A landscape is a photo that encompasses a large view or some sort. This can be the standard mountain range or lake picture that typically comes to mind, but it can also be a city skyline or a house in a field.

For a landscape photo to be great it has to show some semblance of effort at the least. It cannot be just pressing a button, it has to be using what you see to create something meaningful. It is important to have a focal point and use the elements of design to make it worth something.

There are many common mistakes that should be avoided, but I am going to focus on the ones I know I often mess up on. One main one is that my photos lack a clear subject. They tend to be a random assortment of everything in view, with nothing to actually draw the eye to. Another common mistake is lazy composition. I in my mind already feel like this will be an easy project in which I just press a button, and I will have to tell myself that is not the case if I want any chance of success. I will need to really use the area and different camera angles to get the right shot. The final one that has been plaguing almost all of my photos this semester is poor focus. Weather it be from hand shake or simply not focusing my photos correctly, I have seen way too many blurry photos. If I want these photos to be amazing they have to be properly focused. I am going to put more effort into the rule of thirds with this project, which I have only been loosely following up until this point. Having the focal point perfectly centered would put everything out of balance in most cases. Space will be important to consider, as the use of space can make or break a photo. I want to have foreground and a background, not just one or the other, in order to maintain balance. I also think that while color is important, value is even more so. A black and white photo could have just as much impact as one in color, if not more. To create texture I will make ample use of the golden hour. After learning about the healing tools I now am thinking about how to use them in photos. I could remover certain parts that I do not want. I could definitely use natural symmetry to my advantage in these photos if I happen to stumble upon any. Framing could also be a very valuable trait.

I could use moving water alongside a long exposure time to create some very interesting motion blur. Perhaps this will not be possible for this project, but if I am able to take my camera to California over Christmas break then I could get some incredible shots of this in a landscape. I could go to Denver to get some shots. I could also go to the airport. Perhaps I could finally make it to the bluffs but I am assuming it will be super muddy, and therefore impossible. Summit view has some amazing views that I could use, or I could go to Daniels park if I'm really that desperate. Actually, now that I think about it Daniels park could be really cool as long as I make my composition original. Perhaps I could shoot towards the easy instead of the west. I could also go lower down the hill, or to another part farther from the parking lot. If I did go to shoot at the bluffs I would want to move around from spot to spot in search of the perfect composition. I also have a trip to Nebraska that I will use for photos. I don't know what to expect, but I might be able to get some neat shots.

I have decided on using my trip to Nebraska for photos. I have heard from my grandma that where we are going has great views so I will probably find something worth using.

I have developed some of my better photos, and while I was able to produce OK photos I feel very critical of them. It may just be me but all of them are lacking in my eyes. I do not appreciate them nearly as much as other work I have done, and even less so compared with my classmates work. I have put in lots of effort for this project but I am just not getting the perfect results that I want. On a technical level they seem slightly fuzzy, but other than that I don't understand why I don't like them. If I had the time I would try and reshoot, but I don't have time for that. Depending on how this is graded there are two things I could potentially take away from this. If it is a high grade then I need to step back for a moment and wonder if I am too critical of my photos. If I get a low grade then I can take away that my judgement is correct and that I can trust my gut when selecting good photos. Either way, I have learned that landscapes are much harder than they seem, so when I go out to California over Christmas to try again I can know what to look for.