Oh hello fall, we’ve missed your cool temperatures and beautiful colors. It’s easy to to be so inspired this time of year with Mother Nature’s grand show of changing colors and temperatures. When it comes to photographing fall, there are a few items you may want to think about to step out of the box of just snapping a picture. Here are 5 tips to get you going.
Try tweaking with the saturation a bit. You don’t need to go overboard here but a slight bump in both the saturation and contrast will make the image pop. Nature already puts on a fabulous show so a slight bump is more than enough to make your image speak. For those of you that are a little more advanced, you can also change your in-camera settings to give you more vivid colors.
It’s easy to get caught up and take all your images from the same angle. So now is the time to try something different, your subject isn’t going to move on you so take your time and change it up. Try getting close to the ground and maybe focusing on what’s in front of you while throwing your background out of focus. Not everything needs to be in focus with fall photos, depth of field can really make your images take on a whole new feel to them.
Nature has a way of incorporating itself onto buildings and fences. This can tell a beautiful story. Breakaway from just photographing trees and leaves. Try finding other fall stories, like vines that reach across an old stone house or moth changing its colors for fall. Open your eyes and you’ll see there’s more going on around you than just the change of the leaves.
Those evening moments just before the sun sets illuminates a warm glow. This is the perfect time to go out and photograph foliage. When this happens, incorporate as much sky as possible. Also sunrise is another fantastic time to catch the beauty of the season. However, more often than not, skies are overcast or it’s foggy. Don’t let this deter you. You just need to think differently. Catch the fog in the mornings with just a peek of color shining through your image. This can make for a moody image. Or, if your day is overcast, simply go up close to your subject, eliminating your background. You can still catch colors and tell a story by isolating your color.
Have fun and keep it steady. You might want to catch movement with water and slow down your shutter speed. In order to do this, you’ll need something steady to put your camera on. Or you may want to get in the image yourself! Now is the time to experiment and take your time. If you don’t have a tripod, try setting it on your vehicle, a fence or a park bench. This is the perfect time of year to experiment with iso, shutter speed, and aperture. Take your time, find what works for you and give yourself the freedom to play with Manual Mode.
Special thanks to Jenna Van Valen of Roverexposed.com for supplying some of the fabulous fall images. Written by Michelle Libby for Adoramapix.