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Photography 2:
Landscape

Written by
Michael Freeman
About the author

Michael Freeman is one of the world’s most highly respected professional

photographers. He is widely published, with more than 80 books to his credit
including the classic 35mm handbook (over 1.5 million copies sold). His
publications include Spirit of Asia; Angkor: Cities and Temples (both Thames
and Hudson); Japan Modern and The Modern Japanese Garden (both Mitchell
Beazley).

Michael has also produced a unique series of guide books for the digital
photographer and this is published by ILEX, who are digital media
specialists.

He has worked on commissions for many well-known publishing clients,

including Time-Life, Reader’s Digest, Condé Nast Traveller and GEO. He is also
the principle photographer for the Smithsonian Magazine.
Contents

Introduction
A universal theme
The landscape tradition
Further resources
The equipment you will need
Following the course
Assignments
Your portfolio
Your logbook
On completing the course
Project and Tutorial Plan

1: The design elements

The shape of the frame
Project 1: the horizon line
Project 2: horizontal vs vertical
Project 3: panorama
Project 4: collage
Project 5: interacting subjects
Project 6: framing the view differently
Project 7: figures in a landscape
Perspective and distance
Project 8: using perspective to help composition
Colour
Project 9: colour themes
Project 10: soft colours
Assignment 1: the season

2: Light and its measurement

The crucial element
Properties of light
 Project 11: the colour of daylight
Advanced light measurement
Measuring light
Project 12: contrast and exposure
Project 13: throughout the day
Project 14: changing light/changing views
Project 15: planning your portfolio
Your logbook
Assignment 2: one acre

3: Using available light

Project 16: dusk
Project 17 (optional): adding light at dusk
Project 18: sunrise and sunset
Project 19: choosing the moment
Shooting into the sun
Project 20: sun stars and diffraction
Project 21: silhouettes and reflections
Project 22: positioning the sun
Project 23: soft light
Project 24: clouds and sky
Project 25 (optional): snow
Moon and moonlight
Project 26: shooting the moon
Project 27: by the light of the moon
Project 28: intimate landscape
Reminder
Assignment 3: a linking theme

4: Viewpoint and lens

Project 29: re-photographing a well-known image
Wide-angle lens
Project 30: wide-angle views - near and far
Telephoto lens
 Project 31: telephoto views - compressing planes
Project 32: telephoto views - a variety of images
Project 33: using a tripod
Graduated filters
Project 34: using a graduated filter
Neutral density filters
Polarising filters
Project 35: using a polarising filter
Assignment 4: a critical review

5: Style and themes

Project 36: defining a style
The dramatic and the ordinary
Project 37: ways of dramatising a landscape
Black & white
Project 38 (optional): burning in the sky
Project 39 (optional): printing a backlit landscape
Project 40 (optional): coloured filters with black-and-white film
Project 41: grain
Project 42: man-made landscape
Reminder
Assignment 5: in the style of an influential photographer

Your portfolio
At the end of your course
Appendix A: if you plan to submit your work for
formal assessment
Appendix B: information concerning the proper use of
materials and equipment
Further reading
Project 5: interacting subjects
Over the last few projects I have tacitly assumed a fairly simple type of image,
in which most or all of the subject is at a distance. A number of landscapes
are, of course, just like this, especially those seen from high overlooks. Such
scenes, like the one below are uncomplicated - they exist by virtue of the
viewpoint which is relatively fixed. Later in the course we will look at ways of
wringing as much variety as possible out of them, by changing the focal
length of the lens, but in a standard angle of view, similar to that of your own
eyes, the most important design decision is usually to arrange the proportion
of land to sky.

Nevertheless, in the general run of landscapes there is much more choice.

There are also many more potential subjects: trees, rocks, water, stone walls,
farmhouses, and so on. It may sound too obvious to mention, but the more
that you involve the foreground in a landscape image, the greater possible
variety you will have in composition. From 100 feet a cairn is likely to be a
barely noticeable pile of rocks; from 10 feet it can dominate the landscape
seen through the viewfinder. With a sufficiently wide-angled lens stopped
down to its smallest aperture for the maximum depth of field, and the camera
close to the ground, even a flower can have more visual importance than the
hills beyond. 4: Viewpoint and lens looks at camera position in relation to lens
focal length in more detail, but for now you should begin to look at a
landscape as an assembly of potential picture elements that you can rearrange
by moving the camera and so changing the view. Climb a little higher up a
slope and a stone farmhouse may appear separated from the wall behind it,
and so become more prominent. Move a little to the left of where you are
standing and the overhanging limb of a tree close to you frames the view. The
photographs of the windmill below show a sequence of frames taken in the
same location, all using the same wide-angle lens. The relatively small change
in position between the last 2 pictures brings into view the foreground
vegetation, and alters the composition noticeably.
Changing the viewpoint on a subject.

a c

d e

a Subject centred laterally for symmetry – surroundings cropped at bottom to

simplify colours and shapes.
b Subject shifted to left for more balanced composition – frame kept high to
limit trees – shot timed so that clouds are clear of the windmills sails.
c Viewpoint and framing accurate for symmetry – exaggeration of perspective
makes the curve of the platform dominant.
d Low viewpoint and high horizon give prominence to the surroundings –
subject small but recognisable.
e Including more vegetation to create depth – maximum depth of field for clear
detail.
In looking at this example, it may have occurred to you how specific the
details are. It is indeed difficult to generalise about landscape composition
without it becoming meaningless. The reason why this applies to landscape
more than to most other topics of photography is because landscapes are
often amorphous and complex. Only occasionally will you find a single,
discrete subject, such as an isolated mountain. More commonly, landscapes
are visually disorganised and untidy. Let's now go straight on to a practical
project in which you can explore for yourself the multiple choices.

This is a sample from Photography 2: Landscape. The full course contains 42 Projects and 5
tutor-assessed Assignments