Magic Light and the Dynamic Landscape: Take Advantage of Light and Weather to Create Amazing Photographs

by Jeanine Leech

Overview

Moments of peak action are well-known in sports photography, but they also happen in nature photography. The light can change within seconds and the best light may occur only long enough for a single frame. To create dramatic images, landscape photographers must first recognize those moments of magic light that get the heart pumping and blood flowing. While the sunrise and sunset hours provide recognized opportunities, the keen photographer will soon see that magic light can also happen at other times of the day. (Have you ever noticed how dramatic the sky can be before or after storm? Or seen a shaft of light shimmering through a snow squall over the mountain ridge?) After identifying the light, capturing the moment requires fast action; often, you need to set up fast and shoot within seconds to get the shot. At every phase of the process, from finding magic light throughout the day to making best use of it when you do, this book arms you with the skills you need to succeed—and use magic light to transform everyday landscapes into ethereal visions.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781608957309
Publisher:	Amherst Media, Incorporated
Publication date:	07/08/2014
Sold by:	Barnes & Noble
Format:	eBook
Pages:	128
File size:	31 MB
Note:	This product may take a few minutes to download.

About the Author

Jeanine Leech is a professional landscape and sports photographer whose work has appeared in magazines around the world. She lives in Pittsburgh, PA.

And below is from the author:

Inside us all lives the person we hope to become. We don’t all get there, but we must never stop trying. The hardest part of writing a book has been writing the bio. Talking about Magic Light is one thing, but talking about myself is another...here goes!

As a child, if I wasn't outside playing, I was drawing. My mother, a fine painter and avid photographer, swears that my first grade teacher raved about my natural sense of composition. My father, a computer repairman taught me the benefits of hard work and attention to detail. My two older brothers let me tag along through the woods, climbing rock walls, and wading hip deep in creeks while keeping lunch dry. I see now, my childhood was the beginning of basic training for landscape photography. At age fourteen, I saved my money and bought a Pentax K-1000 camera...photography became my passion.

I graduated high school knowing that inside of me was a photographer wanting to get out. I earned a degree in Visual Communications from the Art Institute of Pittsburgh in 1987. A father in the digital world, a mother in the arts, and soon I’m a graphic designer riding the wave of desktop publishing. Life was good, the camera went digital, I went Nikon, and I never stopped wanting to be a photographer.

But it wasn't until 1995 that I stopped wanting to become a photographer and found the courage to become that photographer. I owe a tremendous debt to the late photographer Nancy Rotenberg and will forever cherish the years I spent by her side. She not only taught me how to see light and all the magic that can be squeezed out of it from behind the camera, but more importantly she showed me how to ignite my artistic vision and fire it into my art. I realized that it is the uniqueness of the artist that matters and we all need to follow our own path.

My images have appeared in national and international magazines, adorn the luxury boxes at the home of the Pittsburgh Penguins Hockey Club, and now I am writing my very own book. I have been honored to win awards in both design and photography. But I will always be grateful for the support of family, friends, co-workers and fellow photographers for letting me be me.

Table of Contents

Contents


Part One
Introduction
1. Moments of Magic Light
Along the Horizon
A Magic Morning
Capturing the Magic
What makes magic light so special?
2. Getting the shot
The Exposure Triangle
Aperture
Shutter Speed
ISO
Exposure Modes
Metering
Exposure Compensation
Histogram
3. Equipment
Inside My Camera Bag


Part Two
Magic Light
4. Cycle of Light

First Light
Dawn
Sunrise
Magic Hour
Early Morning Light
Midday Sun
Late Afternoon Light
Evening Golden Hour
Sunset
Dusk


5. Direction of Light

Frontlight
Sidelight
Backlight
Reflective Light


6. Quality of Light

Soft Light
Hard Light

7. Color of Light

Cool Light
Warm Light
Complementary Colors
Color Temperature


Part Three
Dynamic Landscape

8. Weather Guide

Chasing the Light
Stormy Weather
Dramatic Skies
Overcast Skies
Fog
Rain
Snow
Wind

9. Water and Reflections

Ideal Light
Waterfalls
Flowing Reflections
Mirror Reflections
Leaf Swirls
Light Painting
Impressionist Light
Artistic Choices
Sense of Place
Perspective

10. Design


Intimate Landscapes
Abstracts
Lines
S-curve and Leading lines

11. Tools

Polarizer
Solid Neutral Density Filters
Split Neutral Density Filters

12. Digital Darkroom

Color and Mood
Blended Exposures
High Dynamic Range
Photomatix
Panoramic

Editorial Reviews

Arms photographers with the skills they need to succeed in transforming everyday landscapes into ethereal visions — SirReadALot.org

From the Publisher