The great outdoors are beautiful, but sometimes capturing the scene can be difficult. We all want to share the highlights of our trip with family and friends when we return home- but not if our pics are dark and out of focus. As a nature and photography lover, there is nothing more frustrating than seeing the most beautiful sight and not being able to capture as it appears in real life. Here are some tips to help you photograph the ocean, dessert or mountains on your next family vaca. Don’t be afraid to get a little creative! It’s as they say: A picture is worth a thousand words, right?

Lighting is key

When is comes to photography, lighting can make or break the shot. This is especially true when shooting nature. As in all photography, taking photos when the sun is at its highest (noon) is never good. Large shadows will ruin your ability to portray the scene correctly. The best time to shoot nature photography is in the morning or in the afternoon when the sun is low. As the sun rises or sets, it projects a golden light that makes the scene shine- perfect for photos!

Mix up your perspective 

A lake or a flower is beautiful, but 1,000 pictures of a lake or the flower straight-on can get boring pretty quickly. Mix up your point of view in the picture- whether it’s getting on the ground or climbing on a rock for a different angle. This delivers the same beauty of a normal picture, but makes the photo more interesting by delivering an image of the subject from a different eye level.

Move, not zoom!

When people show me their pictures, I often notice a popular trend that downgrades the quality of the picture. Photographers of all skill levels tend to zoom into a scene to get a more compact shot. This might help you get a better look at your subject, but it will diminish the quality. The solution to this problem is the simplest thing that has ever passed through the world of photography- move closer! (Manual zoom, as I like to call it). Moving closer to your subject will give you a better view of whatever you are shooting without compromising the quality.

Simplicity makes the best shots

When in nature, simple photographs tend to produce the best results. Simplicity is often beautiful and objects in nature often look best when alone. There’s nothing worse then a gorgeous scene with too many things going on in the foreground distracting the viewer. Decluttered photos usually portray the scene the best and make the beauty of nature really stand out.

You don’t need a fancy camera

Fantastic photos can be taken with any camera, whether it’s the camera on your cell phone or a fancy DSLR. Nature is nature and will look just as beautiful with whatever captures it- just as long as it’s done right. By following these steps, the proper characteristics of a photograph can make any scene beautiful!

Try a panorama!

There is no camera wide enough to capture the vast beauty of nature. When you feel you really have to capture the moment, a panoramic pic can do the trick. A panorama picture is one large picture made up of a collection of photos. They are made by taking a series of constant photos, one right after the next, of a wide view. Panorama pictures are then stitched together either on the computer or with prints of the pictures. These large photographs give the viewer a more realistic view of the scene in a way that is sure to impress.

The great outdoors are so beautiful that everyone wants to share it with those at home. It’s not always easy but if done right, the beauty of nature can be shared through photographs. With these easy tips, you can convert the real beauty of nature to your camera. Go out and shoot!