Familiar areas can yield stronger landscape photos when you continually explore possibilities. Cathedral Rock on Oak Creek in Sedona, Arizona is a favorite location. It is ever changing as it is on the creek which can rage at times scrubbing the banks of trees and moving rocks and boulders. In addition, testing features on my OM SYSTEM OM-1 camera yields new possibilities as well.

Handhold-ability

landscape in sedona image
M.Zukio 7-14mm f?2.8 Pro lens at 14mm handheld with the camera lowered between my legs. 1/10 sec f/22 ISO 200 File size ~ 3800 x 5200 pixels.

Stabilization has come a long way in our cameras. The OM 1 from OM SYSTEMS (new version available is OM-1 Mark II) is stabilized to seven stops in-camera. With a matched lens that can go to eight stops. Pushing this made it possible for me to hand hold at 1/10th to 1/30th of a second. Why? There was no way to get a tripod in the middle of the rushing water for the angle I wanted. Straddling the red rock channel with the camera lowered between my legs was the only way. Pretty slick for a different point of view.

landscape in sedona photo
Same basic image and technique as above but this is 1/10th sec f/18 in High Res mode yielding ~ 6000 x 8000 pixel file.

Change the point of view

Exploring different angles and camera heights can make a big difference in the look of a scene. I was with a fellow photographer for this creekside landscape photography session. The following day after looking at his images he said, “I learned a lot watching you, working different angles and experimenting with different lenses and positions.” Micro four thirds from OM SYSTEM helps with that idea. Computational imaging including in-camera ND filters, pixel shift for larger files and seven to eight stops of stabilization are just a few. See my article about playing with composition and ND filters for more ideas.

Big files from a small sensor

Above, you see the in-camera High Res file. You can also push by creating a panoramic image in the vertical orientation. On one image, the camera is held in the vertical orientation and two images are stitched together. On another image, three photos were made with the camera in the horizontal orientation and put together in post, yielding a wider view of the scene and an even larger file.

OM 1 vertical panorama oak creek sedona az
M.Zuiko 40-150mm f/2.8 Pro lens. Two image vertical pano stitch with the camera in the vertical orientation. 50MP images that end up ~ 6000 x 12000 pixels. 40mm 1 /30th sec f/11 ISO 200
three image OM 1 vertical panorama oak creek sedona az
Three image vertical pano with camera in the horizontal orientation. 40mm 1 /30th sec f/11 ISO 200. Final file is 9000 x 12000 pixels

Play

Most of all, learn to play with your options. Many landscape photography buffs are afraid of “making mistakes” so they fail to push equipment to its limits. Remember, there are no mistakes, only opportunities to learn. Or if that terminology doesn’t work for you, go with “fail forward.” A note here that when you see another photographer’s work, you aren’t seeing the cutting room floor. You are just seeing the beautiful results that he or she wishes to share.

Yours in Creative Photography,

Bob