Photography Masterclass Winter 2009
When I was 18 I had an obsession. She was blonde and worked in my local pub. Some 20-odd years later I’m married to that obsession, but I’ve developed another.
When I was 18 I had an obsession. She was blonde and worked in my local pub. Some 20-odd years later I’m married to that obsession, but I’ve developed another.
As winter approaches, I Google the weather forecast, willing the wet stuff to turn white. You see, snow and ice get my photographic pulse racing. But making the most of winter conditions involves some understanding of what will and won’t work. For instance, one morning the falling
snowflakes will be like saucers, but the sky will be leaden. These conditions are best for forest interiors or local wildlife. Any species of bird or mammal looks fantastic in falling snow. Garden birds are an obvious starter – think Christmas-card robin!
Shoot the big view
Another day dawns cloudless, there’s no wind and the trees are coated in frost. This is a big-view day, but care needs to be taken with the light and building the composition.
I choose side lighting for wide winter landscapes, which allows the sun to sculpt the soft undulations in the ground. Shooting into the light can enhance the sparkly effect of ice crystals. Deciding on what works best requires a combination of planning and an understanding of winter light.
Intimate and creative
Winter-wonderland weather never lasts long and when brooding skies regain their grip, covering the landscape in monochromatic numbness, it’s time to go for an intimate landscape. This focuses on a particular area of visual interest, big or small. It’s an image that celebrates detail. It might rely on visual complexity or aesthetic simplicity, such as a close-up of ice on a frozen pond.
Finally, a word about exposure. Today’s digital cameras achieve consistently well exposed
images. The problem is that some cameras do this better than others. Check your camera’s histogram to ensure you’ve captured a full range of detail.
- Be discerning in snowy conditions — decide what will work best.
- Keep warm — photography is much less fun if you’re cold.
- Learn about how your camera copes with difficult exposures.
- Try turning some images into black and white — it can look fantastic!
- Keep at it — snow doesn’t come very often and it pays to be obsessive!
Step-by-step guide
- Loch Morlich in the Cairngorms is a favourite haunt of winterlandscape photographers. I’d headed up there in bright sunshine, but, by the time I arrived, it had changed — as it turned out, for the better! The loch was mirrorcalm, which is unusual for this windswept corner of the Highlands.
- The snow-capped rocks were the obvious foreground interest and I positioned myself so that they lead the eye from bottom right to top left. This involved stepping into the icy water with my trusty tripod.
- Using a small aperture of f16 for front-to-back sharpness, I took care to balance the lead line
of the rocks with the brooding cloud and its reflection in the water. - When processing the image back home, I reduced the colour temperature just a tad to enhance the cold ‘blue’ feel of the image.
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- This entry was posted on: Friday, November 27th, 2009 at 5:36 pm
- Filed under: Features, Photography
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