JACK’S TOP 10 TIPS FOR LUSCIOUS LANDSCAPES

1 Remember the four Ps!

Jack’s motto is “Remember the four Ps: Plan, Photograph, Process and Print.” The last one is particularly overlooked but is vital. Start proudly printing and framing your work to display at home.

2 Don’t leave early

You never know what the weather will do and the last thing you want to do is leave a location early, only to miss a magical sunset for example.

3 Turn the Image Stabilization off

Image Stabilization is useful when shooting handheld, though it’s worth switching off when shooting on a tripod to make sure it doesn’t correct for camera movement which isn’t there.

4 Sail away!

The strap on your camera can act a bit like a ship’s sail in windy conditions so be sure to remove it when shooting long-exposure landscape photos.

5 Level head

Jack uses the electronic level on his EOS R5 by pressing the Info button to bring it up. A level can also be applied in post-processing too.

6 Use the 2-sec Self-timer

The simple act of pressing the shutter button can be enough to introduce camera shake when shooting a long exposure. Be sure to enable your 2-sec Self-timer mode, or use a shutter release cable to avoid ‘jogging’ the camera.

7 Tripod tricks

“I like to extend the lowest leg sections on my tripod first as this stops the leg locks being so close to the ground and stops them getting clogged up with sand, grit and salt water.” It’s also wise to rinse saltwater off your tripod after to maintain it.

8 Carrying your kit

Jack uses a Shimoda Action X50 v2 which is a 50L backpack designed for pro nature photographers and has all of the features he requires from a bag when shooting in the great outdoors.

9 L-bracket

Fitted to Jack’s Canon EOS R5 at all times is an L-bracket which allows him to quickly switch his camera orientation between landscape and portrait using its Arca-swiss mounts on both sides.

10

Back-button focus

Jack uses back-button focus so that the shutter button is separate from the autofocus engage button, and gives him more control over the autofocus on his Canon EOS R5.