Fall is an ideal time to capture some spectacular landscapes, portraits, and close-up images of the intricate beauty of nature. Consider some of these tips while planning an autumn photo shoot of your own.
If you’re thinking of displaying your photos, a professional boutique shop like Print Partner offers a range of archival, gallery-quality mediums and finishing options to choose from. It’s easy to upload a file and select your preferred options like medium and size. Professional photographers can apply for a Pro-Discount on the site. Consider size options and the medium before your shoot to help you consider your subject matter and framing, etc.
Fall landscapes make for beautiful wall art: shocks of red, orange, and yellow during peak hiking weeks, and the warm, cozy autumn palates surrounding the harvest and holidays. Sunsets and sunrises complement the scenery and highlight the slight chill of frost on the fields and individual leaves. October and November are great times to get out into the forest and capture nature as it turns, before the snow hits. Find water to capture brilliant reflections and fallen leaves on the surface. Tree lines in various stages of change offer a variety of shades, leaf shapes, and heights. Small towns also look particularly charming with splashes of colour from community gardens and urban trees. A mixed weather day provides rays of sunlight piercing through the treetops, cloud to capture authentic, rich colours, and weather elements like wind and fog can add an extra layer of visual interest and set a mood. Remember to wear layers on your trek to accommodate the mix of temperatures the season can bring.
Autumn is an ideal time to take family portraits, engagement photos, and friends being together.Parks offer interesting backgrounds and opportunities to pose, like bridges spanning a pond, quaint wooden benches, trees to peak out from behind, and manicured gardens with fall foliage and perennials. Have fun gathering some leaves together – tell the kids to throw them into the air and snap your shot a second later to capture the smiles under a shower of leaves.The warm colour palate can also set a romantic mood for a cozy couple photo that makes a stunning print for your living room or bedroom wall. Some parks offer opportunities to take a paddle boat or canoe out on the pond or river. Pose under a grand canopy with leaves gently falling in soft light. Be sure to select clothing that matches the palates of nature.
The details of fall are also excellent for macro and close-up photography. Set-up some individual leaves selected for their colour, shape, and veining detail. Pinecones, acorns, wildlife, flowers, water droplets, and frost patterns also show off the organic designs in nature when zoomed-in. Your camera likely has a macro mode, but professionals know a macro lens is essential to make the proper adjustments for a dazzling shot. The modes on modern phones and basic DSLRs do an excellent job, nonetheless.
Check the weather and try to select a few promising days with a mix of sun and cloud and try a few shoots at different times of day to get the benefits of early morning frost or an evening sunset. Many conservation area sites will list peak leaf colour changing weeks. Note: there will be increased traffic during these times, so a morning session will provide the opportunity to shoot with fewer hikers wandering into your shot.
