Recent Landscapes Articles

How to Use HSL to Enhance a Photo

When it comes to landscape photography, being able to control and fine-tune the colors in your images is crucial to creating better edits and adding more of your personal creative identity. One effective and fun way to do that is through the use of the HSL panel, and this helpful video tutorial will show you how it's done.

7 Mistakes in Black and White Landscape Photography

When you think of landscape photography, you probably think of bright and vibrant swathes of color, but black and white images can be dramatic, compelling, and eye-catching. That being said, working in black and white comes with its own challenges and pitfalls beyond those of working in color. This helpful video tutorial discusses seven common mistakes landscape photographers make when working in black and white and how to avoid or fix them.

Pacific Northwest Escape Mission 5: Mount Baker and Picture Lake

Sometimes, you don’t have to stray too far to find what you’re looking for. After traveling the coast and sharing our journey with you, our Pacific Northwest Escape has come to an end with a stop in our own backyard, where Mother Nature’s beauty is on full display.

The Key to Finding Success in Landscape Photography

Landscape photography can be incredibly rewarding, but it can also be a rather frustrating genre, since unlike most others, you do not get control over the light or a large portion of the scene. So, how do you ensure you find success no matter what nature gives you when you head out with your camera? This great video essay discusses what to do.

Pacific Northwest Escape Mission 4: San Francisco

Over the last year and a half, we’ve all realized the importance of connections. And as the world grapples with how to connect at a time when we’ve become increasingly isolated, there’s nothing better than finding symbols of hope in the real world.

How a Professional Landscape Photographer Creates an Image From Capture Through Editing

Landscape photography is a challenging genre that takes the confluence of a lot of techniques, creative ideas, and more to bring an image to fruition, but it is quite rewarding when you see the finished photo. This awesome video tutorial will show you how a professional landscape photographer shoots an image, from choosing the right focal length all the way through the edit.

Why You Shouldn't Give Up When Landscape Conditions Aren't Quite Right

Persistence is a quality that can pay off in many areas of life, and photography is no different. Sometimes, in landscape photography, you do not get the sort of light or conditions you were hoping for, but that does not mean you should pack in the gear and go home. This excellent video shows you the kind of pleasant surprises that can await you when you stick around.

Why Photoshop Smart Objects Are So Useful

There are a ton of ways to approach editing an image, with different methods having their own pros and cons. One method involves using Smart Objects, and this helpful video tutorial will guide through editing landscape images with them and show you why they are so useful.

Long Exposure Photography of Clouds

Long exposures are highly popular in landscape photography, normally used for turning turbulent, violent water into silky smooth flows. However, they are fantastic for creating motion in the sky as well. This great video tutorial will show you how to create such images, including the gear, settings, and compositions that go into making compelling results.

Is Ansel Adams Still Relevant?

No landscape photographer is as iconic to the genre as Ansel Adams. But can someone who worked primarily in black and white and whose heyday was over half a century ago still teach us anything today?

Common Wide Angle Lens Mistakes in Landscape Photography

When it comes to landscape photography lens choices, the default choice is almost always a wide angle lens. Making successful photographs with one is tricky, however. This great video tutorial discusses some of the challenges and pitfalls of shooting with them and what you can do to improve your work when using one.

Four Habits You Should Change to Become a Better Landscape Photographer

We all develop bad habits no matter what genre we shoot in, and landscape photography is no different. Learning how to recognize those habits and rewire ourselves to break them can improve our images and make the process more enjoyable. This fantastic video tutorial discusses four common habits of landscape photographers and how tweaking them a bit can lead to better photos.

How Your Phone Will Make You a Better Photographer

Phone photography has come a long way since its flip phone origins. Today, you might not even be able to tell the difference between a photo taken by a phone and a dedicated camera.

Pacific Northwest Escape Mission 3: Natural Bridges in Oregon

The pandemic has forced many of us to stay home. But that doesn’t mean we can’t experience the wonder of our own backyard. And in the Pacific Northwest, there’s so much to explore. The last year or so has provided us with an opportunity to be inspired by Mother Nature and inspire other budding photographers by showing them the magic of America through our lens.

Incredible Photography Into the Heart of an Active Volcano

There are occasions where you know, without a shadow of a doubt, that you're taking images that are some of the best you may ever take. This video shows us behind the scenes as Nigel Danson photographs an active volcano, and I can safely say, this will be one of those moments for him.

How to See Better Landscape Photo Compositions

Composition is one of the more nuanced and difficult parts of landscape photography, and it is something even the most experienced among us struggle with. If you are having trouble finding good landscape compositions, this awesome video tutorial breaks the process into three stages that will help you create better images.

Pacific Northwest Escape Mission 2: Driving to Oregon

If you were inspired by the majestic beauty of Washington State’s North Cascades in the first leg of our Pacific Northwest Escape (you can read all about the adventure here), wait until you see the magic of Oregon’s coastline through our lens.

5 Tips for Shooting Telephoto Landscape Photography

Landscape photography is somewhat synonymous with shooting large scenes with a wide angle lens, but what about more intimate landscapes? On a recent trip through Colorado, I found myself using a telephoto lens almost exclusively and came up with five tips that might help your try one out for yourself.

How to Handle Harsh Light in Landscape Photography

No doubt, most of us love the soft, warm light afforded by the golden hour, but simply put, a lot of the time, you will head outside with your camera and be greeted with harsh, unforgiving light. That does not mean you should simply pack your camera in and head back inside; in fact, you can make images that are just as great in harsh light, and this awesome video tutorial discusses what to do when you encounter that light.

Zen and the Discipline of Landscape Photography

Landscape photography is not my thing. I use it to exercise the fundamentals and have something to do when I need a break from the family on camping trips, but that's the extent of it for me personally. But I feel for landscape photographers. It's a crowded field in an already crowded profession. It's hard to make your images not look like everyone else's, especially when everyone has access to the same subject matter you do.

Photographing Epic Sunrises in the Highlands of Iceland

There are a few places on earth where it is difficult to not be inspired. Iceland is undoubtedly one of them, and it's difficult to resist shooting every minute you are there. In this video, go behind the scenes on a shoot in Iceland's highlands during a colorful sunrise.

How to Use Luminar AI to Enhance a Photo

Luminar AI offers a lot of impressive automated capabilities to allow you to quickly and effectively tackle a wide variety of edits and creative styles. If you are new to the program or wondering what it is capable of, check out this awesome video tutorial that will show you how to enhance an image using Luminar AI.

Introducing the 10 Minute Photography Rule

There are a lot of "rules" in photography, but the best ones are self-imposed that have the sole purpose of improving how you work with a camera in your hand. This rule is new to me, and it's definitely going to get used next time I'm out with my camera.

How to Get a Properly Exposed Sunset Photo

No doubt, a good sunset picture is a classic that will never go out of style, but that being said, given the extreme dynamic range, it presents a challenge to the photographer when it comes to exposure. This excellent video tutorial features four great ways to ensure that you get a properly exposed sunset photo that captures all the drama and beauty of the scene.

Pacific Northwest Escape Mission 1: Helicopter Shooting the North Cascades

Just a hop, skip, and a jump from the Space Needle in Seattle, Washington, sits one of America’s most majestic spots — and every photographer’s dream. Often called the American Alps, North Cascades National Park features endless opportunities to capture America in all its striking glory. But before you point and shoot, you need to know where to look.

How Dodging and Burning Can Improve Your Landscape Photos

You probably traditionally think of dodging and burning as something used mostly for sculpting facial features in portraits, but at its core, dodging and burning is about shaping light and is thus applicable in any genre. This fantastic video tutorial will show you how to can use it to add more dimension to your landscape photos.

Winners and Lessons Learned: The Great British Photography Challenge

The Great British Photography Challenge ended with a twist: Rankin picked joint winners. Although each and every participant of the series will have a chance to take advantage of the doors that only someone like Rankin can open for them, Tyrone Williams and Jackson Moyles were named co-winners of the inaugural season. I had the chance to speak with Tyrone and Jackson to find out what their participation in BBC's series was like.

Nikon Z 7II for Landscape Photography: 6 Months On

The Nikon Z 7II is a high-resolution full frame camera and the updated brother of the z7. Now 6 months on, how has the camera performed for me shooting landscapes? Faultless in my opinion. Well, except for one thing, but I'll speak about that later.

What Should You Pack for an Overnight Landscape Photography Trip

Landscape photography and camping seem almost meant for each other, especially if you want to capture things like a sunrise or early morning fog. So, if you are headed out for such a trip, what do you need to pack? This excellent video tutorial features a seasoned landscape photographer discussing what he packs on overnight trips.

How to Create Minimalist Long Exposure Seascape Photos

Minimalist long exposures of moving water are a highly popular look for landscape photographers, but they also take careful consideration of your composition to avoid crossing the line between minimalist and simplistic. This great video tutorial follows a landscape photographer as he shoots minimalist seascapes and discusses his process and some helpful tips for getting the best photos.

How To Get Pin Sharp Landscape Images From Front To Back

To get landscape images with fantastic depth that lead the viewer's eye, you are likely to have to wrestle with the problem of the foreground or the background not being tack sharp. In this video, you can see behind-the-scenes how one photographer achieves front-to-back focus on his landscape images.

Motivation Slump During the Summer Months? Try This

Landscape photography during the summer months can lead to a motivational slump due to the weather conditions. Bright sunshine, clear blue skies, long daylight hours, and busy locations can often lead to a drop in productivity and creativity for the landscape photographer.

Mistakes Beginner Landscape Photographers Make With Camera Settings

In landscape photography, a single scene can yield vastly different images simply by how you choose your camera settings. As such, this is a place where a lot of things can go awry. If you are new to landscape work, this helpful video tutorial will show you some common mistakes beginner landscape photographers make with their camera settings and how to fix them to create more effective images.

Hands-On With the New Tamron 11-20mm f/2.8

Ultra wide-angle zoom lenses are tricky to manufacture, with a lot of difficulties to overcome. One of Tamron's newest lenses, however, has been getting strong reviews. So, how does it hold up?

Is This the Only Filter System You'll Ever Need?

Accessories for cameras have improved in both quality and function over the last decade or so, but perhaps not as quickly as other areas of equipment. This new filter system, however, aims to overcome a lot of the irritants around stacking filters.