Landscape photography notes

[Chris989]

I'm going to be taking a trip next week where I shall be taking many landscape photographs. Could you suggest some equipment I'll need and any notes to taking landscape photographs. I'll be walking in the hills of Dorset.

 

[Alastair]

Camera?

(notepad, tripod, remote shutter release, ND and ND grad filters, spare batteries, memory cards, waterproof coat, sandwiches, thermos of tea - if you want to get all techie look at The Photographers Ephemeris and possibly Evernote for notetaking. If by notes you mean a guide to landscape photography, the most practical book I've found is the old Charlie Waite book The Making of Landscape Photographs which is usually only a pound or two secondhand on Amazon)

 

[Peter B]

Hi Christopher
A quick look at your 7 messages suggests you might be fairly new to landscape photography at least, and maybe not in a position to follow all of the equipment suggestions in the good advice that Alastair has given. A tripod is always a good thing if you're taking photos, but not quite so good if you are out walking and only taking photos as a secondary activity. Don't know if your camera can shoot raw, but doing this will give you a lot more chances to play with things like exposure and white balance afterwards and is well worth trying out. If it shoots raw + jpeg then go for that as it lets you see the jpeg immediately and still allows you to tweak the raw later. Check out reviews of your camera to get specific hints and tips on using that model for landscapes as there may be features you're not familiar with, but making sure the metering is right for both sky and foreground will be a big help later. And have fun!

 

[Chris989]

Thanks guys, I'm getting a tripod for next week and I understand why I'll need it but I'm not sure what you mean by raw images Peter? Does it mean a simple photo where I can edit it my pictures on the computer later when I get back? Thanks for the book recommendation Alastair!

 

[Peter B]

Thanks guys, I'm getting a tripod for next week and I understand why I'll need it but I'm not sure what you mean by raw images Peter? Does it mean a simple photo where I can edit it my pictures on the computer later when I get back? Thanks for the book recommendation Alastair!

It's a big topic Christopher so I think you best forget it meantime, and it could be that your camera doesn't take raw images anyway. The manual will confirm that one way or another. If it can take raw, then it is worth exporing the idea behind it and there are many references on the net to help you. This one gives a brief intro, but don't let it interfere with your holiday enjoyment!

http://cameras.about.com/od/advanceddigitalcameras/a/Raw-Vs-Jpeg.htm

 

[swag72]

Hi Christopher and welcome to TP - Good luck with your landscapes. Always an area I have struggled with, really have no eye for them

Look forward to seeing your results

 

[Norkie]

Hi Christopher and welcome to the forum

 

[Chris989]

Thanks for the recommendations and welcomes!

 

[Barryboy]

Hi Christopher, I'm guessing that you're fairly new to photography (or landscapes, anyway). A lot of people over-buden themselves by carrying too much gear around with them. Now we don't know what camera system you have so it's all guesswork, but my suggeston is that you take a camera body fitted with a wide angle zoom, a spare battery and memory card plus a graduated ND filter. I know that I am going to get flamed for this but I don't think a tripod is essential if you have access to a monopod. Not only are they considerable lighter than a tripod they can be very useful for pushing branches, brables etc. out of the way as well as fending off inquisitve sheep.

 

[jerry12953]

The Making of Landscape Photographs which is usually only a pound or two secondhand on Amazon)

And rightly so.................runs away and hides.......

Sorry that probably wasn't very helpful.......but I see this is an old thread and you will probably be long back by now. Hope it went well.