When I was first learning to use my digital SLR, I read lots of books and online articles with hints, tips, and recipes for getting the perfect photos. One of the books I loved the most was Scott Kelby's The Digital Photography Book. Scott has some of the best advice and recipes for success, but is also willing to bend or break some of the steadfast photography rules while passing along others that must remain. I'd highly recommend this book, at least Volume 1, for anyone wishing to better their amateur photography and especially for new DSLR owners!
Some of the golden rules of landscape photography are to always shoot during the golden hour around sunrise and sunset to get the most flattering sunlight, use a tripod to get ultra-crisp photos, and even to use gadgets for landscape photos like bubble levels and polarizing filters. But let's just assume you're on vacation and that it's unlikely you'll be leaving your mate and warm hotel room before the crack of dawn. I think that's fair. But that doesn't mean that good opportunities for landscapes won't present themselves. All of the shots below were taken well after sunrise in San Francisco, without a tripod, and with no helpful gadgets to make sure I get the photo right. Now, I did need to make a few more adjustments than normal in Lightroom to bring down some highlights and control colors, but the weather helped my landscape photos.
Fog allows for some really dramatic photographs that I think you'll love. Fully cloudy days, while a bummer for most landscapes, create great opportunities for details of a city because the sunlight is filtered and softened. I captured the two photos of the Bay Bridge below just as the fog began to lift and before the sunlight was immensely harsh.
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Eric
Eric Lovelin Photography
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