How to take Fall Photos

Whether you're going out to shoot in a local park or taking a trip far
from home, planning is the key to great autumn photography.

First, the basics: Don't head out blind check the internet for
peak color in the area you'll be photographing
Fall Leaf  Watch -  is a good resource), and check the weather
forecast. Carry gear only for a single day, not the week. Arrive early and
leave late. Keep your camera batteries charged, and carry extras.

Now, here are some of my favorite tips for this most colorful time of year.

1. Get The Classic Shot

Winding roads lined with flame-colored trees, old New England churches
poised against azure skies, Colorado aspens glowing in late afternoon
light. Sure, you could call them clichés, but these shots are classics for
good reason: People love them. So don't miss bagging the colorful
scene right in front of you just because you're obsessed with 
finding some new approach. The light early or late in the day is almost
always best for timeless photos.

2. Just Add Water

At slow shutter speeds (1 sec or more) moving water blurs to silky
smoothness. The foliage color reflected in it adds to the depth and
richness of the photos. You'll need a tripod to hold the camera
steady, of course. In many instances, you may find the light too bright to
set a slow shutter speed, even at your cameras lowest ISO setting.
A useful tool here is the Singh-Ray Vari-ND (neutral-density) filter,
which lets you reduce exposure anywhere from 2 to 8 stops. These are
expensive (starting at $340, street, depending on size), but you can
economize by stacking a single-strength (3- or 4-stop) ND filter with a
polarizing filter, which gives you 1 or 2 stops of increased density.

3. Use The Weather

If I had to wait for the weather to change, I'd never take any
pictures. In the fall, use overcast days to shoot in deep woods the
cloud cover eliminates distracting shadows. If the sun is shining, use the
early and late sun to backlight trees and create shadows for interesting
effects. And never leave your polarizer at home it works in any kind
of weather.

4. Develop Tunnel Vision

Resist the urge to use wide angle focal lengths for all your autumn shots.
I love shooting with super telephotos of 400mm and 500mm to help isolate
patterns, shapes, and colors in the forest. (If your DSLR has an APS-C
sensor, focal lengths around 250-350mm should work well.) For
capturing wildlife set against the color of the trees, long lenses are
indispensable. Tele zooms can be even more useful, allowing you to track
an animal as it changes distance from the camera.

5. Look Down

This can be hard to do while walking around, taking in the glorious fall
scenery, but you'll be missing dozens of photo projects right at
your feet. Most tripods today allow you to lower a camera to ground level
to capture all sorts of still life pictures. On an overcast morning, with the dew
clinging to surfaces, your colors will really pop and set your white
balance to Cloudy to avoid too-cool color casts.

6. Get Really Close

Now that you're looking down, you may want to pack another piece of
gear a dedicated macro lens. Mini tripods are great for getting to
ground level, as are special accessories like the Kirk Low Pod ($150,
street). Attach a ball head to this neat device, grab the handle, a few
kneepads, and a right angle finder and go at it. Don't have the funds
for a macro lens, or just want to travel lighter? Canon makes
front mounting two-element close-up lenses that can turn your everyday zoom
into an ad-hoc macro lens (starting from $75, street) . I use the Canon
500D Close-Up Lens on my 70-200mm f/2.8 AF Zoom-Nikor with
excellent results.

7. Make Abstracts

Here's where you can really go beyond the classic fall shots. Look
for bare trees against fuller backgrounds. Watch for reflections of sunlit
trees in still waters. Try zooming during exposure, or making multiple
exposures in the same frame, or using soft focus. Consider a slow exposure
of leaves in circular motion in a pool of water. No matter what: Stay away
from gaudy colors in post processing. I use Nikon Capture NX2 with Nik
Color Efex Pro 3.0 to adjust saturation, and when the reds get too intense
I back off. The rest of the colors will follow.