Introduction

Photographing the fall colors can be the most fun you have with your camera. Autumn is a great time of year for photography. There are an unlimited number of sights, sounds and smells to stimulate your senses. After reading this page, you should be able to choose a great item to display and dress it up in the fabulous colors of the fall season.

This is a very emotional time of year. Think about that when you’re shooting. What you feel when the day is cloudy will be different than when the day is bright and sunny. Odors in the air will also play a role.

The air smells quite different right after an autumn rain and it’s not uncommon to catch the scent of smoking leaves. All these elements can influence your mood and therefore the photos you take. Try to capture these emotions in your photos and you will be very satisfied with the results.

Autumn is all about moods and emotions, so make the best use of this and you will produce some of your best photography.

However, your photos shouldn’t just be about fall colors. Please note that many animals are quite active at this time of year. Keep your eyes open for these opportunities. It could be a squirrel gathering food for the winter, or a flock of birds gathering for the southward migration.

Get ready for that surprise photo. Take your camera everywhere, but remember that the fall weather can change very quickly, so be prepared. Make sure you have protection for both you and your equipment.

Camera equipment and settings.

Use aperture priority mode to set depth of field. The camera will automatically take care of the shutter speed for you. Be sure to use a tripod to help keep the scene perfectly in focus. You may want to set a shallow depth of field to blur the background, but you’ll always want to keep your main subject in sharp focus.

When you use the tripod, you should also use a cable release. This will help prevent camera shake.

Be careful with the white balance. You may have to adjust it several times depending on the weather. But experiment with that too. You can often get softer colors on a sunny day by setting the white balance to cloudy. Try the different settings and take note of the results. Trying everything you can think of is a great learning tool.

Use a low ISO setting to help keep your shots as sharp as possible. However, if it’s a dark day, try a higher setting, but be aware that they will have a more grainy appearance. This is called noise.

With such a range of autumnal colors, you can get a prettier photo if you’re a little underexposed or a little overexposed, so set your camera to frame your shots.

It’s always a good idea to have an off-camera flash unit. You can then position it to use as a fill flash to eliminate unwanted shadows or to produce the shadow effect you want.

To help cut through morning fog or prevent glare from reflective surfaces like glass and water, bring a polarizing filter. This filter will also help deepen the blue of the sky.

If you find the sky is quite bright and the surroundings are a bit dark, use a graduated ND filter. This will help even out the exposure. A very bright sky can tend to wash out those gorgeous fall colors.

And remember to take a lot of memory with you. You’ll be taking a lot of shots and you’re going to need it.

Compose the shot.

Be sure to walk around the scene before shooting. See it from all perspectives and take your time to study the area. So you can choose the best point of view for your composition. Fall colors can look very different depending on the angle.

Don’t just look at the leaves on the trees. When they fall to the ground they can also make a very colorful rug. This can be used as a great background for your shots.

Instead of just shooting lots of landscapes of trees with colored leaves, choose one main subject and use colors to enhance it. Use things like a building or a body of water surrounded by fall colors. Even a person or group of people enjoying a fall day can make a great photograph.

Get closer to what you want to photograph. Look for patterns on a leaf or in a rock formation. There may be a fence with some vines that make big patterns. You may even be lucky enough to spot an insect that you can get up close to, especially if it’s perched on a colorful background.

Remember to take a lot of shots and put them in brackets. You can choose the best exposure later and remove the ones you don’t like.

Try shooting from different angles, including high and low shots. This kind of perspective can create a very unique scene.

Don’t limit yourself to simple snapshots, pay close attention to composition and create great photos instead. Keep the rule of thirds in mind when placing your main subject.

Keep your eyes open for bodies of water. Fall colors make great highlights. In the early morning, the surface of a pond or lake can be very still and therefore reflect the spectacular colors that fill its shoreline. This kind of shot may just be the special photograph you’ve been looking for.

If the surface is hazy rather than reflective, take a few photos anyway. Misty ponds and lakes can make for some fabulous photos. The fog will eventually dissipate and you will then have your reflective surface. The same scene under different conditions will produce two completely different photos.

When shooting a landscape scene, be sure to set a large f-number, which will maintain a greater depth of field. Remember to focus your camera 1/3 of the distance into the scene as well.

To give your landscape that sense of depth, choose a foreground element. It can be a building or a rock outcrop. It could also be an oddly shaped tree or a body of water, anything that doesn’t blend in with the background.

Foreground elements can also be used to frame the shot. Two good examples of this would be a tree with overhanging branches or a bridge spanning a stream. Position these items to frame the scene and produce a unique image.

Cloudy days can be quite dramatic and when the wind picks up there will be a great opportunity to add action to the shot. Leaves blowing in the wind or those dark, threatening swirling clouds will add an element of intensity.

If you want to add more drama to the image, look for straight lines and sharp angles. An example of this would be a long fence or power lines.

When looking for a more serene plane, look for curved lines. Rivers and streams or the shorelines of ponds and lakes can be excellent for producing curved lines and especially the “S” curve.

Many bodies of water have a path following the shoreline. This can be a great opportunity for you if there is a person or animal walking on the road. The shot will become more personal with these types of elements included. It will help you show temperature or wind movement as well as add scale.

Take a country walk and look for farmer’s fields. They should be filled with colorful fall products. Look out for farmers markets and fall fairs. It is here that you will find a bustle of people mixed with patches of great color where the fall harvest is displayed.

Autumn colors and lighting.

The best time of day to photograph the fall colors is in the early morning or at sunset. The light is softer at these times and can produce deep, rich colors. Midday light can be harsh, especially on a very sunny day, but that doesn’t mean you shouldn’t shoot midday, just keep the conditions in mind.

When taking close-ups, have the light source come from a side angle. This will help create a shadow and add more contrast to the scene. If you find shadows in the scene hindering rather than helping, use fill flash to remove them.

Don’t be afraid of autumn rains. Wet and colorful scenes can be very spectacular. Showing drops of water about to fall from a leaf, branch, or berry can be a very artistic shot, especially if you can capture any reflections in the drop.

If you get the chance, shoot the same scene in all the different lighting conditions. Sunny days can produce great contrasts, while cloudy days can soften the autumn colors.

Now all you have to do is pick up your camera and head out into the crisp, clean autumn air. Take lots of photos of the fall colors and have fun.

Summary.

Pay close attention to the composition of your photos. The mood and environment will play a big role in this. View the scene from all sides and try different settings to capture the best shot available to you. The most important thing is to have fun.