Seven years ago, I stopped using the rules of photography, which greatly improved my photography. But there is one rule that makes the difference between an average photo and a great one. And it is something else than you might think.
In my latest vlog on YouTube, I have some great shots. But it wasn’t like that in the first place. And I have to say: that photo shoot day makes it pretty clear that the rule you should never break in landscape photography.
I dreamed of capturing a majestic mountain scene with a dramatic sky, after more than a month of clear skies in our area. But I ignored the weather. The only two problems I had that day was that I didn’t know if the location I had chosen would provide an epic shot and, of course, still had clear blue skies that day. And due to the lack of rain, there was a large amount of haze in the air. However, there’s a 10 percent chance of some nice April rain over the valley, which could lead to a dramatic sky. But was this enough to go for it?
There’s only one way to find out
When I was a little boy, my grandmother showed me an extremely simple yet effective trick that has helped me so many times in my life: whenever I am not sure if something will work or not. , I should just try it. And here’s what I did that day: I packed my backpack and set off on an exciting hike through a scenic region in the Austrian Alps. There is clear sunlight, birds are chirping, and the view of the mountains is breathtaking.
Meanwhile, spring has also arrived in the mountains. The snow is melting in the valleys, but there are still some patches of April soft snow here and there higher up in the mountains. This is what makes walking more and more painful, and each step leads to the thought of giving up, going home, and enjoying a big glass of wine. But I had to go even higher, because the trees obscured my view of the valley.
The power of persistence
Finally, exhausted and near death from thirst, I reached my destination. The number of trees was less, but still couldn’t look down into the valley. The light was harsh and the snow was too bright to make out anything on my phone or camera screen. Despite the mountains and trees, there is no trace of mood, which I appreciate very much as a landscape photographer. The whole scene looks dull and emotionally empty, but there’s something magical about it. I just sat down, drank a cup of tea and enjoyed the surroundings.
The April rain that I expected has appeared more in the south. But the valley I want to shoot is in the west. This leads to a great game of light and shadow in the mountains far to the South, quite far away. I take mine Sony a7R IV with me Sony 70-200 f / 2.8 GM lens and 2x remote adapter up to 400mm. I was framing an interesting composition, and I couldn’t believe my eyes, when suddenly, a paraglider flew straight into my composition. I waited for the right moment and simply pressed the shutter-release button.
The One Who Controls All
As the afternoon drew to a close, I decided to go down again so I could get a better view of one of the mountains when the sun went down an hour later. I followed another trail, and it was there: a ravishing landscape with a large mountain, a group of trees, a hut, and a fence, nicely leading into the frame. I was delighted by all the misty clouds in the air, which were illuminated from behind and turned the harsh sunlight into a large glowing golden area in the sky. It looks really nice, and it’s balancing the big mountain to the left of my composition. Some clouds above the mountain cone kept the viewer inside the frame.
I don’t think about the rule of thirds, the golden spiral, the law of space, and all that. But I considered all the visual properties like balance, visual weight, contrast, tone, flow, etc. to control the mood I wanted my image to convey. When we broke it, there was only one rule I had to follow that day, which resulted in photos I’m pretty happy with: never give up.
And this is the only rule in photography that counts. I am frequently in situations where I have to overcome my weaker self. If you don’t give up, I promise you: it will pay off in the end.
To enjoy the whole adventure with lots of photography tips, watch the video mentioned above.
