Landscape photography essentials: try it yourself
This is the practical for the lesson. Work through it in order. Nothing here is a test of memory. Keep the lesson open if you need it and check the instructions as often as you like.
Aim
You should finish with several genuinely different compositions of the same place and be able to explain why you prefer one.
What you need
Your own camera or phone, enough battery power to complete the exercise, and a memory card or free storage space where your equipment requires it. You do not need to buy anything specially for this practical.
Do this step by step
- Choose one local scene rather than waiting for a spectacular location.
- Make one photograph from your first viewpoint.
- Move left, right, forwards and backwards and make at least four more versions.
- Try one photograph with a strong foreground and one without it.
- Check the horizon and all four edges before the final frame.
- Compare the set and decide which viewpoint explains the place most clearly.
What should happen
You should finish with several genuinely different compositions of the same place and be able to explain why you prefer one.
If it does not work
Stop rather than changing lots of things at once. Check that the camera is switched on, the battery has charge and the card or storage is available. Then return to the last step that definitely worked. If a named control is missing, your camera may use a different name or menu location. Check the manual for your exact model. Never force a card, battery, lens, door or control.
Before you finish
Explain out loud, or in one sentence on paper, what you changed and what happened. If you can explain the result in your own words, you have understood the exercise. If you cannot, repeat the part that was unclear.