I visited the Dakota Badlands on the same trip and again, the park was virtually empty. The weather was beautiful but it was an extremely cold day, which meant there were less than a dozen people in the entire park, including the rangers. Everything is a trade-off, but this is a trade-off I'm willing to make. Of course, cold weather does mean the addition of bulky winter clothing and potential battery drain. In winter, biting insects are less likely, as is an encounter with rattlesnakes, copperheads, and cottonmouth snakes (not to mention bears, scorpions, spiders, etc.) In summer, I keep hand wipes in my kit to cleanse the greasy film from my hands before touching the gear. If I can avoid them, it's a big plus for me. I don't enjoy the feeling or odor of sunscreen and insect spray, either together or separately. Did I mention that snow is always lovely?Ĭold weather means I don't have to slather my body in a toxic sludge of sunscreen and bug spray. Does this mean I don't enjoy a walk in the park on a beautiful spring day? Of course not! I love spring as much as the next romantic, but, for me, it's less fun to photograph. The landscape has moods, and I love the mood of the winter landscape. I love the ice patterns, raindrops, and structures of the landscape in the middle of winter when it's most exposed. I love the bare bone structure of leafless trees. Which leads me to reason number three.įor me, as a black and white photographer, the winter landscape is just so beautiful. I'm not trying to shoot a vacation postcard I'm trying to convey emotion. Inclement weather, gloomy skies, and barren landscapes also add to the dark mood I look for in my work. Of course, days are shorter in winter, which makes it more important to have those midday hours available for shooting. Soft, cloudy winter light allows me to shoot at any time of day, even midday. This leads to reason number two on why I prefer shooting in winter. Even in summer, northern light is often filtered in a way I rarely see down south. Northern light has a different quality, as does the light in certain other places like New Mexico. Even at the golden hour, the light can still be very contrasty. I was raised in Texas, and I currently live in the southeastern US where summer light can be very harsh - even glaring. There are days with soft light from cloudy skies in summer, they're just less frequent. That gives me much more control over the contrast. Winter light is less direct and winter skies are more likely to be cloudy - even gloomy - which opens shadows and eases highlights. Having said that, I prefer winter light because it's softer. For color photography, shooting in winter is a whole different situation. Remember, I specialize in black and white photography. No mosquitoes, ticks, or snakes (or bears)įirst and foremost, I prefer the light and landscape in winter.I like the mood of the winter landscape.(I also prefer a much more diverse set of subject matter, but that's a topic for another day.) But why would a photographer prefer shooting in winter, when the weather sucks and everything is dead? Here are the top reasons why I prefer photographing the landscape in winter. One of my very distinct departures from the apparent norm, is that I prefer shooting on cloudy, foggy, rainy or otherwise gloomy days, especially in winter. Sure, I love a beautiful sunset, but as a photographer who specializes in black and white exclusively, I have a different take on things. If the sky is cloudy, or even worse, if there's a fog, the day is a total loss.įor me, landscape photography is a much different experience. Most often, this amounts to hiking up a mountain with a tripod and a backpack full of lenses, filters, and other gadgets with the goal of clicking a few shots of the setting sun. I've seen a lot of very popular landscape photographers on YouTube demonstrating their photography techniques. The Rustic Life: Historic Prairie Farmhouses.Classic Antique Automobiles Rusting in the Forest.Alternative Process Handmade Photographic Prints.
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