Some genres of photography allow you to produce a large number of images in a given span of time, while others tend to be more methodical and require a fair amount of patience. Landscape photography tends to fall into the latter camp, but that does not mean there are not things you can do to make yourself more productive on location. This helpful video will detail seven ways you can make yourself a bit more efficient and productive the next time you head out.
Coming to you from Mark Denney, this great video discusses seven ways to be a more productive landscape photographer on location. By far, one of the simplest but most helpful is to start shooting handheld at a location first. The point of this is not necessarily to create any image you are going to put into your portfolio, but rather to give you a quick impression of if your chosen position in the space is going to work before you go through the trouble of setting up your tripod. It can be a bit challenging to visualize very wide compositions in your head, and taking a quick test shot can help quite a lot. Check out the video above for the full rundown from Denney.
When shooting digital, I don't use a tripod at all any more when in the back country because of the extra weight. Higher ISO's are good these days, and you potentially miss better compositions (even if just tweaks), when it means dealing with a tripod and head. And ditching the tripod to lighten the load really does allow you to get to more places, which is a trade-off that's more than worth it. Although, a tripod can work like a trekking pole sometimes, so there is that.
i still carry my tripod when i know i am going to shoot low light situations.