Simplicity - The Essence of Seeing

 Simplicity in photography creates images that flow like a soft melody and sometimes simplicity itself becomes the defining elements within a Landscape or a Nature photograph. Landscapes and nature photographs in general, by their very nature can be as complex or simple as nature itself. There are times the scene is filled with an abundance of details all working together to create an amazing view. Yet, there are times when simplicity becomes the defining purpose of the image. Of the two, the simple landscape can often be the most difficult to find and capture.

Creating the Simple Landscape or Nature image requires one important adjustment; Finding a location where all the clutter is naturally removed. This is not always easy to do and often requires that we employ creative compositional discovery techniques. In most cases it is a matter of and the essence of seeing, looking beyond the ordinary to focus in on form and using the purest of light to define the subject.

Light of course is always the main element in every great photograph, but without a great subject, light is simply light. Your job as a photographer is to combine the two into a creative form. For me, to create the Simple Landscape requires warm, low angle light. Late afternoon light when the shadows are long and the nature of the light takes on a natural glowing aura is the best time. Early morning light can be just as compelling and offers a unique range of possibilities, but any time of day can be effect and under certain circumstances even shooting in the middle of the day works well.

Look for those simple striking compositional elements where only a few pieces are present. Avoid overly complex situations with a lot of competing components. As in all landscapes, all of the components are elements that need to be there and anything that interferes with the story must be removed either by changing the angle, or changing your lens. In other words, focus in what is truly important.

Finding and capturing compelling and simple images requires the photographer to use not only their eyes, but to use their instinctive understanding of what make a great composition. Things like background, angle of light, Time of day, temperature of the light, camera level, timing, and position of the shooter. Simply moving a few inches to one side or forward or backward or even turning around and looking the other direction can often transform the composition. 

When observing a potential photographic moment, ask yourself three What is questions, 'What is capturing my eye...What is my vision locking onto...What is unique about what I am seeing?'  Then remove everything else from your composition by lens selection and your position and camera angle.

Simplicity. The Essence of Seeing is indeed one of the most rewarding of photographic moments.