Landscape photography
By Dawn Lane
So you think you might be interested in doing a little landscape photography but the grand sweeping vistas of Ansel Adams Yellowstone tend to intimidate more than inspire? Don't despair. You needn't lug around 30 lbs of camera equipment or scout the National Parks for suitable subjects to enjoy the art of landscape photography. It is within the reach of anyone who enjoys the outdoors and owns even the most basic camera equipment.
Defining landscape photography
Landscape photography is difficult to define. The more landscape photography I do, the broader my definition becomes. For me, landscape photography is not so much about what is contained in the image, but what it portrays about a place. While a landscape photograph might be a wide-angle image of a pristine lake or an ocean sunset, it might just as well be a dormant plant in a winter pond. If the lake, the sunset and the dormant plant image each reveal something significant about a place, its inhabitants, or its conditions and evoke an emotional response in the viewer, they qualify as landscape photographs in my book. Grand or tiny, a landscape is not so much about the subject itself, but rather about the place in which the subject exists and the feeling the subject and place evokes.
Camera equipment for landscape photography
You do not need to invest in a lot of expensive gear to begin exploring landscape photography. I like to travel light and concentrate on taking pictures rather than changing lenses, so my gear of choice is a Coolpix 5700 digicam with a built in zoom lens. A zoom lens will give you ready access to a wide range of focusing distances that will allow you to explore different compositions within a single scene with little effort. The one additional piece of equipment I would recommend is a lightweight tripod. A tripod will ensure a steady camera at any shutter speed and allow you to fine tune your compositions.
Landscape photography in your own backyard
What if the familiar places of the famous landscape photographers lay many states away from your own home? Who says these are the most worthy locations anyway? Landscape photography is not about a specific place, but about seeing the significance of the natural world around you every day. Your own backyard literally can be a great starting place because you know it better than any other place. If you don't have a backyard to call your own, a city or county park, a campground or even a drainage pond bordering the local shopping mall can provide a great starting place to explore landscape photography. Most of my landscape photography takes place within a 20-mile radius of my home. I've created a list of places I like to visit and have come to know these places well. One you know a place well, you can anticipate things like how the light will cast a shadow at a particular time of day, or when a certain wildflower will be in bloom.
Photos Copyright 2005 Dawn Lane All rights reserved
