Autumn serves as one of the best times for photography. This is when you’ll find landscapes are transformed into a multitude of wonderful colours. Sunrise and sunset times also tend to be better too, which means for that added light you won’t have to get up super early or stay out too late. Wondering how you could spice up your pictures this fall? Here are some top tips to improve your autumn photography.
1. Frame with leaves and trees
Of course, the highlight of Autumn is all of the colours. So use this to your advantage and use leaves and colourful trees in your framing and composition. You could also consider using a wide aperture (such as 2.8) to create a bokeh effect.
2. Take aerial images
Getting as high as possible will allow you to show so much more. This works best when you’re in a location where there are lots of trees and these are all different colours. If you have it also consider using a drone as that will give you the most flexibility to capture incredible aerial images. But before you use your drone just check you’re not in a no-fly zone.
3. Position the sun behind the trees
When framing with the sun behind the trees this can illuminate the colours showing just how pretty they are. As well as this you could try using a narrow aperture, such as F16 to create a sunburst effect such as seen below.
4. Get creative
Autumn can also be a fun time to experiment. Such as being creative with your photography and creating something a bit more unique. This might involve rearranging the leaves, throwing them into the air and lots more. Basically, try different things and see what works.
5. Use reflections in your photographs
Reflections can massively enhance composition which is great for Instagram. When taking pictures keep an eye out for still water, such as lakes, puddles and ponds which might allow you to get a reflection in your image.
6. Add a little vibrancy or saturation
When it comes to your editing you can sometimes add a little pop to your image by enhancing the vibrancy or saturation in your image. Most image editors have these types of functions available. We mainly use Lightroom for our photography which makes editing photographs a breeze. When doing this it’s also worth noting that you should be careful not to overdo it, as this will have a negative effect on the image and actually make it look worse.
7. Use people in your composition
When taking pictures during the fall adding a person (or people) to your image can be a good way to give a sense of scale and also break the image up a little. As well as this it can help viewers visualise what it must be like in that moment, walking among the autumn scenery.
8. Take pictures around sunrise or sunset
To add a little extra to your image then consider taking your pictures at sunrise or sunset. This will allow you to shoot during softer light, you may also get beautiful colours in the sky too. The particular image below was taken during the morning just after the sun came up. This meant it was low and as a result created wonderful shadows among the trees.
9. Avoid bright and harsh sunlight
Taking pictures during the middle of the day when it’s very bright and sunny can be extremely challenging. It’s also unlikely you’ll get images that are too impressive or very usable in these scenarios. So, if possible try and take images when it’s an overcast day, early morning or late in the afternoon instead. It’s sometimes still possible to take pictures when it’s part cloudy, and these are also fun for long day time exposures, but this is still a bit hit and miss.
10. Brighten your images
As well as increasing the saturation or vibrancy then also consider brightening up your image. This might involve increasing the exposure either in post-production or when taking the photograph. When taking your picture the best way to adjust the brightness is to add exposure compensation. If you take your image in the RAW (unprocessed) format then this will also give you more control during your editing stage without losing detail.
Summary
So here are some of the best ways to improve your autumn photographs. If anything just head out, enjoy natures transformation and snap away. Want some ideas on places to go? Check out our suggestions of the best places in Europe to visit this autumn.
