17 Absolute Best Landscape Photography Tips

Landscape photography is a delicate art, a genre of photography that can be shot almost anywhere outdoors and is almost entirely free to practice. It is so readily available yet still difficult to master; practicing new techniques is one of the best ways to improve your landscape photography.

View of an island during sunset in Dubrovnik — *Dubrovnik Island Sunset*

If you are struggling with your landscape photography or just want to become a better landscape photographer, then these top landscape photography tips will help you on your journey.

Plan Your Shoots Carefully

Researching a good location is probably the easiest part of shooting landscape photos. But making the most of your location and maximizing your time there is a bit more tricky. To maximize your time at your location, try to map out your shoot before you get there.

Pinpointing various places or landmarks that you think will give you the best shots is a sure way to get the most out of the area you are shooting landscapes in. When I look for locations for landscape photography, I usually go through a checklist like this:

Find a location to photograph through blogs and online searches.
Use online maps to look for landmarks and interesting viewpoints at that location.
Find out what time of day is best for photographing that location. Is it sunset evening or early morning?
Check the weather at the location.
Pack the right clothes for the environment you plan to visit.
Pack your camera bag properly with any accessories or gear you need.

If you're thinking of embarking on a landscape photography adventure and want to improve your landscape photos, you don't need to climb the Himalayas or travel to Antarctica. Of course, that would be an amazing experience and provide you with incredible subject matter, but just remember that most of these landscape photography tips can be practiced pretty much anywhere outdoors with standard camera gear.

Use Neutral Density Filters

Neutral density filters are great for changing the amount of light you let into your photo. This will allow you to use a slow shutter speed, creating soft water and motion blur in your images. An example of this would be a photographer attempting to photograph a seascape with soft water during the day, but the camera lets in too much light.

Lake Konigssee long exposure photograph — *Long exposure of Lake Konigssee in Germany*

You would need to lessen the amount of light with an ND filter, which in turn lets you use a slower shutter speed (a long exposure) and create the soft water effect. You can create some stunning landscape photos with filters, and the ND filter is one of the most utilized in landscape photography.

Always Bring a Tripod

This is one of the most important tips for improving your landscape images and one of the most basic pieces of landscape photography gear. A tripod is a vital part of improving; it enables us to use neutral density filters and create long-exposure images. It also allows us to shoot in low light while still getting clean images.

The type of tripod is not too important, especially if you are not doing super-long exposures. A good travel tripod is good enough for most scenarios. If a big, heavy tripod is just going to weigh you down and put you off taking it, then it's far better to get something smaller and actually bring it in your backpack.

Get Your Exposure Right

Digital cameras have a tough time bringing back highlights in post-processing. Although most modern cameras can recover shadows very well these days, For this reason, I generally favor underexposing my images instead of overexposing them.

The shadows of an underexposed photograph can usually be recovered in post-processing. However, blown-out highlights are very difficult to get back in post-processing.

Of course, it is far better to get the exposure just right, but we all know how difficult that can be when you are shooting in different lighting conditions. With that in mind, I generally follow these rules when it comes to proper exposure settings:

Underexpose sunsets and scenes with harsh lights.
Check the histogram when in doubt about your exposure settings.
Take test shots and preview the back of the screen to see if your exposure is correct.

Check Your Shots Are in Focus

Autofocus works exceptionally well on modern digital cameras. However, it can miss on darker scenes, especially when there are harsh shadows or areas that cannot be seen clearly. Review your images onscreen once in a while during your shoot.

Zoom in and check that the images are in focus. If you are shooting at night or in the evening, you might want to use manual focus, depending on how good your camera's autofocus is.

Get Familiar With Your Camera Settings

Low ISO

Modern DSLR cameras and mirrorless cameras are amazing. They can take great pictures quickly and work with low light levels at high ISOs. However, a side effect of taking a photo at a higher ISO is that it will make images more grainy, which is not a desirable effect in landscape photography. Try to keep the ISO numbers on your digital camera as low as possible, as this will result in better-quality images.

Aperture

Small apertures like f8, f11, and f16 are some of the most desirable when it comes to capturing great landscape photos. Photographers generally avoid using larger apertures like f1.4, f2, or even f4 in landscape photography because they result in a shallow depth of field, which is used for blurring backgrounds. We basically want everything in focus with as much detail as possible, and smaller apertures like f8, f11, and f16 will give us that.

Shutter Speeds

Shutter speeds are subjective, depending on what kind of landscape you are photographing. If there is a person or animal in your photograph, then you will want to freeze the moment with a high shutter speed like 1/250s. If there is a body of water, like a lake, then you might want to smooth the water with a slow shutter speed by using a filter and a 5-second shutter speed.

These three settings are what is known as the exposure triangle, and mastering these settings can greatly improve your overall photography. Being familiar with the exposure triangle is essential to improving your landscape photography so be sure to practice using them in manual mode.

Try Using a Telephoto Lens

Typically, landscape photography is associated with using wide-angle lenses. However, many landscape photographers these days have started using telephoto lenses too.

Using a camera lens with a longer focal length gives photos a more compressed aesthetic, and certain elements in the frame end up looking a lot closer together than they actually are. A great focal length for this is 70–300mm or 70–200mm lenses.

The benefit of a telephoto lens focal length is that it makes things in the distance appear a lot larger and closer together than they are in reality. This is especially useful when you are far away from a landscape and want to get closer to it but can't reach the place.

Evening view of Turtle Island in Taiwan — *Turtle Island in Taiwan*

Using telephoto lenses also gives the image a cool effect, which looks like the landscape is a bit compressed and can produce some pretty unique results when compared to standard focal lengths.

The images above are two prime example of where I needed a telephoto lens because I was too far away from what I wanted to photograph. No matter what I did I wouldn’t have been able to capture these landscape shots if it were not for a telephoto lens.

Try Using a Wide Angle Lens

Wide-angle lenses are able to capture wider views of landscapes and allow photographers to capture the foreground elements and leading lines that draw viewers into the rest of the image.

Many landscape photographers prefer wide-angle lenses, but don't let that discourage you if you don't own one, as great landscape photos can be taken with all types of lenses.

I often use a standard wide-angle lens of around 24mm instead of my ultra-wide angle lens of 12mm. I personally prefer to use ultra-wide-angle lenses for architecture and cityscapes rather than landscapes.

Include an Interesting Foreground Element

One problem with most landscape photography is that the subjects are far removed and do not draw you into the photo, making it unappealing for viewers. This gives some landscape photos a flat look that should be avoided. Lookout for nearby rocks, plants, or bodies of water that can enhance the picture and give you the feeling of a third dimension.

Using a wide-angle lens allows you to get closer to both the foreground and subject while retaining sharp edges, making the background and foreground synchronize better in the frame. If this doesn't work, try getting closer somehow, or even use a telephoto lens like in the previous tip. The main purpose here is to get some depth in our photos and avoid a flat look.

Include People or Wildlife in Your Landscape Shots

Including people and wildlife in landscape pictures is a great way to enhance landscape images. These elements are often overlooked in favor of clean, uncluttered photographs. However, people and animals can actually introduce a sense of space and reality into images.

*Taipei beach view with people on the shores*

They give the viewer a better insight into the scene and capture their imagination. Even if the views are incredible, one person or animal can sometimes make the image a whole lot better. Give this a try, and it might just transform our landscape photography.

*Cow on the fields of Berchtesgaden National Park*

Without the cow in the landscape photo above it wouldn’t be very interesting at all. I believe it would be a generic image without this cow and I probably wouldn’t have taken it. Look out for animals or people that can add interest to the landscape, sometimes its just small things that are missing.

Use RAW Format

RAW, is an unprocessed file format that retains more details in both the shadows and highlights of the image. This allows you to make the adjustments in post-processing rather than with JPEG, which is done inside the camera as soon as you capture the photo. You can think of RAW in a quite literal way: a raw photograph with nothing done to it, and a jpeg as a cooked photograph with the color highlights and shadows a bit more baked in.

Even though it may save you space on your SD card by using JPEG format, you'll lose valuable information and might find it harder to edit during post-processing. The RAW file format gives you more leeway to underexpose or overexpose an image, which may potentially save your photos if something goes wrong.

Another benefit of shooting raw is that you will always have the original, unprocessed file. For example, if you edit and save a JPEG, it will be permanently saved into the JPEG. RAW files are non-destructive and can be easily reverted to their original state or converted to other file formats, like jpegs.

Post-Processing Landscape Photography tips

Post processing is a difficult but essential part of landscape photography. Almost every landscape photographer uses some form of post-processing. The most popular softwares to use are Lightroom and Photoshop, which I currently use both.

I struggled a lot with this at the start of my photography journey and found it difficult to make my final post-processed photos look the way I wanted them to.

I began post-processing by only using Photoshop, although I started to realize that Lightroom was a much easier way of editing and could edit a lot more photos faster. I would recommend learning Lightroom first, and watching YouTube tutorials is the best way to learn how to use it quickly. Lightroom and Photoshop also give users tips.

Youtube videos and tutorials were a very valuable asset for me when it came to learning how to use post processing. The previous tip of shooting in raw and using Lightroom to process your images is surely the fastest and most simple way for beginners.

Use Bodies of Water

Bodies of water create soft water when shot at a slow shutter speed and can create crashing, dramatic waves when used at a fast shutter speed. They can give the viewer a sense of space within your photographs, and you can use bodies of water in so many different ways.

This is one of my essential landscape photography tips, as I believe water is one of the most useful parts of the landscape. This isn't just limited to huge lakes or vast seascapes. bodies of water can be a pond, riverside, stream, waterfall, or reservoir. Water is everywhere, so remember to keep an eye out for it when you're out photographing landscape.

What Makes a Good Landscape Photo?

You might be wondering what makes a good landscape photograph. Well, these 5 rules are generally good guidelines to stick by, and when practiced correctly, they will ensure that you will definitely improve your landscape photography.

Composition and Framing

Composition plays an important part in all photographic genres, and landscape photography is no exception. So you might be wondering: What is the proper way of composing your shots? This is something that is asked of a lot of beginner landscape photographers. The simplest rules to follow when it comes to composition and framing are:

Use the rule of thirds when you feel it's applicable.
Avoid distracting objects in your compositions.
Use leading lines to draw the viewer into the frame.
Try to create depth in your composition; this could be with people or objects.
Avoid harsh light, as it may ruin your composition.
Try to frame your landscape through trees or other natural elements.
Finally, don't be afraid to try new compositions and framing, but don't try to reinvent photography by taking crooked or upside-down photos.

Leading Lines

Leading lines are a great way to draw the viewer from the foreground to the background of your photograph. Images with leading lines tend to keep the viewers attention better.

View of Borunemouth Beach in England — *Bournemouth Beach in England*

That is not to say that all images need leading lines. But generally, if there is a bridge or pier in front of you, try to make it lead into the rest of the frame, like I have attempted in the image above.

Depth of Field

Depth of field is a term we often use in photography, and a good landscape photo would not be any good without a deep depth of field. The aim of a deep depth of field is to get everything in the frame in focus.

Depending on how close you are to the landscape or subject matter, the f stop you use to gain this deep depth of field will vary, but a general rule to follow is not to go below f8 if you can help it. Put simply f8, f11, f16, and anything in between these numbers or after these numbers will usually provide you with a deep depth of field.

Depth of field does depend on how close you are to a subject matter, but generally, f8 and above is a good rule to follow if you want to get a deep depth of field in your photos.

Good Lighting Conditions

Lighting conditions are essential to capturing stunning landscape photography. Remember, we want a three-dimensional image that can pull the viewer into the photograph. Dull lighting won't provide that. A good way to discover the impact of light is by photographing the same location at two or three different times of the day or revisiting the location when the weather has changed.

Try photographing the location during the daytime, sunset, and blue hour. Then compare the results from each time and see how different they all are. The difference between each photoshoot should be very noticeable. Each place will have its best time of day to photograph. If you experiment with different times of day, spotting the right lighting conditions will eventually come naturally to you.

Interesting Subject Matter

Subject matter is extremely important in all aspects of photography. No genre of photography will produce good photographs without good subject matter. This is your responsibility to find subject matter that is worth photographing.

The best part about landscape and nature photography is that subject matter can be found almost anywhere outdoors. Don't look too hard, and give yourself a headache trying to find it. Waterfalls and sweeping vistas are not necessary, especially when most of us have great places not too far from our front doors.

The easiest way to find good subject matter is to look around and ask friends, family, or locals if they know anywhere worth photographing in the area that you are visiting or staying in. Subject matter is everywhere; make an effort to find it, and your photography will reap the rewards.

Have an Adventure to Capture Great Images

A good landscape photographer has one attribute that is difficult to teach: a thirst for adventure. This doesn't mean you have to travel the world photographing stunning vistas, but you should be constantly looking for new places to photograph.

While it might be true that your area is not particularly interesting, this shouldn't stop you from having an adventure.

Try hopping on a bus or train somewhere; you might be able to find a town nearby that has a national park that you never knew about.

The tip here is to constantly try to discover places to photograph and different ways to photograph them. No matter where you are, there is usually some interesting landscape nearby, and it's up to you to find it.

Change Viewpoints

Moving around and changing viewpoints is an essential part of good landscape photography too. Viewpoints can be from anywhere on the land or in an area. Just remember that landscape photographs do not necessarily need to be captured from a high viewpoint. However, many photographers find that this opens up the landscape more and gives the viewer more to look at. This is not essential to landscape photography, but viewpoints often give us better views.

So look around for viewpoints to see if you can get a better view of the vast landscape. Photographing landscapes from a different angle or viewpoint is one of the key fundamentals for capturing stunning landscape photos.

Equipment I Use for Landscape Photography

The equipment I use for landscape photography is the following:.

Sony A7riii - This camera has incredible image quality, and it’s perfect for travelling.

Sony 24-105mm - A versatile zoom lens that you can take with you to almost any scenario.

Sony 12-24mm - This is a more specialized wide-angle lens that would be used for architecture and some landscape situations.

Velbon Tripod - A light-weight travel tripod suitable for most use cases. It might not withstand very strong winds, but for me, this works just fine, as I usually don't go out shooting in very harsh weather.

Tenba Backpack - This backpack holds it all; you can fit your camera, a load of lenses, and accessories while it still looks nice and fashionable.

This gear has proven itself to work very well for me over the years. However, the camera gear is expensive, and you don't need to spend a ton of money on a high-end camera and lenses. Plenty of cheaper modern digital cameras will do the job just as well as this higher-end gear, and it is your skills that are more important than the camera.

Summary of Best Landscape Photography Tips

Landscape photography is complex and often underestimated. Yes, it is readily available to capture in our outdoor environment. But to be a good landscape photographer, you will need precise planning, great composition, awesome subject matter, awesome lighting, and a sense of adventure to seek out new places.

Trying one or more of these landscape photography tips is a great way to improve. It is a journey, so be patient and learn through trial and error. I hope you will find success and improve your landscape photography through practice.