In autumn, the weather slowly cools down, and it won't be long before it's the season for taking pictures of autumn leaves. Wait until the leaves are red before catching blind? Hurry up and start learning now, let's share with you the tips for shooting autumn leaves!
Preparation: Equipment and weather
If a craftsman wants to do a good job, he must first sharpen his tools. If you want to take pictures of autumn leaves, first think about how you want to shoot, and then prepare the equipment. Because different equipment has different uses:
Wide angle lens:
It is suitable for photographing the entire autumn leaf forest, and it can also take portraits, such as people in the autumn leaf environment.
Macro Lens:
It is suitable for close-ups of autumn leaves, and close-ups of autumn leaves that are not too tall on trees or falling to the ground are also quite beautiful.
Telephoto Lens:
Both portraits and autumn leaves can be photographed, and it is easier to create bokeh, especially when shooting autumn leaves in the distance! In addition, the telephoto lens can also do macro-like shooting!
Tripod or monopod:
Maple forests often require long exposure due to lack of light on the spot, so it is recommended to carry them if it is convenient.
Prepare tools and pay more attention to the weather forecast. If it rains, it's best not to go; If it's cloudy, don't be too disappointed, and the exposure time will look good for a longer time. Of course, sunny weather is good, but you should also pay attention to the fact that if there is no cloud, the light will be more stiff and the contrast will be very strong. Of course, it would be better if you could go to the site in advance to step on the spot.
The following two things are mainly remembered at the shooting site:
Forward and backlight, pay attention to the position of the sun
Forward light is easier for novices to master, the sun is probably directly shining on the front of the red leaves, and the color taken is closer to what the eye sees, and it can also retain the details of the nearby environment. Backlighting is mostly taken at dusk, when the sun is behind the leaves, the leaves will be more transparent and textured, but the background may not have too much detail. One point: when shooting backlight, use point metering to measure the light on the autumn leaves, if the metering is in the sky, it will become a silhouette!
Pay attention to the composition and use bokeh well
I believe there are many people who are beautiful in the red leaves, so we pay attention to the details in the background and avoid unnecessary people or other clutter. Framing upwards can avoid crowds, but be careful not to overly clutter the composition. Making good use of large apertures and long focal lengths to create a shallow depth of field can also make the autumn leaves stand out even more.
Take a portrait of red leaves
If you want to take a portrait of a red leaf, it is a little more difficult, but it is also more challenging, here are some tips:
1. Find some short red leaves
The most classic is that the model stands next to the autumn leaves and takes pictures. If the leaves grow tall, we often can't reach them, so find some short, gently pull down the branches (but don't break them), and stand next to them to take some creative photos with different compositions.
2. Fallen leaves are also beautiful
After shooting on the tree, let's shoot the ground. Fallen leaves everywhere, grab a bunch and throw it into the air to take pictures, or lie down and take photos with the red leaves. In this case, you may wish to use a wide-angle lens, which will look better.
3. Pay attention to the light
Standing next to the autumn leaves may not be enough light, so you can use a reflector or use a flash to fill in the light. On the other hand, silhouettes and red leaves also go well together, and you can also try to take silhouettes of red leaves and characters when backlit portraits.
Post-processing: Strengthen the red
You must have seen a lot of wonderful photos of red leaves, but often what you see in the real environment is not like that, here are a few post-production methods to make the red leaves redder:
1. Enhance saturation
Slightly enhance the overall saturation, so that the red will stand out more than other colors, and the overall look will be much better.
2. Pull curves, especially red
Enhancing the red color in the curve adjustment points in Photoshop can also make the red color more vivid.
3. Only the color of the red leaves is displayed
Only the red part is selected, and other colors are treated in black and white, which can also have a different taste.
summary
Whether you can take beautiful photos of the autumn leaves or not, you can enjoy seeing the beautiful autumn leaves in person. I hope you can enjoy the autumn leaves this year or next!
