Scenic Outlook – Get Low

Adding interest is our number one goal in making any image, especially of landscapes. The inherent challenge in shooting landscapes is that other than weather and time of day, land is static and images can become redundant. What we’re going to take a look at today is a fairly simple tip but one that is often overlooked; getting low. Vantage point can do wonders for your images and it goes beyond a simple line of sight. We can add impact with foreground elements, alter depth of field in an interesting way, and catch the sun at a completely different angle. This is an exercise I have beaten into my own head until it became second nature and has produced some valuable results.

While photographing this sunset in Maui, I climbed down these rocks almost to the edge. If I made this image where most people were standing it would have been pedestrian. Getting down low afforded me the luxury of using a filter to slow down the shutter speed and catch water pouring over the rocks.

Squat thrust – The first exercise I quite literally do when I arrive at a location I want to shoot is squat up and down. Before even attaching my camera to the tripod, I examine the scene from all levels. There’s a reason why eye level shots don’t offer as much impact as ones taken at different levels and that is because we see the world every waking second at eye level. It becomes boring. I’ve even taken countless shots laying belly down on the ground to catch a unique angle. Get some leg work in!

This shot cemented getting low as a staple in my shooting workflow. An afterthought and image I only captured because I was waiting for family to get in the car, this became my favorite shot of the Vermont fall foliage. The impact clearly lays with the foreground rocks in and out of the water only because of my low vantage point.

Spread ’em – Even most cheap tripods have the ability to spread the legs out and bring your camera close to the ground. Don’t forget about this function. I suggest even walking around with your tripod in this position to force you to think about a low point of view. The only way to make something habit is by doing it over and over again.

The only reason this shot ever saw the light of day was because of the foot prints in the sand. An otherwise simple image, the footprints add a sense of intrigue and interest to this sunrise shot.

Foreground fun – Sometimes the only way to draw a viewer into your image is to add a foreground element. While shooting the above sunrise at a beach in my hometown, I was plagued with a lack of interesting subjects. While trolling the sand I came across the fresh footprints left by that fisherman in the top left of the frame. Getting low afforded me the ability to focus on the prints bringing this shot some life. If I captured this at eye level, the prints would have just blended into the sand and nothing would have came of this shot.

A simple exercise for potentially exceptional results. Shooting from a low vantage point won’t always work in every given situation, but the more you employ this tactic the more recognizable it will become as being advantageous. Take your time examining a location and work a low point of view in. You will definitely earn some interest points.

–

Company: Pafundi Images
Website: http://dudewithcamera.com
Twitter: @dude_withcamera
Facebook: http://facebook.com/pafundiimages

Photo Credit: © 2011 Jesse Pafundi

Here’s how you can share your tips, techniques and tutorials on CurrentPhotographer.com

–

*The Current Photographer website contains links to our affiliate partners. Purchasing products and services through these links helps support our efforts to bring you the quality information you love and there’s no additional cost to you.