Outdoor Photography

February 2018 Outdoor Photography 29

Above

Winter

minimalism

aft er snowfall

near Vik,

Iceland.

Canon EOS

5D MkIII with

70-300mm f/4

-5.6 L lens, ISO

1600, 1/160sec

at f/8, handheld

Left

Stormy view

of Loch Duich

and the Five

Sist ers of Kintail

from Car Brae,

Scotland.

Canon EOS

1Ds MkIII with

70-200mm f/4

L lens, ISO 200,

1/160sec at f/11,

0.6 hard ND

grad, tripod

MAKE THE MOST

OF THE LIGHT AND

THE WEATHER

Shooting black & white landscapes isn’t

that much diff erent to working in colour

when it comes to the fundamentals of

exposure and composition, but one

of the great things about black & white

landscape photography is that the

quality of light isn’t as important; or,

more sp ecifi cally, it is important in

a diff erent way. For example, fl at, grey

days are prett y useless if dramatic

colour vist as are your aim, but the

reduced contrast and soft light of a dull

day is ideal for black & white. In these

conditions you will be able to produce

detailed images with a wide tonal range

that you can manipulate to your heart’s

content, or use as the basis for simple,

artist ic images. It’s possible to produce

beautiful black & white images on the

drabbest of days.

Dramatic st ormy weather suits colour

and black & white in equal measure,

so it can make sense to process an

image in colour, and then make a

copy of it to convert to black & white.

However, you can oft en take things to

another level when working in black

& white simply because the image

no longer represents reality; st ormy

monochrome images are oft en darker

and more menacing than their colour

counterparts, and all the bett er for it.

Mist and fog simplifi es the landscape,

reducing visibility and obscuring fi ne

detail, so only bold features st and out

to create myst erious minimalist forms.

Everyday elements such as lamppost s,

trees and telegraph poles peering out

PRO TIPS

Patt erns and repetition can add

impact to your images, and this is

easier to do when you remove the

dist ract ion of colour. Increasing

contrast when you process your

images is an eff ect ive way to boost

shadow patt erns.

Simple compositions have impact

because they deliver a more direct

message. Winter is a great time

to shoot minimalist monochrome

images because any snow will cover

the landscape and hide all but the

boldest features.

If you shoot locally you can go back

to the same locations time aft er

time to make the most of dramatic

light and weather.

of the gloom work well, while bridges,

roads, paths and fence lines make

good subject s as they slowly fade

to nothing. Black & white will further

minimise the scene and heighten the

sense of isolation.

Lighting direct ion makes a diff erence

too. Side-lighting is a good choice for

monochrome work, esp ecially when the

sun is low in the sky, as long shadows will

rake across the scene, revealing texture

and depth; this works well in colour, but

the graphic qualities can be exaggerated

in black & white. If you want maximum

drama, though, nothing beats shooting

into the light: contrast is increased, solid

shapes turn to silhouett es and shadows

rush towards the camera.

28_34_Technique_227_SW.indd 29 18/12/2017 15:04