Three tips to capture magical winter photos

Morte Point, Devon

It’s the season when dawn frost lights up everything it touches, purple clouds zigzag across the sky and the fresh snow gives portraits a fairytale background. Yes, winter is a pretty special time to get out and explore the world through your viewfinder.

If you want to start 2016 feeling inspired, why not plan a photography walk around one of the places we look after, capturing winter’s beauty along the way? Just make sure you’re armed with some warm clothes, a hot thermos and these tips – courtesy of our ranger and Panasonic photography ambassador Josh Day.

" I'm heading back to the yard, ponging of smoke from the day’s scrub fire. My waterproofs have just lost their battle with the driving rain, but I'm still smiling... I know winter's here, my favourite season for photography."
- Josh Day, ranger and Panasonic photography ambassador
A herdwick sheep at Eskdale and Duddon Valley

Tip 1: Don't just look, see

Rather than shooting things because of how they look, try to find out something about your subject. How does that animal put up with the cold? Who planted this tree? Why was this building built – or abandoned? Try to describe what you’ve found in your image. And if you need answers, remember you can always ask one of our rangers.

Dyrham Park

Tip 2: The rule of thirds

Imagine your frame is divided into thirds, horizontally and vertically. Try structuring your composition so the main points of interest sit on these imaginary lines. This simple rule will make your compositions feel balanced. It’s also a good way to remind yourself not to overcrowd things.

Berries at Tyntesfield

Tip 3: An exercise in subtraction

By zooming in and out and moving left and right, remove anything from the frame that doesn't compliment your subject or doesn't describe what you found out about it. While it can be tempting to capture everything your eyes see, with photographs less is definitely more. So if you find yourself trying to squeeze too much into the frame, just take more photos.

Our rangers have been capturing their most hair-raising and heart-warming moments using Panasonic's Lumix camera range.

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