Blog - Photographing Landscapes at low Angle

It’s easy to fill whole books describing ways to compose a photo, rules to apply and things to avoid. In this article and the accompanying video I’ll just talk about a very certain technique, which can be used to create dynamic compositions.

The technique is very simple and works especially when using a wide angle lens. By moving the camera closer to the ground parallel lines in the frame become diagonals, structures and patterns are revealed. And often an otherwise ordinary view appears far more interesting because of the low viewpoint.

But there are exceptions and not every scene benefits from a low viewpoint. It’s important to preserve the visual flow in a photo. If the foreground melts into the background because of a too low perspective this can destroy the depth of an image and the viewer might find no access into the photo.

In the video below I show some examples where the low perspective works and where a slightly higher viewpoint led to a better composition.

For those who are interested in getting a more complete overview about what compostions work and further techniques to create harmony in a photo I recomment the book The Photographer’s Eye by Michael Freeman (buy US, UK, GER*). The book is filled with many great example images and explanations. I read it when I started with photography and it helped me a lot to understand composition.

* These are a Amazon Affiliate Links. If you use them to buy something, I’ll get a little commission from Amazon