If you’re like most people, when
you hear the term “landscape photography,” you probably conjure up images of
beautiful natural scenes: a mountain rising behind a pristine forested lake; a
hillside covered with brightly colored spring flowers; a slot canyon dressed in
reds and purples sculpted into erotic shapes by the wind and sand; or a golden
sunset over a wave-washed ocean beach.
To be sure, these and many other examples represent what we would all
call landscape photographs. What’s
common among them, despite their differences, is their concentration on nature,
on the beauty of color or the richness of black and white, and on the general
absence of the hand of man. For many of
us, such photos are the very essence of landscape photography.
But
other interpretations are possible. Take
for example Chuck Kimmerle, who in his book Black
& White Artistry defines landscape photography more broadly. According to Kimmerle, “landscape photography
is at its core a study of our environment, our surroundings.” While these include natural scenes like those
described above, they can also include images that reveal manmade elements such
as roads, fences and buildings. In urban
photography, some might go so far as to include architectural studies,
ephemera, and even junk as subjects since they are part of the surroundings in
which we live. Thus, as Kimmerle
concludes, landscape photography can “include almost any photograph which does
not explicitly include people as the primary subjects.”
So who
is right? The answer, I think, is that
each photographer must decide for him or herself. There is no right or wrong; it is only a
matter of personal preference, the subject matter that excites you and draws
your interest.
My
personal concept of landscape photography is somewhat similar to
Kimmerle’s. Sure, I love making photos
of pure natural scenes from which the effects of man’s handiwork are
absent. But I’m also open to certain
images that contain manmade structures where these fit the scene as though
meant to be there. Usually, these are
such structures as old barns and sheds, fences, churches, lines of telephone
poles, even roads. In my view, such
elements can and often do fit the scene as well as natural objects do. But in the end, you must decide for yourself
on your own definition of landscape photography and how the objects you choose
to photograph will fit your personal vision.
