Stephen Walton Photography Workshops

Woodland photography is a great test of the eye and patience. There is a lot of luck involved (as with all photography) but it’s one of my favourite places to explore with the camera and here’s why.

When I head down to the local forest or woodlands its not so much the overall landscape and breadth of the forest that I capture (but I do that sometimes), it’s mostly what’s on the forest floor. We call this intimate woodland photography.

Consider All Angles and Seasons

Intimate woodland photography is about exploring the micro-ecosystems of moss, rocks, dew, leaves, pinecones, bark and any other natural elements you find – these will differ season to season too (so its always worth multiple trips across the year).

Some of my favourite ever photographs have come out of woodland photography as you never fully expect what to find. It’s worth trundling off the main path (while trying not to destroy precious woodland) to find the more unique aspects of the forest.

Woodland Photography Camera Settings

Grab yourself a good fast prime lens which can open up to at least F/2, ideally F/1.8 as forest floors can be shaded from light by the woodland canopy above. I’ve got a 50mm F/1.8 that I use regularly for my intimate shots that works a treat.

Don’t get yourself worked up about shutter speed, just keep it above 1/125th if you’re shooting handheld. If you are shooting in A/Av mode and your shutter speed goes below 1/125th then bump up the ISO to level it out again.

Ideas for Woodland Shots

Textures and shapes will be your 2 more useable features when creating a composition. Look for moments where you can see conflict in textures (hard and soft) and shapes (straight and curved).

Here is a selection of some of my most recent intimate woodland photography. I’d love to see some of yours if you’ve given it a try.