bdk Loc: Sanibel Fl.

The biggest problem with my landscape photography is I do NOT have an eye for it.
The scene looks amazing , I take a shot and the pic sucks .
What I am doing now is trying to shoot landscape every day. It helps but not a lot.....

I set up Bank B in the camera for Landscape .
Im using Matrix mode, wide area, single point. RAW of course . ISO set to manual ( when shooting wildlife I set ISO to auto) Im interested in what settings you use for
landscape. ( Im using a Z9)

Im also looking for any videos or on line articles that will help develop my eye.

plus any hints or tips you may have.

The pic below was F29 , 1/640 because It was hand held no tripod this day , ISO 4000 and the pic is just awful ( being a cloudy day didnt help)

UTMike Loc: South Jordan, UT

Post this with a download in "Photo Analysis." Check You Tube for landscape tutorials. There is also a "Landscape" forum on UHH.

Sidwalkastronomy Loc: New Jersey Shore

I would change your focus pattern.
If there is a specific point of interest I would place them in one of the 4 spots where the rule of thirds meet. Think tic tac toe board and the 4 lines that cross.
Lead the viewers eye into the subject. Manual iso is fine

CHG_CANON Loc: the Windy City

BDK - the 'store original' box is needed to address Mike's suggestion. You can do this by <reply> or <quote reply> and add the image again, storing the file.

Linda From Maine Loc: Yakima, Washington

f/29 is overkill on depth of field. Try this site for guidance:
https://www.dofmaster.com/dofjs.html

Landscapes, like much of photography, benefit from early morning or late afternoon light (low angle of sun), giving your landscapes more definition (shadows) and feeling of depth.

The photo posted has no center of interest or a path for our eye to follow. What drew you to the scene? Would the composition benefit from "less is more" - a more telephoto pov? When confronted with poor light, it's even more important to think about the less literal - such as patterns on the water or the shapes of the dead trees as a graphical, even black and white, scene.

Architect1776 Loc: In my mind

Composition.

dreff Loc: Bow, WA

Experiment with different focus patterns...single center, matrix, etc from your camera's manual. If you can hold still enough, you can shoot at 1/125th thereby reducing your ISO and increasing depth of field. It looks like your focus point was the pond further out which isn't bad. Experiment with other focal areas.
Is this a zoom lens? Shooting at the extreme ends usually doesn't give the best results. Every lens has a "sweet spot" depending on lighting conditions, etc.
Compositionally, it's hard to tell where you are standing in relation to what your shooting objectives are.

dreff Loc: Bow, WA

Experiment with different focus patterns...single center, matrix, etc from your camera's manual. If you can hold still enough, you can shoot at 1/125th thereby reducing your ISO and increasing depth of field. It looks like your focus point was the pond further out which isn't bad. Experiment with other focal areas.
Is this a zoom lens? Shooting at the extreme ends usually doesn't give the best results. Every lens has a "sweet spot" depending on lighting conditions, etc.
Compositionally, it's hard to tell where you are standing in relation to what your shooting objectives are.

roger2012 Loc: Chichester West Sussex UK

When I take landscapes tend to use the rule of thirds. If you can recall what I am referring to. A focal point is a third into the landscape. This will help to hold a picture together. After a time you do it without thinking about it. What do other photographers think about that?

CHG_CANON Loc: the Windy City

We can discuss the technical image capture aspects if / when you store the image file.

For composition and composition selection, consider:

a, Decide where to focus. Should you focus on a foreground element? Should you focus midway into the image? Or, on something on the horizon?

b, If unsure about 'where to focus', take lots of different versions with the focus set all over the place, foreground to background, and make a decision later on your computer.

c, Move yourself around physically. Don't take just one image standing straight up, the exactly the same as any other person could have done exactly the same view. Move left / right, get down on a knee or even your fanny, or hold the camera high over your head. Get something 99 other people would have missed.

User ID

That image is indeed awful ... cuz theres nothing there. IOW forget about asking for camera settings and such ... after all, its in focus and decently exposed.

Youll hafta learn to see landscapes. You already know how to focus and expose.

No way would I attempt to train someone to see, especially in this format (forum). Some here do attempt it ... by reciting cliches and referring you to the "great works of the masters". Most times that I look into their archives their images meet certain cliched standards (which earns knee jerk praise) but are actually just boring formulaic well executed nothings.

Assuming you dont carry your "serious" gear every day, use your phone camera constantly, even for what might not look like "photo ops" and study your results. Determine how some of your accidental near-successes stand out from the drivel.

You WILL develop your vision, unpolluted by herd mind nonsense, and then you can apply your serious gear with some real confidence in how YOU see things. Spend a few $$ to hang a few successes on your own walls.

Put no cred in the opinions of the Blind Mice that dominate the UHH Gallery section. The Critique section is better but you need to recognize useful critique from "camera club" judgement. Theres usually a mix of both.

I must repeat, IGNORE the issue of camera settings. Thaz a useless and possibly pernicious distraction from the work you really need to take on.

rmalarz Loc: Tempe, Arizona

‘Landscape photography is the supreme test of the photographer—and often the supreme disappointment.’ -- Ansel Adams
--Bob

joecichjr Loc: Chicago S. Suburbs, Illinois, USA

As long as the camera is storing information about each shot, why don't you experiment with changing a setting in order to see if the results change If they don't, change a different setting. Later, when post-processing, when you see a good shot, check the data so you can use those same settings again in the future in similar conditions. In other words, experiment. There are zillions of websites online. Just search for "master landscape shots" or something to the effect. Don't get discouraged. Here: https://www.google.com/search?client=firefox-b-1-d&q=mastering+landscape+shots

jaredjacobson

You’ve received some great advice so far. I recommend that you spend some time studying landscape photos you like and deciding what you like about them.

* What grabs your attention first?
* How did your eye travel through the frame?
* Where did your eye dwell?
* How many subjects are there?

Trying to fit too many stories in a single frame is common when starting in landscape photography.

DirtFarmer Loc: Escaped from the NYC area, back to MA

The photo shown doesn't have anything that jumps out at me, the subject you are trying to show. Too many random components of the image, none of which is particularly interesting. I see some birds in the background but they're small and overwhelmed by the stuff in the foreground. In short, I don't see what you are trying to get a photo of here.

(Advice from a geek whose artistic abilities are limited).