6 Quick Tips for Photographing in the Falling Snow

December 20, 2021

Have you had your first snowfall yet this year? It seems the snowy weather is late for most areas this year. It is unseasonably warm here in Chicago right now, but after this warm snap, it looks like winter temps are on their way, and I can’t help wishing for snow and a white Christmas. There is something so magical about the first snowfall.

While Chicago is still awaiting the snow, I was lucky enough to experience a beautiful snowfall at Lake Louise this past October. In fact, I chose that location for the group that morning specifically because there was a strong chance of snow and there are few things more magical than freshly falling snow in the mountains.

Lake Louise captured with the Sigma 24-105mm at 105mm
Shutter speed 1/160 to capture the falling snowflakes

There are a few things to consider when photographing in falling snow, both technically and creatively, to come away with the magic of the snowfall!

1) Use a lens hood to help keep your lens free of falling snowflakes! As the snowflakes fall, they can land on your lens and melt, creating droplets that show up as spots in your images. Obviously this is not ideal. A lens hood can help to protect the front of your lens as you photograph.

2) Keep a microfiber cloth handy to dry your lens of the snowflakes that make their way onto your lens. Even with a lenshood, sometimes the direction of the falling snow and wind can still cause some flakes to land on your lens. Be sure to check your lens between exposures and use the cloth to clear it free of moisture.

3) Use a rain/snow cover over your camera to protect it from the moisture!

4) Avoid changing lenses as the snow falls to keep moisture out of the inside of your camera. If you have more than one camera body, put a wider angle lens on one camera and a telephoto lens on the second.

Snow in the trees captured with the Sigma 150-600mm Contemporary lens with a shutter speed of 1/800

5) Consider your shutter speed. Use a fast shutter speed to freeze the falling snow if you want to emphasize the snowflakes. A slower shutter speed will show the movement of the flakes with streaks that look more like falling rain.

6) Look for dark backgrounds to emphasize the snowflakes. The white snow will blend into the sky or other light area of the scene. Backgrounds like deep green trees or blue waters will allow the white snowflakes to stand out!

Snow falling on Lake Louise captured with the Sigma 24-105mm at 82mm . I shifted my perspective to the water and trees so that the snowflakes would show up against the darker backgrounds.

Hope you get out there to photograph when the snow arrives!

Kristen Ryan is an award winning and published landscape photographer and educator residing in the Midwest suburbs of Chicago. All images are available for purchase in the Fine Art Store or by request. Kristen leads ladies landscape photography retreats in the Tetons, Glacier NP, Hilton Head, Chicago, and the Canadian Rockies, offers private mentoring . New online educational materials are coming soon!

Embracing Mother Nature's Atmosphere

March 11, 2020

Mother Nature is not always cooperative in providing beautiful sunrises, sunsets, and days with blue skies and white puffy clouds. Sometimes she sends us stormy and inclement conditions like rain, snow, and fog. While all of these things can provide challenging circumstances, they often create the most atmospheric and unique landscape imagery. So instead of hiding inside, grab the camera and embrace the atmosphere.

Three atmospheric conditions to capture:

1) Fog & Low clouds

Fog can be challenging as it creates low visibility, difficulty driving and may obscure the beautiful views you find in the mountains or along the coast, for example. On the positive side, fog can create a sense of mystery, enhance atmosphere and provide a soft, dreamy mood. In obscuring some details, fog enhances the beauty of other details and creates a stunning contrast to finer and rougher textures, such as the hard rock of mountain tops or the needles of pine trees. Fog may isolate foreground objects like trees, flowers or animals from the background, simplifying the scene.

Pond & Tree in the fog Kristen Ryan Photography-001.jpg

2) Snow & Frigid Temperatures

My guess is most won’t need a lot of encouragement to get out there on those beautiful winter days when big puffy snowflakes are falling. There is something truly magical about falling snow. Even in heavily falling snow, the views can be beautiful. The snow often comes with a drab white sky, but the foreground is enhanced by the atmosphere created with fresh snowflakes.

Many people shy away from the extremely frigid temperatures you that sometimes come after a beautiful snowfall. I encourage you to prepare for the cold with many layers and grab those hand and toe warmers because the icy temperatures often lead to unique ice formations and extra sparkly snow.

Frosty Vermilion Lakes Kristen Ryan Photography-001.jpg

3) Rain

A hard drenching downpour is not going to provide you with the most enjoyable shooting conditions nor create the most pleasing images. However, rain in many situations can create opportunities for stunning imagery. Storms coming in or clearing up can create extremely dramatic skies.

In many places where you can see miles in every direction, the distant rain is stunning to capture.

Rain comes down in the distance among the golden sunrise light off the coast of Turks & Caicos.

Even light rain as it splatters on the water of a lake or on puddles can create a beautiful story not typically captured.

And if you’re lucky, rain that is short lived may even reward you with a rainbow in the end!

After watching the rain come in, my husband and I ran for cover. As it lightened, I looked back and knew we’d see a rainbow! So worth getting a little wet!

In most situations, beauty can still be found when Mother Nature throws us some precipitation and inclement weather mixed with just a small breakthrough of the sun can create the most astounding images! Do you have a dramatic weather image you love? I’ve love to see them!

My online landscape photography workshop, The World Around You, is now open for registration! Sign up at Click Photo School. This will likely be the only run of 2020 as my fall is filled with retreats.

Kristen Ryan is an award winning and published landscape and fine art photographer and educator residing in the Midwest suburbs of Chicago. All images are available for purchase in the Fine Art Store or by request. Kristen leads ladies landscape photography retreats in the Tetons, Chicago, and the Canadian Rockies, offers private mentoring and teaches an online landscape photography workshop, The World Around You.

Capturing Winter's Beauty Part 3

December 24, 2019

Have you been out capturing winter’s beauty yet this year? The last couple weeks I shared some tips on preparing your gear and some settings to think about when capturing snowy landscapes. This week I’m offering 5 more tips to consider for capturing winter’s beauty in a variety of creative ways.

Mount Moran peeks out of the clouds on a cold winter’s morning at sunrise.

Embrace Simplicity - Winter images do not need to be complex. You don’t need an expansive scene to capture winter’s beauty. Simple scenes can be just as compelling. A single subject amongst the snowy landscape or falling snow can tell a beautiful story to a viewer.

A lone tree stands among the snowy landscape in Grand Teton National Park

2. Emphasize Atmosphere - Embrace the atmosphere of the falling snow or steam rising from water on a winter’s day. This may be done by capturing the wider scene or by using a longer lens to isolate a smaller subject amongst the snow or simply the softness of light and fog mixing over a pond or river. Include winter’s details like hoarfrost or ice detail in the frame to help tell the story. Get close to these details to add depth and story.

Frosty formations cover the ice of Bow Lake in Banff National Park, Alberta, Canada

The snow comes down along the Snake River. Jackson Hole, Wyoming

3. Abstract - Winter tones can create stunning abstract images. In contrast to the greens of spring and summer, and the golden autumn tones, winter tones of blue, brown and white have a calming and peaceful quality. Slow down the shutter speed and experiment with panning or zoom blur.

4. Focus on Details - Winter temperatures and precipitation bring beautiful ice formations, hoarfrost and snowflakes. When the sun is out, these are often combined with beautiful sparkles. Focus on these details in a wider scene or use macro lens or telephoto to isolate them.

5. Add a Pop of Color - The winter landscape can be monotone with lots of white, blue, and brown. Adding in a pop of color from the landscape, such as sunset colors in the sky, a red barn, yellow sign, or a person with colorful clothing can be just the thing to grab a viewer’s attention and add impact to the scene.

Sunset glow adds a pop of color to the cool snowy mountain scene of the Tetons.

Hope these tips help give you creative ideas for capturing the winter beauty near you and in your travels!

6 Tips for Capturing Winter's Beauty Part 2

December 17, 2019

Last week I shared some tips for preparing your camera gear and clothing to survive the cold while shooting in the winter landscape. If you don’t prepare well enough, the shooting adventures are likely to be cut short due to cold and discomfort!

Now that you are well equipped to manage the cold and snow, I have some tips for photographing the winter beauty! There is the most magical feeling that comes with fresh fallen snow or beautiful hoar frost covering the trees and grasses. Winter landscapes are some of my most favorite scenes to photograph.

Falling snow in Grand Teton National Park

1 - Exposure - As always, I recommend watching your histogram to make sure not to blow out the highlights of the scene to keep texture and detail in the snow. I always look to expose snowy scenes a little bit brighter than my camera tells me to. Exposing at zero, your camera will make the snow look more gray instead of white. I always look to expose snow about +1 to +1 2/3 stops. You can do this manually or by using exposure compensation if you shoot in aperture mode. One easy way to ensure a great exposure is to bracket three exposures at 0, +1, and -1. Again, keep an eye on your histogram to expose to the right without letting it climb the right wall.

2- White Balance - While snow is white, it won’t always appear pure white in a photograph or in real life. Snow reflects the colors and light of a scene. In very low light, the shadows will be quite cool and the snow will have a bluish hue to it. However, in warm sunrise, sunset or golden hour light, the snow may reflect golden, orange, or pink tones. You may want to choose a white balance that enhances these colors or you may want to choose a white balance that neutralizes them somewhat. You’ll likely want to choose a white balance that is representative of the scene and helps to enhance the mood and atmosphere of that moment you clicked the shutter. Unless you are shooting a warm sunrise or sunset, a cooler white balance will typically bring out the cool mood of a winter scene. Using live view when adjusting your white balance can help you see whether you are capturing accurate colors and achieving the mood you envision.

3 - Take Advantage of Falling Snow - Even better than fresh fallen snow is snow that is FALLING!! There is something incredibly magical about a landscape captured with snowflakes falling all around. So grab all your protective gear to keep your camera weather proofed and head out to capture the atmosphere.

4- Get Out When the Snow is Fresh - Whenever possible, head out to capture a fresh fallen snow as early as possible. The earlier you get out, the fluffier the new snow and the less car tracks or footprints will have been made in the snow. Additionally, when you consider your composition, avoid walking around aimlessly as you may end up wanting a composition that includes all the tracks YOU just made!

5 - Avoid Condensation & Moisture in Your Gear - Whenever you can, try to avoid changing your lens out in the cold and wet weather. This will minimize any moisture or condensation getting inside the camera. If you have more than one camera body, you could consider choosing a wide angle lens for one body and a telephoto lens for the second. Additionally, while I have never had trouble with my camera having condensation coming in from the cold, placing it in a sealed ziplock bag as it comes to warmer temperatures is recommended.

6 - Pack a Towel - It’s a great idea to keep a towel in your camera bag in case any of your gear does get wet. Choose something soft like a microfiber towel to dry off your gear.

Hope these are helpful tips to add to your winter shooting! Part 3 coming next week! Do you have a favorite winter shooting tip? Tell me in the comments.

Happy Shooting!