1. Tripod and Joystick Head: First of all, like many of you already know, the use of a good sturdy tripod is absolutely essential in order to obtain great landscape images. Most of my images were achieved using long shutter speed making it impossible to obtain without using one. If you can afford it go for a well-known brand like Gitzo, Manfrotto and opt for a light model to facilitate your experience. They might be a bit more expensive but definitely worth every penny. As for tripod heads, I personally can’t live without my Manfrotto 322RC2 Grip Action Ball, it might be heavier than standard heads but love how fast you can set you camera and be ready to shoot in crucial moments.
http://www.gitzo.com
http://www.manfrotto.com
2. Make sure your Horizon is straight: This is a small detail but details are exactly what we forget when shooting outdoors. I know that all images, if needed, can be straighten afterwards during the post-processing but that also means that you will have to crop your image. Sometime you won’t crop it enough to affect the final results but the times that you will, you will deeply regret not paying attention to this trivial detail.
3. A Wide Angle Lense is a MUST: In landscape photography perspective is really important. Striking images can surely be obtained with the help of a long Zoom Lens ( 50mm and up ) But if your main goal is to give your viewer more of the whole story and make them feel like they are there on site witnessing this beautiful scenery, a wide angle lens is a must ( I personally recommend anything below 24mm)
4. Polarizing Filter: For many reason this is the first filter you should carry in your camera bag. It will remove all glare caused by daylight on the water and all other reflective objects (wet rocks, leaves etc..) Second, it will add contrast to any scene when used properly and works especially well during hazy days. Finally it will darken your sky and make the clouds pop up on bright sunny days this is one way to achieve the saturated colors many landscape photographers dwell for. A polarizing filter is kind of useless on a bright cloudy sky unless using it only for the purpose of slowing down shutter speed. (Capturing the movement of clouds, water, leafs).
5. Rule of third: Good to think about but please don’t make it an absolute rule. A quick and easy way to go about it is to ask yourself what part of my composition is stronger visually? Is it my sky or my foreground? Once you have answered this question, it will be easier for you to determine which part to put emphasis on. Remember, all rules are made to be broken (in my book) so as far as the rule of third goes, use it in most situation but don’t be afraid to experiment and always decide on what you personally think is best. Do not shoot to please others, do it for you and keep it interesting.
6. Graduated Neutral Density Filters: These are also a must for any serious landscape photographer. Unless you want to spend endless hours merging images in photoshop you will quickly see that these little filters are sweet time savers. Most of the time they are used to darken the sky to reduce the contrast between sky and landscape. Since cameras have a low dynamic range, there is no way to achieve perfect exposure in low light situations’ without the help of ND Grad Filters. I personally recommend Lee or Singh-Ray filters. Expensive but really high quality and won’t affect colors at all.
http://www.leefilters.com/
http://www.singh-ray.com
7. Golden Hours: I will only shoot (99% of the time) during the Golden hours. Golden hours are referred by the time shortly before till shortly after sunrise and sunset. This is when you wil
l get the greatest results. Again this is a rule and don’t be afraid to break it if you feel like it.
8. Foreground Element: If you study my images you will obviously see that I am a big fan of strong foregrounds. I feel that it pulls the viewer right into the shot and create a great sense of depth. Please Note: This is what I personally prefer and it is always up to you to develop your own vision and creations. See what moves you and go that direction.
9. Sharpness: Imagine being on site to witness what we can call “Divine Intervention”. For a fraction of a second everything seems to fall into places just for you. You only have time to go click and then it’s all gone. Excited about the experience you witnessed you then rush home to see the final result just to realize that your capture is far from being sharp. There is nothing worst than this and we all did it at some point. Learn the hyperfocal distance or practice with different settings take notes and then study the results. In landscape photography, aim for complete sharpness from immediate foreground to distant landscape.
10. Have fun and Enjoy Last but not least, HAVE FUN. Don’t do it if you don’t feel like it, don’t do it to impress others or to get praises Do it for you and for the feeling it procures. If you are in total harmony with yourself, you will subconsciously render that feeling of happiness, peace and joy into your photographs and be eventually recognized for that.
Thank you for you interest in my work, I truly appreciate this. It just makes me appreciate my passion even more.
Stay tuned for many exciting things to come
Patrick Di Fruscia
www.DiFrusciaPhotography.com
pat@difrusciaphotography.com
