color and contrast add special charm to the photo.
But the use of such techniques requires a thorough mastering of the processes of photography film, especially slide, does not give the right to err, especially if you consider the ratio of the number of reels taken with them and the mental urge to press the button and a lot of money given the cost of film, scanning, etc. . .
The next, most common option nowadays, is the use of a digital SLR camera. I will not dwell on types and brands, in short I will say this: all modern digital SLR cameras without exception allow you to engage in landscape photography at a decent level, and in bad photos can only be blamed on the photographer himself.
If the question of choosing a camera is not so important, then choosing optics is the most difficult and expensive thing to do. The requirements to optics used in landscape photography are very high, and not every lens can achieve the desired result.
For amateur photographers, medium- and high-end zoom lenses are the most suitable. Professional zooms have the best results.
Summarizing the above mentioned, it is better to buy an inexpensive camera and expensive optics than vice versa. It is the lens that draws the light, not the sensor or film.
The range of focal lengths used in landscape photography is comprehensive.
Which lenses are used for landscapes and when.
| Lenses | Purpose, features | Practical application |
| Ultra-wide angle and wide angle | have a wide angle of view, perfectly emphasize perspective in the frame, due to the small size of MDF they work out the foreground down to the smallest details, they are distinguished by a high level of perspective distortion | – when the important elements of the scene are close to the point of view literally within a few meters – if necessary to emphasize perspective space and enhance the volume effect – To create the visual effect of a large depth of field only the effect, actually the DOF does not depend on the focal length |
| Normal | Keep the geometric proportions close to what the human eye sees | The objects terrain to be shot retain their familiar shapes and scale, but the perspective is less pronounced than with wide-angle optics, the angle of view in the frame is reduced often used as a “framing” lens, i.e. e. which cut off unnecessary details |
| Telephoto Lenses | “Bring the subject closer, compress perspective, create a shallow depth of field effect, and minimize geometric distortion | They let you literally “cut out” your subjects from the background, effectively separate them from the background, take pictures of any objects or natural phenomena without getting too close to them at dangerous distances e.g. volcanoes, floods, women… |
Next important tools for making high quality landscape photos are tripods and tripod heads.
Most complex subjects are impossible to photograph without a tripod, because they all require either slow shutter speeds or several takes of the same image with different exposures. Without a good tripod head it’s very difficult to shoot panoramic views to combine single shots in the appropriate programs . tripods and remote controllers are a great addition to your tripod.
Light filters are another indispensable tool. The following filters are widely used in landscape photography:
– polarizing: they remove glare from non-metallic surfaces useful when taking pictures of wet leaves, grass, seashore, etc. . d. , enhance the contrast and partly saturation of the images, are indispensable for capturing scenes that include most of the sky
– Neutral gray – reduce the amount of light hitting the light receptor film or matrix , allow you to set long shutter speeds when photographing, for example, seascapes and moving water to create the effect of “milk” , in urban landscapes – to eliminate “extraneous” moving objects cars, people
– gradient – they allow you to take pictures with big differences in brightness in the frame: sunrises, sunsets, etc. d.
– Color – designed for artistic toning of the photo at the shooting stage.
The choice of clothing for the photographer is a serious factor of success, because the number of pictures taken depends on the possibility to be in certain conditions for a long time. I had the experience of running in ankle-deep summer shoes in soaking wet snow, and I quickly lost my inspiration and my ability to think creatively. A similar approach should be taken to the selection of equipment.
Technical aspects of landscape photography
Let’s take a look at some landscape shooting techniques. Let’s start with the shooting parameters. Factors that will determine the parameters of the picture will be the values of aperture, shutter speed and sensitivity in various combinations.
The aperture is chosen according to the shooting subject and the lens parameters. In most cases, landscape photography requires a large depth of field, so the aperture must be closed to achieve a larger DOF. If the aim is to make the object to be shot stand out it is better to use small apertures for blurring the background. Remember that the best quality results are obtained with medium telephoto lenses.
Shutter speed depends on many factors, and each time you need to carefully evaluate the situation before taking a picture. When shooting a “standard” landscape on a tripod in windless conditions the shutter speed does not play a great role, the defining parameter is the aperture.
And in windy weather, short shutter speeds should be used to “freeze” the rippling grass and leaves. In each case, the value is determined experimentally or by eye, based on experience.
Similarly you can set the shutter speed when photographing falling snow or waterfall: you can almost never guess how beautiful and impressive the snow or waterfall will be with a single shutter speed.
When shooting without a tripod, you should keep in mind a simple formula: a safe shutter speed for handheld photography is about 1/F, where F is the focal length in 35mm equivalent. With stabilization, the value of a slow shutter speed can increase.
Sensitivity. By changing the sensitivity we can partially solve the issues of correct shutter speed. When shooting with a film camera, changing the sensitivity is a rather painful issue, because you can’t change the sensitivity until you have finished shooting the whole film.
In digital cameras this problem is solved, but there are certain limitations, because, as we know, one of the pitfalls in photo equipment is a significant reduction in image quality by increasing sensitivity – digital noise.
Ideally, the lower the sensitivity, the less noise you will get and the higher the quality you will get. Of course, this statement does not apply to those works where noise is an integral part of the picture.
Landscapes from the Planet
Mikhail Vershinin, Blue Taiga, Krasnoyarsk Pillars, America
Canon EOS 1Ds Mark II
, 40 mm, f/13, 1/4 c, ISO 200.
In the Christmas frost, just after sunset, the fog stretched over the Yenisei. The foreground realistically reproduced the space in the frame, and the curves of the slopes added to the elegance of the shot.
Vadim Balakin. Oasis, Death Valley, California, USA
Canon EOS 5D, Canon EF
100-400 mm f/4.5-5.6L IS USM.
Rhythmic waves of sand wash over a lonely island of life like time. Low light played a huge role in the shot, allowing the author to strongly emphasize the undulating sand texture and add volume to the image.
Vadim Balakin. When the stars are lit Indian Beach, Oregon, USA
Canon EOS 5D Mark II
, 20 mm, f/11, 25 sec, ISO 100, X-PRO Cokin filters: ND4 + Gradual ND8.
An ethereally beautiful beach is picturesquely complemented by sea inhabitants. Clear cut, perspective in the frame, soft warm colors make this shot a landscape classic.
In the next publication we will look at the technical nuances of landscape photography: in particular, shooting with a slow shutter speed, panoramas and others.
I am very grateful to the photographers for their work:
To Alexander Nesterovsky Ukraine , nesterovskyi.com
To Yuri Golub Ukraine , yurybird.com
To Michael Reifman USA , mikereyfman.com
to Mikhail Trakhtenberg America , t_berg.photosight
To Mikhail Vershinin America , vershinin.photosight
To Vadim Balakin America , vadimbalakin.com
To Dmitry Bogachuk Ukraine , dimitribogachuk.500px.com
What role does the use of poetry and prose play in enhancing the impact of landscape photography? How does it contribute to the overall experience for both the photographer and the viewer?