Landscape photography has long been a popular photographic topic to novices. Apart from practicing more and trying out on different camera settings, the few basic skills below can help you capture beautiful photos with ease. Check out this article before you embark on your next photo trip!

Waiting is important if you want to take a beautiful landscape photo, because photos taken at the same location at different times of the day can look vastly different. This may seem clich?, but it’s the key to successful landscape photography. It's said that light is the soul of a photo. If you manage to shoot with a perfect lighting, your photos shine. For example, the morning and afternoon light can make a huge difference to the appearance of the same subject as the illuminated surface changes, and the same goes to nightscape photos taken after dark or during Magic Hour. That’s why it’s important that you pick the right time to shoot.

In general, shooting in early morning or evening when the light is soft can result in better photos than shooting at noon. If you visit a photo destination for the first time and don’t want to stay long at the same location, you should do some research before you go and plan a round-trip route that would allow you to revisit the same location on your way back. This can not only reduce the chance of getting lost, but also enabling you to explore and take photos of the same place at different times of the day and from different angles.

Color combination also plays an important role in landscape photography. To create a photo that looks harmonious, pleasing and balanced, we can use the “complementary colors” or “analogous colors’ on the color wheel. “Complementary colors” are colors that are opposite to each other on the color wheel, e.g. yellow and blue. As the city lights are mostly yellow and orange, we can use a white balance setting that adds a blue tint when taking nightscape photos for more outstanding subject and pleasing photo result.

Normally a wide-angle lens is preferred when taking landscape photos, as its exaggerated angle of view can create a better sense of space to reveal the magnificence of the scenery. However, a telephoto lens can also come in handy when taking feature shots to reveal the interesting pattern hidden in the scenery. Besides, the strong perspective compression effect at the tele-end (200mm or above) can create special results that cannot be perceived by the eyes.

There is no doubt that photos look sharp, bright and vivid when taken on a sunny day. However, hazy, cloudy and rainy days are not uncommon in Hong Kong. Instead of refraining from shooting, why not seize the chance to admire the unique scenery on a bad weather day? The landscape on a cloudy day can be very atmospheric and worth photographing.