Video: 7 common landscape photography mistakes to avoid

Photographer Nigel Danson captures and sees a lot of photos. Lately, he's noticed a lot of the same mistakes. Whether he's making them or seeing other photographers make them, Danson discusses seven common photo mistakes that he and others make and how you can avoid the pitfalls.

While Danson makes some of these mistakes himself – even photographers as skilled as Danson are still always improving – the featured photos were sent in from Danson's audience. Many photos were sent in, too many to share them all, so Danson narrowed them down into categories that fit the themes of the seven photography mistakes he wanted to highlight.

The first mistake is about composition. Leading lines are a powerful tool for creating impactful images that draw a viewer in. However, if you have lines that lead a viewer out of the image frame, leading lines can have a detrimental impact. The general concern is to ensure that you compose the image to keep the viewer's attention and not lead the viewer out of the frame.

Danson thinks the next mistake is the most common mistake he sees photographers make. He sees many photographers keep the camera perfectly horizontal, even when it makes more sense to angle the camera down. Perhaps photographers want to keep more of the sky in the image, but the issue is that often the most interesting elements of a scene aren't the sky, it's everything else. This is especially true when the sky is boring. Many photographers feel like they need to include a lot of the sky in their images, but it often doesn't add anything to the composition.

Watch the full video above to see many more images illustrating the other five common photography mistakes and how to avoid them.

If you want to see a similar video, Danson published a "7 photography mistakes I see all the time" video back in 2020. For more photography content from Nigel Danson, visit his website and YouTube channel. You can also follow him on Instagram. 

(Via Nigel Danson)