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10 Tips for Creating Better Black & White Nature Photographs

March 16, 2017 Sarah Marino
Stormy Sand Dunes: This is a photo that I first processed in color but now prefer in black and white. When stripped of color, the core elements shine through to a greater degree and I decided to take more liberty in bringing out the drama of the sce…

Stormy Sand Dunes: This is a photo that I first processed in color but now prefer in black and white. When stripped of color, the core elements shine through to a greater degree and I decided to take more liberty in bringing out the drama of the scene for this version.

After sharing selected photos from my black and white portfolios in my last three blog posts (landscapes, nature's small scenes, and plants), I am going to turn to discussing tips for how nature photographers can create more compelling, interesting, and dynamic black and white photographs. While it is hard to distill years of reading, trial and error, and experimentation into a few bullet points, I consider the following ten items to be the most important things I have learned along the way in creating my photographs. 

As I mentioned in my first post in this series, I generally feel more restrained when presenting a photograph in color. While I do not hold others to the same principles, I personally think that my color photographs need to be mostly grounded in the reality of the moment I experienced in the field. While working within this constraint is my choice, it does highly influence my work in a way that applies boundaries. With my color work, I often seek to portray simplicity, quietness, elegance, and contemplation. Many of my color photos are light and bright, or soft and quiet. With my black and white work, I often choose to portray drama, grandeur, and darkness in a way that just does not work for me when working in color.

With black and white photography, the constraints of conveying “reality” do not come into play since there is no reality conveyed in shades of gray. Thus, I can take an image file and create something that reflects my interests, visual preferences, and emotions about a scene or place in a much different way than I can with a color photograph. By shedding the expectations that come along with color photography, I have the opportunity to share my photographic concepts with greater latitude. For me, black and white photography feels like a more expansive pursuit than color photography because of the opportunities and creative freedoms I discuss below.  

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In Black & White Photography Tags landscape photography, Nature Photography, Photography tips, Creativity, Personal Expression
2 Comments

Recommended Reading for Landscape Photographers

December 1, 2015 Sarah Marino
A flooded Badwater Basin in Death Valley National Park

A flooded Badwater Basin in Death Valley National Park

This is my third post in an occasional series of recommend reading for landscape and nature photographers. In this list, I share a diverse mix of 13 resources ranging from highly practical to inspirational to thought-provoking. If you have any resources you would like to share (your own or links to others), please include them in the comments. And, as always, please feel free to share this list if you enjoy this post. 

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In Recommended Reading Tags Landscape Photography, Intimate Landscapes, Helpful Resources, Photography tips
3 Comments

Give Clear Skies a Chance!

December 16, 2014 Sarah Marino
Tatoosh Range during peak wildflowers, Mount Rainier National Park. Canon 5D Mark II, 24-105 lens @ 40mm, f/16, 0.4 sec, ISO 400.

Tatoosh Range during peak wildflowers, Mount Rainier National Park. Canon 5D Mark II, 24-105 lens @ 40mm, f/16, 0.4 sec, ISO 400.

The quality and characteristics of light are a frequent topic of conversation among landscape photographers -- and for good reason. Light, and how that light affects a subject, is a critical component in creating any photograph. All different kinds of lighting conditions, from subtle and soft to over-the-top dramatic, can lead to compelling and dynamic photographs. We make the case in our e-book, Beyond the Grand Landscape, that clear skies make for a perfect opportunity to photograph smaller scenes but clear skies can also work for grand landscapes. Yet, it seems that almost nothing can get a photographer to pack up his or her gear faster than a clear sky over a grand landscape at sunrise or sunset.  But wait! Give clear skies a chance!

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In Photography Tips Tags cloudless skies, Landscape Photography, Photography tips
-2 Comments

Beyond the Grand Landscape

May 12, 2014 Sarah Marino
Autumn in Vermont, Photo by Sarah Marino

Autumn in Vermont, Photo by Sarah Marino

One of the most prevalent pieces of advice offered to landscape photographers is also one of the most limiting: “Shoot during the golden hour.” And, if you observe a mass of photographers at some popular locations, the advice actually seems to be put in practice as “Shoot during the golden fifteen minutes and only if there are colorful clouds filling the sky.” For photographers living by this golden hour mantra, you may be missing a lot of what nature has to offer.

While I thoroughly enjoy photographing grand landscapes under beautiful light, I have come to enjoy photographing small scenes – abstracts, intimate landscapes, and macro photographs – even more. Years ago, one of the main reasons that I took up landscape photography was because it offered one of the only times I could quiet my mind. At the time, I was in graduate school and working a stressful, full-time job. I was almost always working through a long to-do list or thinking about working through a long to-do list. During the brief periods of time I could get out for photography, the act of focusing enough to create a photograph was an escape from that stressful and busy life I had created for myself. Photographing smaller scenes in nature – like finding a beautiful patch of corn lilies  or exploring a set of sand dunes to photograph the light and shadows at the end of the day – was so rejuvenating.

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In E-Books Tags Abstracts, Beyond the Grand Landscape, Intimate Landscapes, Landscape Photography, Macro, Nature Photo Guides, Photography E-Book, Photography tips, Small Scenes
-5 Comments

How to Photograph in Winter Conditions Without Being Miserable

February 2, 2014 Sarah Marino
A very cold morning in Colorado's San Juan Mountains (not winter, but close!).

A very cold morning in Colorado's San Juan Mountains (not winter, but close!).

Over the past few years, I have been working on tweaking my cold weather gear so I could more comfortably photograph during the winter and in cold temperatures.  After a trip to a very frigid Yellowstone National Park this winter, I think I have finally found a winning combination. No more ice-cold hands, nearly frozen toes, and general cold-weather misery for me!

With so many options for winter gear, I thought it might be helpful to put all of my lessons learned and advice in one spot to help others who want to photograph in winter but are not sure where to start in terms of choosing gear.   In this post, I will share some thoughts on using camera gear in cold weather, choosing the right clothing, and some basic tips on being prepared for wintery conditions.

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In Gear Review, Photography Tips, Winter Photography Tags Gear Review, Landscape Photography, Photographing in cold weather, Photography tips, Using camera gear in cold weather, Winter photography tips
-2 Comments

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Photographing Twilight: The Blue Hour and Beyond
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Light: Observation, Adaptability, and Open-Mindedness
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Monochromatic Wasteland: Ron's Photos from Death Valley
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Milestones: Winter in Rocky Mountain National Park
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Revisiting Backyard Ice Abstracts
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RECEnt INSTAGRAM photos

Autumn! Like most nature photographers, I have been happy to see hints of fall all around me over the last week or so. Here is a small selection of intimate landscapes and small scenes from Colorado last year.
A beautiful, lush field of lupine wildflowers outside of Crested Butte, Colorado. I'm so looking forward to teaching two summer wildflower workshops in this area with the Crested Butte Wildflower Festival next summer (link to more info in my bio). 🌺
I went to Alaska during peak fall colors and did as I always do: pointed my camera at mundane but beautiful things on the ground. I wrote about this trip for the most recent issue of Elements Magazine and covered the experience of traveling in Alaska
While traveling to Oklahoma for the total solar eclipse, we stopped at the Quivira National Wildlife Refuge in Kansas. In addition to seeing many birds, we also stumbled upon a grove of trees covered in beautiful orange, yellow, and blue-gray lichen.
This photo is from a wild weather day in Death Valley National Park and it is also the subject of my brand-new Bold Black + White video course. I created this course for Learn Nature Photography, which is a new collaboration with six insightful, insp
Some lovely sun beams in Death Valley, shining through very heavy storm clouds to illuminate the Panamint Mountains. I just shared a new blog post, my January month in review. I talk about our recent trip to Death Valley, why we keep revisiting the p
Backyard ice. Fancy patterns. ❄️
🥶 Seems like a good day to share a few favorite ice photos from Zion National Park.
I instantly adore every aquatic plant I’ve had the pleasure of meeting, including these from Mount Rainier National Park in autumn.
A small collection of newly processed photos from 2023, which was a good year overall. I wrote a longer wrap-up on our website, and you can find a link to it in my profile. Happy new year!
I’m writing an article about how centered compositions are PERFECTLY FINE in some situations, despite what the rules-oriented composition police might say. In looking for photos to go along with that article, I came upon this photo and it broug
Mountains made of water in Death Valley National Park.
 
 

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