4 Ways to Turn Simple Scenery Photography into Dramatic Images

Impressive scenery photography can easily increase a photographer’s popularity. Landscapes offer breathtaking views, but there are a few tips and tricks to take into consideration in order to capture the drama through a DSLR’s lenses:

1. Search the Area

Dramatic scenery photography goes beyond the image of a distant forest or river. Look for distinct features in the area and make them focal points of your shots.

2. Value the Element

Be creative and think of particular features of the element you have chosen to make unique. Size, texture, color, shape or even how lights and shadows play on it can dramatically change the composition of the image and lead to dramatic scenery photography.

3. Create Layers

Using a small aperture increases the depth and decreases light, therefore the ISO must be higher. Layers thus created support the image and give it a story.

4. Use a Tripod

When shooting scenery photography, the camera must be as stable as possible to compensate the increased ISO values and reduced aperture.

Last but not least, the time and weather conditions are also decisive factors on how the landscape looks. Whether it is rainy, foggy, dark or cleared sky (or even if a rainbow shows up), scenery photography is all about the right angle and camera settings.