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This is one of my favorite times of year to photograph outdoors.  The air is crisp and clean, and the colors are absolutely amazing.  Here are some tips for getting great autumn images.

Fall Pumpkins

1. Have a clear subject.  Maybe a barn, hay bales, or a waterfall. It can be something natural, or man made, but it should be something to get the viewers attention and draw them into the image.  Something that looks plain in the summer can be transformed into somethingspecial when surrounded by fall color and the right light.  Have something more than just a frame full of trees.  The hard part about shooting foliage is that you see a beautiful hillside and to want to capture it, but there is no point of focus in the image to catch the eye of the viewer.
2. Overcast skies make the colors pop.  Some of your most vivid colors will be in images taken on overcast days.  If the sun isn’t out, shoot lower shots, below the horizon. Keep the sky out of the shot as much as possible and show off those colors.
3. Fall skies on clear days are a rich blue.  When the heat and humidity of the summer goes away,  and the angle of the sun changes, it always seems like the sky becomes a richer shade of blue.  At least it looks it to me.  As I was writing this I wondered why this happens, or if it’s my imagination, so I turned to that know-all-see-all source for all answers – Google.  It’s true, and you can read up on the science behind it at this weather site.  Use this when it’s available.  Put more sky in your photos.  Look for days with the big puffy cottonball clouds.  It’s another great source of color.
4. Get in close. Use a macro lens, our just zoom in more.  Macro shots, or tight shots that show textures, individual plants, reflections, and an overall smaller field of view.  Everyone sees the whole hillside of color from their car.  The shots on the small scale will be unique and generate more interest.
5. Look beyond the leaves.  There are many colorful subjects that are there in the fall. Mums, pumpkins, gourds, some varieties corn, and even apples.  Lots of crops are harvested in the fall that can get you some great Autumn images as well.
6. Look for a different perspective.  Maybe you can get low and shoot up.  Climb a mountain and capture an image from a location most people see.  Don’t shoot from the same spot everyone shoots from, our you will get the same shots everyone else gets.
7. Shoot your favorite subject with colored leaves in the background.  Many photographers have an ongoing personal project out a favorite subject.  Trains for example.  Or horses.  Even fall sports like football and soccer can be the foreground for some great fall color shots. Whatever it is that gets you out to shoot can be shown in an Autumn setting to give it seasonal interest.
8. Don’t stop shooting when the leaves are gone.  Switch to black and white and find subjects that are hidden by summer vegetation.  Those treasures hidden in the weeds all summer will be visible.  I’m a fan of rusty stuff, and the late fall and early spring are great times to find some interesting subjects.  Late fall is also when the temperatures start to dip, and you start to see frost.  On the ground, on top of puddles, on just about anything.  Get out that macro lens and look for interesting patterns.

Autumn is here. Get out and shoot!  Leave some comments here, what do you like to shoot?