Autumn is one of my favorite times of the year to get out and photograph. The cool refreshing temperatures, the colors, and shorter days means I do not have to get up as early for sunrises.Grab your gear and some coffee, it’s time to get up and go out to capture the colors and here are some tips to help you.
Tip #1. Revisit your favorite places to photograph landscapes. This helps as you are familiar with the location so you don’t need to do as much research. It also allows you to experience these locations with a different look to them.
Garden of the Gods - IL
Tip #2. Bring more than a wide-angle lens. While wide-angle lenses are a go to for landscapes photographers a telephoto and a macro lens are great to have with you. Sometimes the colors are not everywhere or as good as we wish so if you can focus on details you often walk away with great images. When using a telephoto lens, look for texture, patterns, and splashes of color.
Shot with 400mm Lens at Garden of the Gods - IL
Tip #3. As with tip #2, wide is not always an answer, look for small things. Take a few minutes and look at how leaves have fallen, get close and see the details as they change colors.
100mm Macro
Tip #4. This is a great time for wildlife photographers. The migrating birds are in mass and flight. Other animals are in their rutting season and are often more active (but be careful, they can be aggressive at this time as well).
Lone Elk Park - St. Louis, MO
Tip #5. Bring your polarizing filter with you. This really goes whenever you go out, but in autumn it can really help making colors to pop! This is the one filter I recommend always having in your bag because it is the one that you cannot replace with Photoshop tricks.
Tip #6. Frost and frozen water. On the really cool mornings you can be rewarded with some true magic. Yes, this means you want to be at your location at sunrise (so much for sleeping in, but as I said, dawn comes late compared to summer, today dawn was at 7:22).
Tip #7. Take sometime when you get by water and look for abstracts. Colors reflecting in moving water can really be stunning. This is one time you don’t want to use a polarizing filter.
Tip #8. Now stop waiting and hit the road!
Lost somewhere in the Smoky Mountains