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Fall Foliage: Tips For Taking Great Fall Photos

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Here are some tips for creating great fall images: 1. Use Indirect Light Try to avoid bright sunny days, which tend to increase the contrast and brightness of the colors. Instead, go for partial or full shade. Shooting on overcast or rainy days can emphasize the earth tones and the depth of color of fall […]

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Autumn offers a wide range of photographic opportunities for those who love colorful but moody days. With the quickly changing scenery, colorful landscapes and shorter days, it's not hard to understand why it's the favorite season of so many photographers.

But how do you capture the vibrancy of it? How do you come back home with beautiful images that you can't wait to share?

A typical problem with autumn photography is that the days are either dull and flat images that aren't able to convey the colors or atmosphere presented. That's what I'll help with, in this article; you'll learn how to capture great images of the changing season and how to enhance the atmosphere.

#1 Photograph during the Golden Hour

My first tip isn't only applicable in autumn. In fact, it's valuable advice for landscape photography in general: take advantage of the Golden Hour.

The landscape lights up when the sun is at a low position during the hours around sunrise and sunset, which results in a picturesque soft glow. This often gives a beautiful 'pop' to the vibrant autumn colors and can dramatically enhance the atmosphere.

A photograph of Rondane National Park in Norway captured on an early autumn morning.

There's no doubt that a blue sky can be a good contrast to the yellow or orange trees but, unfortunately, the light quickly gets too harsh during the daytime. This makes it nearly impossible to get the soft glow you want to achieve.

Photographing autumn during Golden Hour is less important during dull and gray days. When the clouds are thick and the fog is rolling in, you're often able to avoid the harsh light and get a soft and nice result all day long.

That being said, getting up early or staying out late to photograph while the sun is at a low position in the sky is going to help achieve that nice soft glow and little extra 'pop' in the autumn colors.

#2 Fog and overcast days can be just as good

Autumn isn't a season where you can expect sunshine every day. At least not here in Northern Norway. Days are getting shorter and the weather is changing quickly, which normally means a lot of rain, fog and gray days.

These conditions may make you want to curl up in front of the fireplace with a cup of hot chocolate but I urge you to get out of the comfort zone and head outside; this changing weather can lead to some amazing moments behind the camera. It's also part of what's special about this time of year, so why not photograph it?

Lakes, woods, rivers and streams are good subjects for photography during overcast or foggy days. As mentioned above, the light is still ideal during the Golden Hours but these days are more forgiving and it's easier to capture interesting images at other hours of the day as well.

Look for scenes that stick out from the surroundings. In the image above, the bright orange leaves and the red heather was a great contrast to the gray and dull background. The color separation makes the tree stick out even more and it's no doubt that it's the main subject of the image.

#3 Take advantage of natural framing

Natural framing is one of the strongest compositional techniques and during autumn the opportunities are endless.

Look for branches, leaves, trees or other natural elements that can frame your main subject. Doing so will help emphasize the main subject of your image while you still have a beautiful and interesting frame around it.

I find it easier to implement this technique when using a telezoom or at least 50mm. Still, it does work with a wide-angle lens but it's often harder to find efficient frames and the depth of field doesn't have the same impact.

#4 Use a Circular Polarizer

A Circular Polarizer is your best friend for autumn photography, regardless of whether you're photographing in the woods or a scenic vista. There are several benefits of using one but here are the most important:

It enhances the contrast & colors

It enhances the blue sky on clear days

It removes unwanted glare from rain and wet days

... and it allows you to use a slightly slower shutter speed, which is ideal when photographing rivers and streams.

Note that the filter typically darkens the image with approximately 1.5 stops, so you might need to either increase your ISO or use a tripod to get a correct exposure that remains sharp when there's less available light.

I have a great experience with both the B+W CPL & NiSi CPL but there are many other good and more affordable brands on Amazon.

Make sure to choose a filter which is relatively color neutral, though, as you don't want it to create a significant color cast; rather, you want it to enhance the actual colors in the scene.

#5 Avoid direct sunlight

I'll start by saying that this tip is more of a general guideline as there are many great images from autumn that are shot directly into the sun. However, due to the hard midday light, I recommend that you avoid shooting into the sun in most scenarios - though it's more forgiving during sunrise or sunset.

One of the main challenges with photographing directly towards the sun is that the foreground will be underexposed, meaning that you'll need to capture multiple exposures and blend them together in post-processing. You'll also notice that you get a lot of hard shadows, overall less saturation and lens flares which are hard to get rid off.

#6 Apply a warm White Balance

Many of you might use the Auto White Balance function in the camera but, unfortunately, it attempts to neutralize colors, which is something we don't necessarily want when photographing autumn. A better option is to manually adjust the White Balance in order to bring out more of that warm color.
Recommended Reading: Master White Balance Like a Pro
This is done by increasing the Kelvin to a higher value (such as 6000). Be careful not to overdo it, though; a too-high value leads to a global and unnatural looking color cast.

If you're not yet comfortable manually adjusting the White Balance, you can look through the different semi-automatic presets to see if there's one that works for the scene you're shooting.

#7 Look for details

My final tip for photographing autumn is to look for details. Take the time to carefully scout the scene you're photographing and look for things that stick out. Perhaps it's a red leaf in a small puddle, a branch that's losing leaves, reflections of a colorful tree or a cluster of colorful trees.
Recommended Reading:

4 Tips for Photographing Nature's Smaller Scenes
Leave the wide-angle lens in your bag and challenge yourself to use a telezoom or macro lens instead. Zoom in on various objects and scenes to see if there's anything that stands out. You might be surprised by what you find!

Conclusion

Autumn photography is a highlight for many landscape photographers and it's a time where there are endless of opportunities. However, the quickly changing light and conditions leads to many challenges and it doesn't take more than a few mistakes before you have to wait an entire year to the next attempt.

But, as we all know, the little challenge can result in great awards. By taking your time when setting up the shot and experiment with the composition and perspective, you're going to capture images that you can't wait to share with the world.

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Autumn Photography: Tips to Photographing the Colors of Autumn

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Autumn offers a wide range of photographic opportunities for those who love colorful but moody days. With the quickly changing scenery, colorful landscapes and shorter days, it's not hard to understand why it's the favorite season of so many photographers. But how do you capture the vibrancy of it?

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10 Autumn Photography Tips You Must Try This Season 🍂

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7 SIMPLE tips you SHOULD know for AUTUMN PHOTOGRAPHY

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11 Creative Tips for Fall Photography

Now that you've got some ideas for autumn photography under your belt, let's take a look at some creative tips that you can use to capture an array of stunning fall images!

Tip #11. Hunt the Fog

No, I'm not crazy. Autumn shots with fog fit together like chocolate and cream... like peanut butter with jelly, like.. well, I think you've got the drill.

It doesn't matter what type of photography you practice: fog will help you to enhance the autumnal mood whatever the time of day. This is because fog softens the contrasts of the scene and gives a nice depth of field. In case you are shooting portraits or wildlife, it will help you to separate the main subject from the rest of the scene.

However, it's not just a matter of separation between subject and background. Rather, it's the specific feeling that you can convey simply by using fog to your advantage. The result is a mix of restlessness and the unknown, which will attract the viewer and make them observe your photo more scrupulously.

Below is an example of a photo that I took during a foggy day in fall. Can you imagine the same image without the thick fog in the background?

As you can see, fog helps to create depth of field. So the next time that you go outside to shoot during the fall season, try searching for foggy, spooky conditions instead of classic sunny days.

Tip #10. Use the Right Lenses

As a landscape photographer, I continuously find myself using wide-angle lenses during my shooting sessions. When I go out for photography in autumn though, I'll often end up shooting with a medium telephoto lens instead, such as a 70-200mm.

Now, I'm not saying that you should use just a telephoto zoom and leave all of your other lenses at home. I'm just saying that according to my experience, using a longer focal length will help you to isolate your subject better and enhance the wonderful autumn colours in the scene.

Tip #9. Let Your Artistic Side Go Wild

Motion blur, artistic bokeh, in-camera double exposures... in autumn, you can really express your creative vision as you wish; the only limit is your imagination.

In the photo below, my aim was to convey the feeling of scratches upon a prison wall. I wanted it to seem as though the trees were trying to escape from the forest. By using the technique of motion blur, I was able to create this abstract image. It works because there isn't a way for your eyes to fall upon a single subject - it's just too messy for that. At the same time, the viewer still understands that they are looking at trees.

You can duplicate this technique in-field by using a long exposure time. You can also try doing this in post production with software such as Adobe Photoshop. Simply select the 'Filter' menu option, then Blur → Motion Blur.

Motion blur works perfectly with colourful foliage, so the fall season is the best time to try out this technique!

Tip #8. Look for Water

It doesn't matter if it's a tiny stream or a river, a small pond or a lake - water can always offer incredible photographic opportunities. This includes the chance to capture reflections and to practice long exposures. Best of all, water can help you to find a meaningful composition which can be difficult in the "autumn mess" of conditions.

If you are looking for reflections, try to be at the location early in the morning. Generally, it's one of the least windiest moments of the day. This way, you will have a better chance of capturing calm waters where your subject will perfectly reflect. Also, the soft pre-sunrise light will create a more subtle contrast, which may help you to capture the atmosphere that you want.

Tip #7. Take a Walk in.. Your Garden!

Garden photography can be much more rewarding during the autumn season. The colourful backgrounds and subjects typical of the season will help you to create some stunning images, literally from your own backyard!

Think about macro photography with mushrooms and insects. You can also try photographing birds or wildlife if you happen to live in a place that they frequent. There is a lot that you can find to photograph in your garden - you just need to look around and have a bit of patience.

For macro photography, a dedicated lens with a magnification factor of 1:1 or more is highly recommended. If you prefer to shoot wildlife, then a telephoto lens will do the job.

Tip #6. Textures are an Easy Win

Textures are always an interesting subject, whether we are talking about trees, leaves or fruit. They are even more beautiful during autumn when they take on vibrant, warm colours.

Try a close-up shot of a falling leaf. With the right shutter speed, you can catch all of its details, which will no doubt stand out amongst the different shades. Textures are just one of nature's many marvels.

Tip #5. Use the Right Camera Settings

A lot of photographers get discouraged when they play back photos on their camera display. This is because what they see on the back of the camera often doesn't look at all like what they may have seen in reality. If this has happened to you, then have you ever wondered why?

Oftentimes, it may be because you are using the wrong camera settings. To make sure that your settings are correct, check the white balance of your camera. For autumn photography, it's recommended to set the white balance to "Shade" or "Cloudy" mode. These settings will warm up the scene the most in a way that is similar to typical autumnal foliage.

In the case that you are shooting in JPEG, try switching to RAW format instead. This will give you more data to work with during post production. However, if you prefer not to do any editing, then by all means, shoot in JPEG but try to play a bit with the settings that are in-built to your camera, such as adding contrast and saturation.

These two small changes should help you achieve much better colours, directly from the moment that you capture the frame to when you see it on the camera display!

Tip #4. Take a Polariser Filter with You at all Times

It took me a while before I understood the importance of a polariser filter when shooting autumn colours. That's because I had tried the polariser in other situations without achieving great results. Without seeing any improvement from the use of a polarising filter, I was unsure what it would add to an autumn scene.

I decided to give my polariser one last try when I was shooting in the fall one year and I'm so glad that I did. At that moment, I regretted not having used one in the previous years!

The way that a polariser filter can enhance the colours and give you just the right amount of contrast is something that is difficult to replicate in post-processing. In addition, it can give you a much better base photo to begin with when you start editing.

If you prefer not to use any editing software, then a polariser is all the more important as it will help you to capture a much better JPEG straight out of your camera.

Tip #3. Choose the Best Colours

Have you ever heard of complementary colours? They are basically two colours that create a strong visual contrast when placed next to one another. Red tones are complementary to blue tones, so if you include a bit of blue sky into your shots of autumn foliage, then you should be able to create a high-contrast image.

On the other hand, if you want to create a more subtle and delicate picture, you should exclude every colour that is not a variant of red, orange or yellow.

Tip #2. The Right Time for Autumn Photography

One of the main reasons that photographers are not able to achieve good results during autumn is bad timing. Believe it or not, there is a right time to go out and capture the colours of fall.

For some people, it can be difficult to explain to their employer that they can't go to work because the autumn foliage is at its peak. Sometimes, the colours don't last long and it's easy for them to disappear quickly - for example, if a major storm comes in and blows all the leaves to the ground.

To make sure that you are at the right place at the right time to capture the colours of autumn, be sure to do some research beforehand. You can use webcams and local weather forecasts to help you plan your shoots.

Tip #1. Stand at the Right Elevation

There are times when whether you stand on your feet or move your camera to ground level can make all the difference between capturing a good or a bad shot. If things aren't working out for you at a certain height, then try reaching a more elevated point in order to see the bigger picture. If shooting from up high isn't successful, then try getting as low as possible to exclude certain elements or to make use of an interesting foreground.

When you arrive at a location where you think there might be potential for a good shot, don't stop looking for compositions at just one point of view. Instead, try a few different perspectives to see which one of them works best for that scene!

Conclusion

As you can see, autumn photography is one of the best times to go out and take pictures. Whenever possible, you should try to get out there as much as you possibly can. Good photos generally come from perseverance and careful planning. By being outside often, you'll increase your chances of capturing beautiful scenery with the light that you want and at the peak of the autumn foliage.

My secret is to just head outside whenever I have time. You should try to do the same!
About the author: Leonardo Papèra is a landscape photographer based in Italy. You can find more of his work on his website or by following him on Instagram. Are you ready to start practicing new photography techniques and skills? Learn how to improve your photography on one of our Autumn Workshops in Iceland!

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11 Tips for Amazing Autumn Photography | Iceland Photo Tours

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Now that you've got some ideas for autumn photography under your belt, let's take a look at some creative tips that you can use to capture an array of stunning fall images! No, I'm not crazy. Autumn shots with fog fit together like chocolate and cream... like peanut butter with jelly, like..