Mountains are awe-inspiring. Vast and brooding, they can take your breath away. Yet many times, when you look at your pictures afterwards, you’ll be sorely disappointed!
Mountain Photography provides brilliant natural views that inspire the people. Chilling out while taking some great photos! Here are some tips on taking pictures in the mountains.
(image credit:Stathis Xagoraris )
Shoot with a telephoto lens
The temptation when confronted with a vast mountain range is to try to shoot with a wide-angle lens to fit everything in. You might show the whole of the scene in front of you, but it will have the effect of making impressive mountains look like mere pimples! Instead of trying to shoot it all, use a telephoto lens and focus on a part of the range.
This will make the mountains look bigger and more striking. You can aggravate this by shooting vertically, and allowing your mountain to fill the entire frame.
(image credit:Stathis Xagoraris )
Know What the Weather is Doing
It might be nice and sunny at your place, but up in the mountains is a different story. The weather can change very quickly from sun to snow in a short space of time, so before you set off, make sure to check the forecast for the area you’re heading to, and if it’s looking a little dodgy, then be prepared by taking warm clothing and don’t forget your mobile! Take something to shield your camera from the worst as well.
(image credit:A guy called John )
Use a filter
Use a graduated density filter to capture the detail in the sky as well as in the mountains, advises Nature Photographers. A graduated density filter covers only part of the lens with a darker filter which limits the light that comes through which allows you to properly expose both the sky and the ground.
(image credit: Amir Nejad )
Use a Tripod
With a tripod, you can use any shutter speed you want without having to worry about the blur that results from the slight shaking of your hand when you take a picture.
This can be especially useful if you want to add the movement of a river to your mountain photo because to give the appearance of motion you need to use a slower shutter speed.
(image credit: mikie t)
Add Some Movement
Moving objects can add a lot to a mountain scene, conveying things like the blowing wind can really make a shot. Up in the hills, clouds tend to race across the tops, so capturing this motion can look quite striking, likewise with blowing trees, and grasses, having them blur a little gives your viewer a bit more input on what it was like at the time.
Moving water in a mountain scene is a classic. Having a fluffy babbling brook in your shot can look great; try using a Neutral Density filter to allow you to extend your shutter speed.
(image credit: Mike O’C)
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