Photographer Tim Fitzharris is best known for his luminous nature pictures, which have appeared in more than 100 one-man calendars, in magazines including Audubon and Life, and in dozens of photography books. Readers of Popular Photography & Imaging also know him for his monthly column on nature photography in the magazine. Fitzharris’s latest book, National Audubon Society Guide to Landscape Photography (Firefly Books, $25), is a creative collaboration with his wife, Joy. Crammed with insightful tips on creating landscape pictures, written in a straightforward style with minimal jargon, the book also showcases more than 100 of Fitzharris’s eye-catching landscape photographs, complete with informative captions about how the images were made. What follows is an excerpt of Fitzharris’s new book: a chapter about the importance of perspective in landscape imagery. (For more on the photographer, visit www.timfitzharris.com; for more about the Audubon Society, go to www.audubon.org.) — Jack Crager

Expressing Perspective: Techniques for Recording the Third Dimension

The portrayal of depth is often the primary attraction of a landscape photograph. To express the third dimension convincingly, you need to capture and arrange the features of a scene in a way that best projects their spatial qualities, keeping in mind that we see the world differently than does a camera. Not only do our two eyes work in stereoscopic view, but we move about, crane our necks and reappraise the scene from different angles to gain a better appreciation of depth and scale. By contrast, the still camera is afforded but a single, static view. To bridge this optical gap, we need to emphasize the cues in the landscape that express depth.

Size Cues: The relative size of landscape features is one of the most obvious cues in conveying the depth of a scene. Objects that are close appear larger than those that are far. Utilizing this cue is first a matter of incorporating familiar features in your composition that are similar in size, or at least are perceived to be so by the viewer, and then positioning the camera so that they are presented on film in differing proportions. Such components include trees, shrubs, wildflowers and animals of the same species. The ideal placement of the camera shows such size cues arranged at intervals on a diagonal plane or some variation of it (e.g., an S curve).

There are other less common but equally powerful size cues to which you should be sensitive. When cumulus clouds dapple the sky, they become smaller as they near the horizon. Sand ripples, caked mud flats and ocean waves can all be used to present a uniform pattern of decreasing size cues. From an appropriate camera angle, rivers, streams, sand dune ripples and fallen logs all exhibit the “railroad track” phenomenon — the convergence of parallel lines toward a vanishing point (a variation on the size cue perspective effect).

Angles of View: Lens focal length generates a powerful perspective effect. By emphasizing the differences in size cues, wide-angle lenses increase the perceived distance between elements in the composition and promote a feeling of deep space. Telephoto lenses achieve the opposite effect by compressing the distance between elements in the scene. To accentuate these extreme effects you should position the camera as close as possible to the nearest size cue in the composition. You normally will need to shoot at f/16, or smaller, to achieve satisfactory depth of field. Much of the time, you will be working in concert with other design prerogatives at some compromise distance.

Angling for Depth: Because the eyes of a standing human are some 5 or 6 feet (2 meters) above the ground, landscape features that are close to us are positioned lower in our field of view than those more distant (clouds excepted). For a maximum three-dimensional effect, you should set up at about a 45-degree angle (above the horizontal) on the first size cue in the composition. Use a focal length wide enough to include at least the horizon and a bit of sky. If you place the camera too low, you will lose visual exposure of the spaces between size cues; if you set up too high you will lose the horizon and the familiar eye-level configuration of the size cue. Either position results in a flattening of the scene.

You also need to position the camera horizontally so that the number of size cues portrayed is maximized and cues are kept separated and distinct. This step may require you to move the camera forward or backward as well as sideways. In most situations you should set depth of field to include both the closest size cue and features on the horizon (usually infinity). Setting camera position is normally a trial-and-error procedure exercised until the most effective design is achieved based on interrelated factors of color, light and subject matter as well as the desired perspective effect.

Controlling Overlap: Another useful perspective tool that needs skillful handling is overlapping. Precise lateral and vertical placement of the camera is usually needed for this strategy to work effectively, especially when utilized with smaller landscape features such as trees or rocks. Such elements are often so similar that they blend together in a muddle not readily distinguished by the viewer. To avoid confusion, try to overlap only simple areas of contrasting color, line direction, brightness or shape (horizontal limbs crossing vertical trunks, for example). The most effective use of overlapping can be done with intersecting landscape planes. Such situations are encountered in hilly or mountainous terrain. Try to frame areas where there is a confluence of interesting contour outlines running in opposing diagonal directions. Topographies lit from the side or back, or photographed in early morning, when mist hangs in low-lying areas, will show the most definition between planes and the most overlapping.

Sidelight for Volume: Landscapes illuminated from the side exhibit shapes whose surfaces and contours are well distinguished by areas of highlight and shadow. This makes it easy for the viewer to compare and identify important size cues and other spatial relationships within the scene. The overlapping of objects or planes is emphasized and clarified because the shadow portion of one is set against the highlight portion of another. The earlier in the day you shoot, the greater the effect. To flatten perspective and achieve an impression that is somewhat surreal, shoot early or late in the day with the sun directly behind you for full frontal illumination.

Hazy Days (Atmospherics): Due to particles suspended in the atmosphere, close objects appear more detailed than those further away. Aerial perspective is commonly encountered as fog, mist, snow, dust and haze. When shooting in these moody conditions, you will encounter varied opportunities on the periphery of the atmospheric phenomenon (edge of storms, cloud banks) where you can modulate the effect by changing position or waiting for a change or movement of the weather pattern.

Dimensional Ironies: An interesting ways of dealing with perspective is to combine contradictory spatial cues for ironic effect. You can interpret an assembly of haze-rimmed, overlapping foothills by shooting with a space-compressing telephoto or, conversely, use a wide-angle lens to record a featureless stretch of still water punctuated by a single island.

Six Planes: When scouting for deep-perspective scenes, I look for landforms exhibiting five distinct planes. Ordered from near to far, they are as follows. The foreground plane features interesting landscape details that set the scale for the composition; the mid-plane contains well-defined size cues that lead the eye into the picture; the feature plane shows the center of interest — usually a dramatic landform; the cloud plane is ideally a puffy collection of cumulus or nimbus, and the sky plane comprises the final backdrop in pure shades of blue, rose, peach or amber, depending on the time of day. Sometimes a sixth plane (the horizon plane) spreads itself behind the feature plane. I try to record each plane as clearly and forcefully as possible.

Excerpted from National Audubon Sciety Guide to Landscape Photography by Tim Fitzharris, published by Firefly Books. Text copyright 2007 Tim Fitzharris, courtesy the author.

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Not sure how to compose your landscape photos? Use these templates to get started. Try them in pure form, or in combination, depending on the circumstances. Once you are tuned in to the possibilities, you’re sure to find one of these iconic compositions lurking on the horizon every time you set foot afield. And when you’re comfortable with the template approach, devise your own scenic concoctions!

Intersecting Layers:

Canyonlands National Park. Framing is key. Include a maximum number of prominent intersection points, and use a UV, polarizing, or split ND filter to boost midtone contrast. Mamiya 645 AFd with Phase One P25 back and 55-110mm f/4.5 Mamiya- Sekor lens on tripod. Exposure, 1/2 sec at f/22 through Singh-Ray 1-stop split ND filter, ISO 100.

Intersecting layers:

Intersecting landscape planes generate strong, pleasing diagonal shapes. Use a zoom that allows tight framing of several well-defined points of intersection, and a polarizing or UV filter to reduce haze and maximize color contrast.

Snapshot:

At scenes of undeniable grandeur, a simple, centered take is all you need — so point and shoot. For best effect, this template depends on detail revealed under front- or sidelight. Simplicity is everything here, so make sure your framing is tight and balanced by using a tripod and zoom lens.

Railroad tracks:

Such scenes contain slender parallel forms telescoping into the distance — stream beds, sand dune ripples, striated rock formations. Avoid framing that allows any of the parallel edges to run into the picture corners. Position the camera low and close to the parallel lines for exaggerated perspective effects.

Foreground feature:

Base the composition on a compelling landscape detail — a wildflower clump or lichencrusted rock. Position the foreground element and landscape feature catty-corner to each other — for example, in the upper left/lower right of the frame. Aim the camera 45 degrees downward on the near features while placing the horizon within the top fifth of the frame.

S-curve:

Scenes with long prominent shapes (such as rivers) offer classic S-curve compositions. A polarizing filter lets you adjust reflection from watercourses to accentuate captivating curves. For tumbling water, use a shutter speed of about 1 sec or more to create graceful silky flows.

5 Favorite Tripod Features

When choosing a tripod for shooting landscapes, look for:
• Light weight for easy trekking to remote locales.
• Enough height to bring camera to eye level with center column down.
• Compact ballhead for quick action and easy carry.
• Long center column for eye-level shooting on slopes (e.g., river banks, hillsides).
• Three-section, no-brace, clip-lock legs for quick, jam-free operation.

For more landscape photography advice, see A Matter of Perspective — an excerpt from Fitzharris’s latest book, National Audubon Society Guide to Landscape Photography (Firefly Books, $25).

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It offers no-jetlag access, lots of drive-yourself or guided shooting junkets, eco-lodges galore, mild weather year-round, and a nonstop variety of subjects in great light. The country’s mountainous terrain makes for a plethora of photo opportunities—cloud forest, steamy coastal jungle, pine forest, and semi-desert scrub land, to mention a few.

Follow the Big Four:
Organize your tour to capture birds, beaches, wildlife, and volcanoes by leapfrogging from one nature lodge to the next. Follow this strategy over a selected itinerary, and you’ll return with memory cards stuffed full of rewarding photographs.

The best lodges have websites describing their photo attractions, including species lists, weather, and even blogs of recent wildlife activity. Make it easy for yourself by signing up with one of the many guided nature, birding, or hummingbird photo tours, some conducted by U.S. operators.

If you want flexibility to react to weather conditions and subject dynamics, a you-drive safari is best. Study the itineraries of tour companies and modify yours to suit. Driving Costa Rica is not difficult if you plan well and travel during daylight. Buy a decent map, learn a few words of Spanish, and you won’t get too lost.

Paradise Beaches:
Oceanside shooting requires sunshine—strong, directional light that can tint the landscape in fiery hues at sunrise and sunset, or carve out the shapes of beach boulders and impart cyan tints to open sea at mid-day.

Many of the prettiest beaches are in Guanacaste and northern Puntarenas along the dry Pacific coast, where open skies are the norm. Look for shorelines with boulders, rocky headlands, overhanging palms, lagoons, river mouths, sand bars, tide pools, and breaking surf. Nesting sea turtles provide an added attraction in their peak seasons.

BEACH TIP: Scout for compositions at midday. Look for strong foregrounds with a view to the rising or setting sun (carry a compass). That way you’ll be ready for the magic light of sunset/sunrise—in the tropics it’s all over in a few minutes.

Avian Bedazzlement:
Tiny Costa Rica supports nearly 900 bird species, including some of the planet’s most exotic: scarlet macaw, resplendent quetzal, and jabiru stork.

For photographers, hummingbirds are the headliners (40-plus species) and numerous lodges are set up to attract them. The best lodges (inquire by e-mail) also maintain fruit feeders that attract parrots, toucans, and other neotropical varieties. Hummingbirds are mostly denizens of the cloud forest, so be prepared for damp days, chilly nights, and lovely soft light.

HUMMINGBIRD TIP: Arm yourself with a 500mm (or equivalent) telephoto and 50mm worth of close-up extension tubes. Shoot under bright overcast skies. Build a better background by repositioning a feeder near flowers or by setting up your own bouquet. Focus manually and make hundreds, even thousands, of in-flight exposures (scores of hummers hover about a feeding station at one time). Trash the preponderance of misfires and save only the prizewinners.

Volcano Country:
Costa Rica’s volcanoes are irresistible to photographers bent on making long exposures of red-hot rock streaming down a mountainside or exploding into a night sky.

Arenal Volcano near the town of La Fortuna offers the best opportunities for iconic imagery, but you’ll need luck to capture the dramatic eruptions, normally obscured by cloud and fog.

Luckily, you won’t have downtime waiting for skies to clear. You can spend days shooting waterfalls, jungles, cloud forests, and a Noah’s ark of butterflies and frogs at mom-and-pop vivariums and ponds while keeping your eye on the mountain.

VOLCANO TIP: Oddly, your chances of getting a clear shot of the volcano improve during the rainy season (May through November). Scout tripod holes beforehand (best views are on the way to Tabacón hot springs from La Fortuna), as skies may clear only very briefly. Look for a foreground—tree groupings most commonly—that can be used to frame the volcano and give scale to the scene. If you’re blessed with a clear view, chimp your LCD histogram for the best-looking exposure, especially if shooting at night.

Wildlife, Free and Captive:
You’ll encounter plenty of wildlife as you motor from lodge to lodge. You may get good photos of coatimundi, deer, armadillo, sloth, anteater, and giant iguanas.

Visit the numerous ranarios (for frogs and snakes) and mariposarios (for butterflies), advertised in tourist centers (Arenal Volcano, Manuel Antonio National Park). The creatures often are in natural walk-through enclosures. In private ranarios, for a small fee handlers will place specimens in settings of your choice.

WILDLIFE ON-THE-RUN TIP: Keep your camera ready to use by leaving it turned on, setting controls for autofocus and aperture-priority autoexposure at maximum aperture, activating image stabilization, and mounting a moderate telephoto or telezoom lens (300mm) with lenshood.

Costa Rica protects more than 25 percent of its land in parks and preserves, making it a vast playground for nature photographers. Do your research and start packing!

WILDLIFE LODGES:
Rancho Naturalista
Two hummingbird photo locales, a fruit feeder (refilled each morning) and a unique hummingbird bathing site lure a variety of subjects, including the rare snow-capped hummingbird. (www.ranchonaturalista.net)

Savegre Mountain Lodge
Nestled in a secluded pocket valley beside a trout stream, these hummingbird feeders literally swarm all day long. Just down the road is a photo-dependable hangout for the highly-sought resplendent quetzal.(www.savegre.co.cr)

Lookout Inn Lodge
High on a hill above the Pacific next to Corcovado National Park on the Osa Peninsula, this wilderness site is the place to shoot scarlet macaws in flight. Best time is when they are feeding in the date grove below the lodge. (www.lookout-inn.com)

BEACH SITES:
Playa Carillo
Near the laid-back town of Samara in Guanacaste, this beach boasts excellent sunrise/sunset orientation, sand, rocks, and palm groves, plus large undeveloped sweeps of sand.

Manuel Antonio National Park
Costa Rica’s top tourist destination, this compact collection of beaches offers all-natural settings with boulder-, sand-, lagoon-, and palm-fringed forests, accessorized with tame monkeys.

Mal Pais
This surfer-friendly outpost on the Nicoya Peninsula is a gateway to off-the-beaten-path beaches (Santa Teresa, Hermosa, Playa Carmen) best accessed by four-wheel drive along the primitive coastal route.

Nature photographer and filmmaker Tim Fitzharris is author of the bestselling National Audubon Society series of photography guides and producer/director of the feature film, A Far Away Life (www.afaraway lifemovie.com). See lots of his images at www.timfitzharris.com__.

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Big Bend National Park (TX)

Badlands National Park (SD)

Acadia National Park (ME)

Everglades National Park (FL)

Blue Ridge Parkway (VA, NC)

Great Smoky Mountains National Park (NC, TN)

Rocky Mountain National Park (CO)

Yellowstone (WY, MT, ID)

Grand Teton National Park (WY)

Arches National Park (UT)

Grand Canyon National Park (AZ)

Death Valley National Park (CA, NV)

Zion National Park (UT)

Yosemite National Park (CA)

Mount Rainier National Park (WA)

Bonus Image: Big Bend National Park

Bonus Image: Big Bend National Park

Bonus Image: Acadia National Park (ME)

Bonus Image: Acadia National Park (ME)

Bonus Image: Rocky Mountain National Park (CO)

Bonus Image: Rocky Mountain National Park (CO)

Bonus Image: Arches National Park (UT)

Bonus Image: Arches National Park (UT)

Bonus Image: Yosemite National Park (CA)

Bonus Image: Yosemite National Park (CA)

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