SPECIAL
Landscape
MAIN CHARACTER ENERGY
Words and Photography Lisa Michele Burns | OM SYSTEM Ambassador
SPECIAL
Landscape
MAIN CHARACTER ENERGY
Words and Photography Lisa Michele Burns | OM SYSTEM Ambassador
SPECIAL
Landscape
MAIN CHARACTER ENERGY
Words and Photography Lisa Michele Burns | OM SYSTEM Ambassador
Whether you’re photographing mist...
rising above an alpine lake or a rainforest’s tangled canopy, landscape photography is filled with thrilling, pinch-yourself moments. Lucky for us camera-toting travellers, nature is already pretty darn photogenic. In fact, it’s already the main character, you just need to know how to take its close up.
With landscape photography it’s all about timing and conditions. Being in the right place at the right time is half the chase (and fun). The golden hours of sunrise and sunset are ideal for capturing low light conditions, pastel skies and glowing scenery—three things most landscape photographers cross their fingers and toes for. But then again, skies are often most interesting just after a storm. So don’t discount the wild weather.
I photograph with the OM SYSTEM OM-1 camera because its weather sealing means I can photograph outdoors in any environment whether it’s humid, freezing, or wet. I’ve had the camera with me on snowshoe hikes in Greenland when the temperatures reached -36°C degrees and I was shooting icebergs drifting in Ilulissat Icefjord. I’ve also shot epic sand dunes in the far northwestern corner of Namibia where desert-adapted elephants thrive in one of the driest environments on earth.
Dreamy light in Australia's Whitsunday's.
But what makes a great landscape photograph?
A great landscape photograph should show that the photographer has considered the scene, and subjects, and composed the shot with creative vision based on the conditions.
Classically good landscape photographs will have a level horizon, sharp details from side to side, and depict the scene in beautiful light–but I think it’s more important to have fun with photography and experiment with creative techniques, even if it’s more artistic than classically correct. Tell a story! Draw the viewer in!
Greenland icefjord in the spotlight.
Okay, let’s talk gear
Less is always more when it comes to landscape photography.
A lightweight camera kit is ideal if you’ll be hiking, and opting for a versatile lens can immediately reduce weight in your camera bag. If your camera has great in-built stability, it can also exclude the need to lug a bulky tripod around.
Being prepared to photograph in wild weather conditions is also essential and can be the difference between running indoors and hiding, or capturing a unique shot that documents the raw beauty of nature. If your camera has impeccable weather sealing, you can seek out reflections and photograph through the rain, which might not sound too pleasant, but throwing on a raincoat and sticking it out can produce some very creative results!
Lisa with her trusty OM-System.
Canmore, Canada.
KNOW YOUR
Lenses!
Wide-Angle
Best for photographing vast landscapes and including the entire scene within your image.
Zoom Lens
Best for capturing the finer details within a scene or for drawing in distant features.
Prime Lens
Great for challenging yourself to using a set focal length and producing beautiful bokeh.
Versatile Lenses
You can opt for a wide-angle zoom lens (for example the 12-100mm f.4 OM SYSTEM lens) or a telephoto zoom lens (40-150mm f2.8 pro lens by OM SYSTEM) which will allow you to cover a variety of focal lengths with one or two lenses.
Wide-Angle
Best for photographing vast landscapes and including the entire scene within your image.
Zoom Lens
Best for capturing the finer details within a scene or for drawing in distant features.
Prime Lens
Great for challenging yourself to using a set focal length and producing beautiful bokeh.
Versatile Lenses
You can opt for a wide-angle zoom lens (for example the 12-100mm f.4 OM SYSTEM lens) or a telephoto zoom lens (40-150mm f2.8 pro lens by OM SYSTEM) which will allow you to cover a variety of focal lengths with one or two lenses.
AND
Don’t leave home without!
› A lightweight, weather-sealed camera
› Versatile lens
› Extra batteries & memory cards
› Head torch
› Filters (the OM-1 has an in-built Live ND filter)
› Water resistant & supportive camera bag
› Comfortable hiking shoes + clothing
HOW TO
Get creative
SHOOT
Long Exposures
If there’s water, light sources, or subjects moving within the frame, aim to slow down your shutter speed and create light trails or water. Great for starry skies, waves, waterfalls, and stormy weather. To shoot long exposures, you need to adjust your shutter speed and slow it down whilst at the same time balancing your ISO and aperture to ensure the image isn’t overexposed. It’s a great technique to try in low light conditions when it’s easier to balance your camera settings with the available light.
CREATE
Sun Stars
Photographing with an aperture of around f/16 produces sun sparkles when you align the sun with a subject within the landscape. It can also work to sit pretty across a bright blue sky; however, I recommend trying to compose your image so the sun is just touching and bouncing out from behind a tree, mountain peak or isolated subject.
USE
Aperture to your Advantage
Aperture helps to control the exposure and depth of field. By photographing with a wide aperture (between f/1.4 – f/5.6 for example), less of the scene will be in focus, however it can help to blur the foreground or background to emphasise various subjects. To use aperture and add a pop of colour to the foreground, you can focus your shot on the distant landscape, adjust your aperture to f/2.8, and then frame your shot using nearby flowers or leaves to add a colourful pop of greenery or florals. The result will be a blur of green that acts as a frame for the scene in the distance.
EMBRACE
Golden Goodness
Colours and tones can be adjusted in the editing process, but you can also adjust your white balance in the camera to warm up the scene during golden hour. Setting your white balance to ‘cloudy’ mode, can enhance the warmer tones and allow those beautiful glowing colours to pop a little more. Using this setting when photographing the beach at sunset, sand dunes at dusk or when there’s a watery scene with light bouncing off the surface will produce stunning landscape photographs.
COMMON
Mistakes to avoid
Harsh midday light
Don’t be surprised if you’re not taking great landscape photographs in the middle of the day. Save yourself for softer light.
DO THIS INSTEAD
Shooting straight ahead
Moving around and trying different angles and framing possibilities will always result in a better image than standing upright and photographing straight ahead.
DO THIS INSTEAD
Being weighed down
You’re unlikely to truly enjoy yourself if you’re carrying a camera pack that weighs a tonne. Pack only what you need, and can carry!
DO THIS INSTEAD
Not checking the weather forecast
Very important. Means you’re less likely to get stuck unprepared in a storm, or find your gear swept away on an incoming tide.
DO THIS INSTEAD
THINK YOU'VE GOT A WINNER?
Send us your best travel photos for a chance to win an OM-5 + 14-150mm Kit, valued at AU$2,399, plus have your image featured in the magazine! This stylish, compact, interchangeable-lens camera is perfect for travel. explore.omsystem.com
‘FERNIE BC’
The way Arran Linden Gravestein has captured the immensity of Fernie—located in Canada's Elk Valley area—makes for an incredible shot. The mountains looming over the tiny skiers really gives us a big dose of perspective.
Congratulations to Arran Linden Gravestein for winning our Frame Your View competition. Arran has scored an OM-System camera for entering this incredible shot.
THINK YOU'VE GOT A WINNER?
Send us your best travel photos for a chance to win an OM-5 + 14-150mm Kit, valued at AU$2,339, plus have your image featured in the July/August issue of get lost! This stylish, compact, interchangeable lens camera is perfect for travel. explore.omsystem.com
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