Practical Photography - UK (2020-02)

54 PRACTICALPHOTOGRAPHY

Winter Landscapes

reducecamerashake.A commonmistakein winter

photographyis to notexposea snowyor icyscene

correctly.Lightmetersin thecameratendto

underexposesnowbecauseof howbrightit is, so

it ’s importantto usethehistogramwhenreviewing

imagesto makesurethattheexposureis balanced,

withoutclippingtheshadowsor highlights.

The keyto a greatlandscapeis carefulcomposition.

However,as manylandscapephotographersknow,

findinginterestingforegroundsubjectscanbe

di fficult.Thisis especiallytruein thehillsand

mountains.Mostsummitsarewindsweptand

fe atureless,leavingyoulittledetailto workwith.

Windblownsnowandicecantransforma landscape

bycreatinglead-inlinesandgraphicalshapesin the

fo reground.Findingsuchinterestis unpredictable,

however.NotknowingwhatI mightcomeacross

and whatthismightmeanforthecompositionof my

imagesis whatexcitesme themost.Whencomposing

images,I startwitha conventionalview,usingthe

rule-of-thirds,lead-inlinesandso on.I thenbecome

morecreativeas I workwiththescene.

Theweatherplaysa hugerolein thecreationof

imagesduringwinter– thelandscapeonlyreally

comesaliveduringadverseconditionsin thisseason.

I st udytheweatherforecastsweeksin advanceto

makesureI’mfullypreparedforwintryweather.

Timingis imperative.Arriveata locationa day

to o earlyandyoumightsit in a storm;tryto set

offa day toolateandyoumightnotevengetoutof

yourowndriveway.Wintersunstayslowin thesky.

Thisprovidessoftdirectionallightthroughoutthe

day, whichis mucheasierto workwiththanthe

harsherlightin summer.

BE CRITICAL

OF YOUR PICS

WILD CAMPING WHAT

YOU CAN AND CAN’T DO

EDITING ADVICE

When it comes to editing snowy

images, it’s important to expose

all elements of the image correctly,

re lative to the scene. Dull, grey snow

on a sunny day just doesn’t look good.

I don’t use any fancy plug-ins or presets,

I’ m just very critical when it comesto editing

my images and constantly ask myselfif theylook

ri ght. For me, the key to great editingis fortheimageto looklikeit

hasn’t been edited at all.

Above Good

quality walking

boots and warm,

dry clothing are

an absolute must

for staying safe

and comfortable.

The laws regarding wild

camping vary across the UK.

In Scotland you can camp on

any wild land (with a few local

exceptions). The same applies

to Dartmoor in England. But,

technically, everywhere

else you should seek the

landowner’s permission.

Clearly this is not always

feasible, and many wild

campers will risk it without

doing so. Much of the UK’s

wild land is in the care of

National Parks, and they

often tolerate wild camping,

although most stop short

of giving outright permission.

However, wherever you camp

• with permission or not –
  you should always follow
  these guidelines:

❉ Camp away from main

tracks, houses and farms.

❉ Pitch your camp late in the

evening and leave early in

the morning.

❉ Do not dig drainage ditches,

trample plants or move rocks

in order to pitch your tent.

❉ If asked by a landowner to

move on, do so respectfully

without argument.

❉Don’tlightanyfires.

❉Toiletingshouldbe well

away from any water source

or path (30m or more) with

any waste buried at least

15cm deep.

❉ Paper and sanitary items

should not be buried as

animals will dig them up.

They should be bagged up

and carried out.

❉ Do not wash with soap or

detergent in streams or rivers.

❉Aimto be as quietas

possibleduringyourcamp.

❉ Bag up and carry out

all litter, including any

food scraps.

❉ Leave no trace at all that

you’ve camped.

For more information on the

legalities of wild camping visit

livefortheoutdoors.com/

advice-stories/wild-camping-

and-the-law

GET

OUTTHERE!

WEWANTTOSEE

YOURSHOTS

If you’vebravedwintry

conditionsto addto your

portfolio,sharetheresults

withus on our

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