4 Tips For Shooting Natural Arches
At this point, I’m sure that it’s no secret that I have a slight obsession with natural arches.
Despite my love for these natural beauties, it can be a challenge to photograph them in a way that makes them look like little more than just big holes in even bigger rocks. As such, I’ve found that natural arches can be a challenging subject to mast shooting!
That’s why I’d like to share with you 4 tips I’ve learned over the years for shooting natural arches.
Let’s dive right in!
1: Get low
Bolton Twin Arch East, Daniel Boone National Forest, Kentucky.
One way to make an arch look epic in photographs is to get down low. By adjusting your perspective in this way, you’re helping convey the size of the arch by making it seem that the arch is looming over you. This technique works particularly well when paired with my next tip!
2: Shoot with a wide-angle lens
Schoolhouse Arch, Daniel Boone National Forest, Kentucky.
One of the properties of shooting with a wide-angle lens is that it will make distances appear more dramatic. This effect is the result of the fact that wide-angle lenses distort the scene and stretch everything out.
As a result, shooting arches with a wide-angle lens will make the span appear more dramatic and impressive. This method of shooting natural arches pairs quite well with the previous tip of getting down low.
Enjoying the arch photography?
Are you enjoying the arch photography I’ve been featuring in this post so far? If so, you may also enjoy my ongoing project to document the Arches of Appalachia.
3: Include the environment
Natural Arch, Daniel Boone National Forest, Kentucky.
Remember earlier when I said that it can be hard to make an arch look like more than just a hole in a rock? Including the environment around the arch in your shot can help with that issue.
This is especially true if you have a nice surrounding, such as fog and fall colors. Things still work well with more lackluster conditions, however. Objects like trees can help give you a much-needed sense of scale when dealing with larger arches.
Sky Bridge, Red River Gorge, Kentucky.
4: Play with the sun
Grove Arch, Daniel Boone National Forest, Kentucky.
Occasionally, the sun can be your best friend when trying to add a bit of interest to an arch. Consider the above shot of Grove Arch, located in the Daniel Boone National Forest.
If we’re going to be completely honest, this is far from the most impressive arch in the world. In fact, Grove Arch wouldn’t even make it into my top 100 list of arches.
Despite this, it’s still possible to get an interesting shot of the arch if we use the sun to our advantage. What can I say, I’m a sucker for a good sun star!
There you have it
Hopefully, you’ve found these tips useful for your arch photography endeavors!
how about you? Do you have any tips for shooting natural arches that you’d like to share?
