Top Fall Photography Tips

Good morning you wonderful lot! Is everyone Ok after Monday’s emotional goodbye to Her Royal Majesty the Queen. I know a lot of people around the world tuned in to watch the special live coverage of her funeral that was broadcasted on almost every channel (especially in the U.K), there was a lot of touching moments from the Royal family that was shown, and my heart goes out to them as they’ve handled it all gracefully and respectfully in the public eye whilst also trying to mourn and deal with their own grief in private as well.

In other news, I finally had my first appointment at the Muscuolskeletal unit (MSK) yesterday to start physio treatment on my wrist and foot, although sadly we could only focus on my wrist this time as we were just over 10 minutes late to my appointment due to being stuck in horrendous traffic (we had left early and should’ve had 10 minutes to spare) but you can’t control traffic and roadworks unfortunately. I had to answer some questions regarding on how I managed to injure it and then had to do a couple of exercises to test the mobility function to give my Doctor some idea of what will be the best course of action where treatment is concerned, which will be discussed at my next appointment, for now though I’ve been given a new splint to help rest it but also been given orders to try and keep moving it when I can. Enough of my rambling, shall we get on with today’s post…

Don’t you just love autumn? It’s the season that inspires you to grab your camera and go out to photograph all the colored leaves against the blue sky. It’s not hard to find the perfect location for portrait photography or pick up some produce at the market for your food photography. In fact, it doesn’t matter what your specialty is as a photographer – you can make fall photography work for you. Here are some photography tips that will help you out in capturing the perfect fall photo…

Research Locations

While it might be tempting to just head out to photograph fall colors when you see leaves change outside your house, you might want to spend some time researching the locations you are about to visit beforehand. The main reason for this is differences in foliage timing – even slight differences in elevation can drastically influence how early or late fall colors will show up. There might be seasonal drifts and other weather patterns that might change exactly when fall colors will change. Droughts, rainfall, winds, freezing temperatures, and early snow can all impact how soon trees will change their colors and how long their leaves will remain on them. It is therefore important to plan well in advance, hopefully at least a few weeks before colors start to change at higher elevations. Ideally, it is best to scout the area beforehand or rely on reports from local residents, so that you know exactly when to plan out your trip.

Use a Polarizing Filter

Typically, polarizing filters are used to get rid of any glare that comes from reflective materials. However, they’re also excellent tools for increasing contrast and saturation. This will help you to highlight the wonderful colors of fall. Polarizers go on the front of the lens and cut down on reflected light. Reflections on wet and/or waxy leaves reduce the color intensity, so by blocking this unwanted light from reaching your camera sensor, your fall photos will get a saturation boost. Make sure you purchase a high-quality filter, though; a cheap polarizer won’t do its job effectively and can introduce annoying color casts.

Shoot During the Golden Hours

The hour or so after sunrise and the hour or so just before sunset are known as the golden hours. If you’ve ever spent time observing the evening light, you’ll know why: When the sun is low in the sky, it casts beautiful, soft, golden light across the land – light that looks amazing when illuminating fall subjects. Golden-hour light offers several major benefits. It’s soft, so it helps you capture photos with lots of beautiful details. And it’s warm, so your images will have a stunning golden color cast. You can capture breathtaking fall landscapes, close-up details, fall portraits, and so much more. If you can get up early enough, morning can actually be a bit better than evening, as it tends to come with less wind, which is ideal if you want to combine fall colors with the reflections from ponds.

Fog and Overcast Days Can Be Just As Good

Fog and overcast days can be just as good for photography as sunny days. In fact, many photographers prefer overcast days because the diffused light is more flattering to their subjects. And, of course, autumn is a great time for photography, with all the beautiful colors of the leaves. So if you’re out on a foggy or overcast day, keep your eyes open for interesting images. The fog can create some really beautiful effects, and the orange leaves of autumn can make for some stunning photographs. Just remember to focus on your main subject and you’ll be sure to get some great shots.

Use Water to Capture Reflections

Autumn foliage looks spectacular when it’s reflected over the water. For clear, smooth reflections head out early and photograph the calm stillness of a lake. You can also capture autumn reflections in ponds or shallow pools of water in a stream. While smooth, calm days are ideal for glassy, mirror-like reflections, you can also capture reflections on the surface of choppy water. Autumn foliage reflected onto a rippled surface can result in beautiful, abstract photos. Use a fast shutter speed and zoom into a portion of the water for an impressionistic image. Be sure to remove your polarizer lens cover if you’re using one, since it will reduce reflections!

Composition

With autumn colour all around you, it is easy to forget to compose your photograph carefully. Try to have a focal point, such as a particular tree, a trunk a leaf or a toadstool. All of the elements in a composition should work together to create an image that is visually balanced so that one side of the image doesn’t contain all the dominant elements.The rule of thirds is a well-known compositional technique in which you place your main focal point slightly to one side of an image, and not directly in the centre. This often results in natural looking, and well-balanced photographs. However, sometimes this rule should be broken as long as you are happy that you have a visually balanced composition.

Get Down Low

Getting dirty is a part of good photography. The best shots sometimes require you to get down there in the mud and grime. Don’t shy away from getting down and dirty by lying on your back to capture that great woodland canopy shot or muddying up your knees by scrambling up a river bank to get a better landscape view. Protecting your gear is a must, but sometimes you have to get a bit risky with it, too. Don’t be afraid to rest it on the ground or hold it at an awkward angle to capture unique perspectives.

Bring out fall colors in post-processing

You can do your photo editing using the software of your choice. There are some great paid ones, such as Adobe Lightroom and Photoshop, as well as free ones like GIMP. Most of the best fall photo effects are done in-camera, and you shouldn’t see editing software as a way to “fix” or “create” amazing images. However, you can enhance your autumn photography by bringing out colors, boosting depth, and increasing detail. During post-processing, you’ll want to check the white balance – that’s always a good place to start with any kind of photograph. Then you can adjust the exposure if necessary and raise the saturation and contrast to highlight the colors.

As you can see, autumn photography is one of the best times to go out and take pictures and give you chance to develop an artistic style and work with colors and contrast. Whenever possible, you should try to get out there as much as you possibly can. Good photos generally come from perseverance and careful planning. By being outside often, you’ll increase your chances of capturing beautiful scenery with the light that you want and at the peak of the autumn foliage. Furthermore, the landscape and weather are continuously changing and allow you to document the transition of the environment and take pictures in a wide range of conditions. Autumn is good photography practice and works equally well for all types of photography. However, landscape and nature photography has more advantages during the fall. From good lighting conditions to the opportunity to capture nature in slow motion, autumn offers endless stories. Moreover, it is loaded with meaning and connects with people on a deeper level. Whether it reminds you of childhood and the beginning of school, the departure of loved ones, or to slow down and breathe, autumn finds its way into our hearts. And that is how your autumn photos should be: warm and heartfelt.

Thank you for visiting my blog and reading today’s post, I hope you all have a good day and enjoy the rest of your week! For now, though I will end this post with a see you later.