Finally, Autumn has finally begun to grace us with its presence here in Tokyo. Luckily enough, my Nikkor 70-200mm f/2.8 arrived just in time to photograph the colours as they come. The lens is the sharpest lens I've ever used and has surpassed my expectations. However, that's not what I'm here to talk about, Nikon isn't paying me enough ($0) to market their products for them.
I know that we have a range of photographers here in the group, from experts to people enjoying photography for the first time. With that in mind, I wanted to talk about one of the most important parts of capturing the autumn colours. When I'm photographing the autumn colours with my long lens, I'm always looking for back-lighting. For me, if the leaves aren't being struck by the sun from the perfect angle, I won't even bother lifting my lens. Now, this isn't some groundbreaking revelation or anything, but I thought it might be useful to some of the newcomers as they are a looking to improve their work. There are also other factors that I consider, like the contrast of the leaves on the colours behind them, but I don't really have time to get into that right now, perhaps that's for another day. I hope everyone still has at least a few autumn leaves left to capture, and I look forward to seeing any work you want to share.
As always, feel free to comment, provide feedback on anything I missed, share your own photos, or shower me with praise. Also, feel free to share any nuggets of wisdom you have for capturing the autumn colours.
early morning streaking sun through the forrest is certainly my favorite look ...unfortunately i only got 1 of those shots this season and with a poor composition oh well next year i will have learned more and be more prepared for what is to come along with a new camera setup... D750 accompanied by hopefully a good set of lenses....full frame is expensive yikes!!!
Yeah, that’s why I tend to go with the longer lenses and more intimate landscapes. I have maybe 2 days to capture the colours each year and pulling out a longer lens gives me more opportunities in one location.
Yeah, luckily I got a discount on my lens, but I’m planning to upgrade my second lens and body by 2020.
what body are you looking at? I'm trying to get the d750 and a couple 1.8 lenses
I’m going to get the d850. I was thinking about getting a D750, because used ones are quite affordable here. However, after using the D5500 for so long I’ve become dependent on having a touch screen to change setting in an instant.
great camera just a bit out of my price range it would take me another 2 years to save for that model but you will certainly see a difference in the final product
I'm lucky to have a used camera shop so close. If it wasn't for that, I couldn't afford anything I've bought recently, haha.
Hi Jordan,
Great colours. I like the first one better because the light is more subtle. In the second one, the light is harsher and you can see prominent shadows. Maybe the same composition would have worked a little better at a different time of day.
Sid
Edit: Corrected a typo.
Yeah, the second one is not portofolio worthy for me. I’m going to see if I can clean up the shadows in post, but I’m not a photoshop wizard, haha.
The main problem I was facing all day was shadows. The colours are at their peak but they haven’t started falling yet, so I’m planning to go back. Hopefully some of them will fall so I can have more light to work with.
Nothing to say much on these photos. Your images are properly expose and the colors are beautiful. For me, second photo is much better in terms is dynamics. It shows different autumn colors of the leaves and I also like the framing.
The only thing I can suggest is to turn the green plants at the background toward warm tone and raise the shadow a little bit.
Overall lovely photos! I like it!
Thanks.
Yeah, I'm planning to continue tinkering with it, but I'm not sure I'll ever be in love with, haha.