Summer in your Photos
BONUS PHOTO CHALLENGE | What does summer mean to you? What thoughts, images, and memories come to mind when thinking of summer and how can you document those things? Whatever summer looks like to you, take photos to remember this season by.
Landscape photography is all about the seasons.
We all know that photography is a form of communication. You want your images to tell the story of summer and how it makes you feel. Think about what summer means to you, and strive to capture that in your images.
The most important thing is for you to make your images personal and to photograph the subjects that represent summer for you.
Summer is full of unique photo opportunities. Summer means color, time spent at the water, harsh and bright light, and for me, it means hikes, dinner parties, road trips, and camping.
Tips for those amazing summer photos:
Unless you’re wanting to work with harsh shadows and sunlight, shoot during the blue/golden hours after sunrise and before sunset when the light is softer.
Look for open shade to balance harsh light.
A polarizer filter can be used to increase contrast and saturation, and keep your exposure manageable when you need to use a low aperture.
Don’t give up and stay indoors when you see a bad weather forecast. Bad weather could be a great opportunity for a dramatic landscape. Storm clouds and sunbeams breaking through will add great impact to your photo. Soaked mosses, leaves, and rocks are more vibrant and have a richer color in moody weather.
Summer is a great time for nature and wildlife photography. Animals are most active early in the morning, so whether you’re getting birds at the feeder or a deer in the wild, they add interest to your collection of summer images.
If you can handle a late night, summer is also a great time for night photography.
I love being mindful of the seasons and I love to have intention to capture it. There’s little in the way of finding photos online with sources for the photographer’s who have taken their own interpretation of shooting with the seasons, but there are a few I’ve followed for some time that inspire me regularly. These photographers look up close, document the details, the colors, and the feeling of the time and place their in with expert creativity and consistency.
Meg Loeks | One of the strongest through lines and defined photography style, Meg is very active in the photography community via Instagram and documents the seasons with her children and their country life beautifully.
Anna Aromin | Another strong photography style and consistent through-line, Anna takes a very artistic and creative approach to documenting the seasons.