One of the great aspects of shooting landscape photography is the photographer's close connection to the environment. While I tend to make many more portrait and commercial images, I have long had a heart for shooting powerful landscapes. Watching There Will Be Blood win the Oscar for Cinematography due to its sweeping vistas really reminded me how much beauty is out there.
To capture great detail in landscape images, the image maker's goal is to open the camera up to let the light in while tightening the aperture to create strong depth of field. Smaller apertures and larger focal distances allow the camera to catch a much clearer view of the landscape. When using an SLR, a nice wide lens when shooting a sweeping vista in the daylight can help insure this. If you have a point and shoot - most are automatically equipped to handle this exact situation. Below is a small French mountain town called Moustier Saint Marie - details in this image run deep, allowing the colors of the ravine, houses, and flowers to stand out.
Another great technique is to use a foreground object to actually limit your depth of field. By focusing on a flower, tree, or person, you can blur out the landscape and create a nice subtle wash of colors. You still capture the beauty of the landscape, but focus the eye on a specific object.
One of my personal favorites is finding an open field, beach, or valley to shoot - then track down a single, unique object within the location. A lone house on the vista or a tree amongst emptiness. Above is a park setting I shot - the empty bench and lone tree create a sense of two old lonely friends, spending time alone. To heighten the emotion, I washed out the colors and strengthened the silhouette.
Some of the great landscape photographers master specific elements or style within the landscape. Ansel Adams - one of the all time greats - defined black and white images within the US National Parks. Similarly, young up and coming shooters like Saul Santos and Rarindra Prakarsa bring the modern power of color and motion to their images. Check them out if you have a chance - their images are amazing!
When shooting weddings and portraits, landscape can play a major role. The beauty of the location can often be as powerful as the main subject. I love to try and find a way to mix the two - creating a powerful scenic overview. A human subject, like a plant or building can become a part of the landscape and add it's own unique element.
