When you start doing photography (or anything else, for that matter), you’ll get a bunch of tips on what you should do. Some of them are absolutely precious, while the other ones will do you more harm than good. But how do you weed out the bad advice from the good? When you’re new to something, everything may seem so overwhelming?

1. NINE BEGINNER LANDSCAPE PHOTOGRAPHY TIPS YOU
SHOULD TOTALLY IGNORE
November 25, 2019 by Dunja Djudjic · 2 Comments
When you start doing photography (or anything else, for that matter), you’ll get a bunch of tips on what you should do. Some of
them are absolutely precious, while the other ones will do you more harm than good. But how do you weed out the bad advice
from the good? When you’re new to something, everything may seem so overwhelming?
Well, Mark Denney is here to help. If you’re new to landscape photography, Mark offers nine pieces of bad advice that you should
ignore rather than follow.
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2. Mark notes that these are some tips he got in his first year of doing landscape photography. He implemented each and every one
of them – and they all had a bad effect on his photography. He rated them from the least bad to the worst one, and I’ll keep the
same order. So, let’s see those bad pieces of advice that you should probably stay away from.
1. ALWAYS SHOOT IN MANUAL
To make things clear, it’s necessary that you know how to use the Manual mode. If you know how it works, it will help you
understand the exposure triangle better. However, once you master it, it doesn’t mean you have to use it all the time. As Mark
puts it, using the Manual mode is not a badge of honor. For example, many landscape photographers use Aperture priority mode
all the time. It all depends on the situation you’re in and your preferences.
2. YOU MUST HAVE GRADUATED ND FILTERS
Mark believes that there’s only one filter that is a must-have for landscape photographer, and it’s a circular polarizer. The main
reason for this is that it’s the only filter whose effect you can’t replicate in Photoshop or any other editing software. Graduated ND
filters are nice to have, but even if you don’t, you can easily replicate their effect in post.
3. ALWAYS EXPOSE TO THE RIGHT
With modern cameras, you might actually want to do the opposite – Mark says he more often exposes to the left to protect his
highlights. Modern cameras allow us to preserve details in the shadows even when we underexpose the image. In fact, this is
what I was learned to do in the photography course back in the day.
4. ALWAYS USE A TRIPOD
Using a tripod makes sense if you shoot at slower shutter speeds. But come on, imagine shooting in bright daylight at 1/500 or
even faster – do you really need a tripod for that? Personally, I use the tripod only when I absolutely have to; otherwise, I shoot
BEGINNER Landscape Photography ADVICE To IGNOREBEGINNER Landscape Photography ADVICE To IGNORE

3. FIND THIS INTERESTING? SHARE IT WITH YOUR FRIENDS!
handheld.
5. ONLY SHOOT DURING GOLDEN HOUR
The so-called golden hour is certainly a magical time to shoot. But it’s not the only one, nor necessarily the best. You can take
plenty of awesome photos at different times of day and in various weather conditions. Don’t limit yourself only to the golden hour,
because you may miss out on so many great opportunities for great photos.
6. YOU MUST HAVE A FULL-FRAME CAMERA
If you’re new to landscape photography, this kind of advice may discourage you on different levels. Full-frame cameras are more
expensive than APS-C models, and you may not have that money. On the other hand, you may invest more money into a full-
frame model, only to be disappointed because your photos haven’t really improved.
Mark believes that only astrophotography benefits visibly from full-frame cameras. In other kinds of landscape photography, the
difference isn’t that obvious. So, just practice your skill and develop your style, it really doesn’t matter which camera model you’ll
be using in the process.
7. YOU DON’T NEED AN L-BRACKET
You may have heard that an L-bracket is just a waste of money and it will just make your camera heavier and bulkier. But the truth
is that it can make your life so much easier if you’re a landscape photographer. Mark wholeheartedly recommends that you ignore
the bad advice and get an L-bracket for your camera if you’re shooting landscapes.
8. NEVER CROP YOUR PHOTOS
Maybe this made sense when cameras didn’t have as high resolution as they do today. But nowadays, it really doesn’t make
sense to by all means get everything right in-camera. Still, check the edges and the corners of your frame so there are no
unwanted elements. But even if you can’t avoid them, you can plan the final shot that will include some cropping.
9. YOU MUST HAVE “THE HOLY TRINITY OF LENSES”
According to Mark, this is the worst piece of advice he received as a beginner landscape photographer. It doesn’t include the
exact three lenses, but whichever set of lenses you choose, they should cover the focal length from ultra-wide (some 14mm) to
telephoto (200mm).
So, the beginner Mark bought four different lenses to cover this focal length range, and he ended up almost never using three of
them. Because of this, he advises you to start with a wide-angle zoom and shoot with it for a while. See how it works for you and
figure out what you want beyond that. I’d add that even a kit lens will do in the beginning (those are mainly around 18-55mm or
18-105mm). Just shoot with it for a while. And then, go through your photos and see which focal lengths you use the most and
which additional lenses would be a good option for you to buy.
Have you ever received any of these pieces of advice? Did you listen to them? And do you agree that they’re bad, or you believe
that we should actually listen to some of them?
[BEGINNER Landscape Photography ADVICE To IGNORE | Mark Denney]

4. These are seven habits of highly successful landscape photographers
Three essential tips for landscape photography
Seven unexpected tips for better landscape photography
These five mistakes are crucial to avoid in landscape photography
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Filed Under: Inspiration
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Michael D Zielinski • 15 days ago
What you really need is a snoot.
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Paul H • 14 days ago • edited> Michael D Zielinski
There is no way that I want to be snooty even if I have the best scenes to capture :-)
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Dunja Djudjic is a writer and photographer from
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