It’s cold outside
Igor Bortoluzzi braved the cold weather and returned with a stunning series of landscapes from the beautiful Dolomites mountain range
I have loved mountains ever since I was a kid, and they were the first subjects that I took pictures of
MISSION: Photograph and print a series of brilliant winter landscapes from the Dolomites PHOTOGRAPHER: Igor Bortoluzzi
LOCATION: Salgareda, Treviso, Italy
KIT USED: Nikon D750, Nikon 20mm f/1.8, Nikon 70-300mm f/4.5-5.6, Sigma 35mm f/1.4 Art WEBSITE: www.igorbortoluzzifotografia.com FACEBOOK: @Igorbortoluzzifotografia INSTAGRAM: @igorbortoluzzifoto
Istarted shooting film many years ago, using a Nikon F55. When I switched to digital, my passion for photography increased and I’ve used various Nikon cameras since, including the
D60, D7000, D600 and D750. I started a steady collaboration with a photo studio six years ago, and photography has now become my full-time job. I work across multiple genres, from weddings to advertising, still life and so on, but landscapes are my original passion.
Planning a shoot is essential in landscape photography. The process goes from choosing the location to studying the weather forecast and seasonal changes. Seasons, in particular, influence the position of stars in the sky and their apparent movement. The aim of my project was to realize photographs of places that I feel connected to, to print and eventually hang on my walls. I have loved mountains ever since I was a kid, and they were the first subjects that I took pictures of.
The most essential pieces of kit are a stable tripod and a sharp lens. If you love night photography, you’ll need a camera with great dynamic range and the ability to shoot at high ISOS with low noise, such as the Nikon D750. A remote shutter release is essential to avoid the vibrations caused by pressing the shutter button too.
Winter wonderlands
The first step of my project was planning some trips in the Dolomites, and attending a workshop hosted by my friend and colleague, Bruno Pisani. This gave me the opportunity to learn new skills and pick up some of his photographic secrets.
Winter is the ideal season if you want to take pictures that emphasize the
contrast of the snow on rock walls and trees [1+4+5]. All you have to do is plan to shoot during the hours close to sunrise and sunset [1+3], to take advantage of cool colours and intense light.
Regarding the Milky Way, I prefer to shoot it between March and April [2], when the centre starts to face the horizon. Cold temperatures help to prevent humidity, which would decrease the stars’ visibility and affect the sharpness of the final result.
Dress to impress
Wearing suitable clothing is crucial. My shoots take place at sunrise, sunset and during the night, when temperatures can drop well below zero. You also need to have a stable tripod and spare batteries – they run out a lot faster when it’s cold!
Live View is really useful for focusing on stars, I’d also recommend disabling Vibration Reduction (if you have it), when using a tripod. To get a panoramic picture of a landscape it’s important to set the tripod head perfectly level. When you’re shooting every photograph has to overlay the previous one by about 1/3 of the image [2].
My favourite mountain pictures always have an epic look. In order to achieve this result I choose shooting times close to sunrise or sunset; when shadows stretch across the ground and create paths that help lead the viewer’s gaze [1+3].
When I look back at my pictures I always think they could be improved, that next time the light could be stronger and more colourful, or that I’d be able to find a better composition. When it comes to landscape photography you want to revisit locations, because the best photograph will always be the last one you took.
Revisit locations, because the best photograph will always be the last one you took