Finding Nature’s Lines: Photographing Landscapes

The Location:  Denali National Park

Finding nature’s lines in the backcountry of Denali National Park took a little imagination and positioning.  The rewards were dynamic photographs of our experiences. For years, I had dreamed of a trip to Alaska, and especially into the interior of Denali National Park. Finally, one year, we went. Our journey took us to one of the beautiful backcountry lodges for the active traveler, Kantishna Roadhouse, 90 miles into the interior of Denali National Park. These are single-fee lodges that include all lodging, meals, and services, including guided walks. As we hiked the trails, I lagged a little behind so I could survey the surroundings, looking for nature’s lines and angles as we walked.

The Challenge:  Finding  Nature’s Lines

One day, our guides offered a walk through a valley and along a river called Moose Creek. As we walked along this gorgeous river valley scene, I looked for ways to show it off in a photograph. The first problem to solve was positioning the river and mountains so they looked dynamic. The second problem was managing the light so both the detail in the river as well as in the valley would be present in the photograph. This was the early 2000’s and digital cameras were not yet at the quality I wanted for a price I wanted to pay, so I was shooting film. That meant I couldn’t try and check my results and then try again if I didn’t get it. We also weren’t coming back any time soon.

The Accidental Photography Tip:

Finding nature’s lines and angles in a photograph give an otherwise static image a dynamic feel. I positioned myself so the river created one predominate angled line, with the folding angles of the mountains in the background. I used a landscape setting, wanting the whole photograph to be in focus, but also needing a fast enough shutter speed to get some freezing of the action in the flowing river. I trained the light meter and focus area on the green of the hills in the background, with the objective of blending the light from the sky with the light from the dark green to achieve a good average. I pushed halfway down on the shutter button, held it, and reframed to get the angle I wanted. I took several shots to ensure that I had one good one. This was it.

For simple tips to improve your photography on the go or on your travels with any camera or smart phone, check out my book, The Accidental Photographer for the Camera Bag.

For those of you interested in getting a more  technical foundation, I recommend taking the courses at New York Institute of Photography.  These are online correspondence courses with assignments reviewed by professional photographers.