Landscape photo by moonjazz

Landscape photography includes aiming that digital SLR on seascapes such as beaches, rivers, lakes, waterfalls … you get the point. Special care must be given to your camera settings as seascape environments can cause misleading exposure meter. In a ‘landscape’ with so many reflective surfaces your digital camera’s meter can be fooled into measuring the scene brighter than it really is. A seascape photograph is susceptible to underexposure and you paid too much dough to have that digital SLR take bad photos. Overcome this camera problem by taking a meter reading close up of some mid-tone detail in the scene.

GET THE BEST OCEAN VIEW

So you find yourself staring at the sea. Don’t just stare, start using that digital camera.

1. First decide on the composition.

2. Then point the camera to an area of mid-tone details such as grey rock. Depress the shutter release button half-way; this will activate the meter and the camera will record the reading.

3. Maintaining the shutter depressed this position, move the camera back to the scene of the original composition.

4. Now gently depress the shutter release button fully and take the picture. To take similar picture from a slightly different viewpoint you will have to repeat the process of each shot.

SPECIAL CAMERA EQUIPMENT FOR SEASCAPE PHOTOS

1. Lens hood- This helps cut down unwanted reflections which may flare on the camera lens.

2. A polarizing filter – You’ve gotta love a good polarizing filter! Blue become bluer and it also enhances the reflective nature of the surface of the sea!

INCLUDE RIVERS AND LAKES IN YOUR LANDSCAPE PHOTOS

Rivers, lakes and streams as well as canals offer an entirely different photographic opportunity versus those found by the sea and costal regions. An extra dimension is added by the surrounding areas which means can take a picture ‘reflective image’ double scene. Water is at its stillest very early in the morning before the wind, if there is any, has begun to blow. If the surface of the water is completely still the surrounding scenery reflected in it can produce a striking mirror image.

The same dilemma of calculating exposure encountered when taking seascapes also apply to picture of large stretches of fresh or inland water; the exposure metering system may judge light as being brighter than it is because of light coming from the expanse of reflective water. The same as sea photos, compensation must be made for this in order to avoid underexposure and ruined pictures.

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