How to Photograph Mountains
- 1). Purchase a polarizing filter to use with your lens. This filter will reduce haze and increase the color saturation in the sky.
- 2). Purchase a steady tripod and bring it with you on all shooting trips. The tripod will allow you to stabilize your camera for longer exposures, giving you the freedom to choose the appropriate aperture settings.
- 3). Plan to shoot in the early morning, late afternoon or evening rather than at midday. The side-lighting and back-lighting of these transitional periods will define the shapes and details of the mountains better than the direct, frontal lighting of a bright noonday sun. Prepare to set up any equipment in advance of this time so you'll be ready to capture the light at its best.
- 4). Shoot with a small aperture (high f-stop number) to maximize depth of field. The smaller the aperture, the more depth of field, meaning more of your image will appear in focus. With maximum depth of field, you can create an image in which both the foreground and distant background appear in focus.
- 5). Shoot with a higher ISO (film speed or digital sensor sensitivity number) and a slower shutter speed to compensate for the small aperture.
- 6). Include people in the foreground of your image to give the viewer a sense of the mountains' scale.
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