Location Scouting
As a landscape photographer, location is everything. Because of this, 50% of your success will come from a proper location scout. This is anything from visiting the location beforehand, viewing others’ photos, using google earth, and checking the weather forecast.
Visit the Location
This is the simplest and best way to location scout. Actually visiting the location! It is not always possible or easily done which is why Google Earth is going to be your new best friend.
Look at Photos Online
Before even thinking about driving out to a scenic location, look at what other photographers have shot there. This will give you a decent sense of the scenery and allow you to start visualizing your own shot. Remember though, only take inspiration from these shots. Do not attempt to copy the composition as you will lose credibility for your work while also wasting your unique skillset.
Google Earth
Google Earth is an extremely powerful tool. More powerful than you might know.
Let’s break it down.
Street View
Many of you may already know about street view. This is where you are able to travel along the same paths that google cars drive and fully immerse yourself in the 360° photos. Unfortunately, google cars do not drive 20 miles into the desert and take 360° photos specifically for landscape photographers. The solution to this is pretty cool though. With the release of their first phone(Pixel 1), Google began to use the 360° captures from their users as another form of street view. Slowly but surely the number of photos at remote photography locations has grown.
Each little blue dot is called a “photosphere”. These are 360° photos that other travelers took at this location.(Turn on satellite view to see the terrain)
After clicking on a blue dot, you will be able to view the location and surrounding areas in detail.
Using street view already gives you an excellent way to location scout but let’s dive a bit deeper
Timing the Sun
This tip requires you to download the app Google Earth Pro(it is free). Good light can make or break a photo. That being said, it is a good idea to know exactly where the sun will be rising or setting before planning out your shot. A summer sunset will yield very different compositions when compared to winter. Google Earth Pro is a great way to plan out your shoot days, months, or even years beforehand! Within the app, there is a tool that allows you to drop to ground level view(not street view). Ground level view is the app trying its best to render the street view into a 3D model. It will look fairly ugly but the important features like the horizon are still visible.
First, click on a photosphere to get a realistic view of your scene.
In the upper right-hand corner, change the option from the little man to the building block. This will generate the 3D terrain.
Not the most beautiful thing in the world, but it works!
Now select the little sun icon to start messing around with the sun’s location.
You can begin sliding your cursor on the bar to watch the sun move. Alternatively, you can click the little wrench icon to set an exact date and time. Your local sunrise or sunset time is a good place to start scanning.
In this example, I can see that the sun will rise above the hill to my right at 7:40 am on January 28th, 2022. This is especially useful in mountainous areas where the sunrise and sunset times are based on the horizon.
Check the Weather Forecast
It’s great knowing where the sun will rise but if you didn’t account for clouds, that information won’t matter much. Checking your local weather forecast is the easiest and fastest way to get an idea of future weather conditions. It is not always the most accurate and lacks the ability to predict a decent sunrise or sunset but if you’re looking for quick and easy, this is it.
SunsetWX
This is my favorite sunrise and sunset prediction app! It is easy to understand and a half glass full type of prediction.
The warmer the color, the more colorful the sunset or sunrise
What I mean by half glass full is that the location of the warm color is not super precise. Warm color in your area could indicate a great sunset 10 miles away from you. This is why it is always best to check other apps as well as cloud maps.
AlpenGlow
This is another app I recommend. This will give you the percentage chance of a good sunrise or sunset. It is a one-time payment of $0.99 and you’ll own the pro version forever.
Sky Candy
Similar to the above apps but a bit more pricey(subscription service).
Cloud Cover Map
https://weather-radar-live.com/cloud-cover-map/
This is the site I recommend for checking cloud coverage. In the upper right-hand corner of the map, there will be a button that says clouds. When you click on this, you’ll have some options.
Low Clouds: you’ll want to have very thin or no low clouds. Golden areas represent no clouds/the sun is shining.
Medium Clouds: These are great!
High Clouds: Even better! These can make your photo really pop!
Live Webcams
Try to see if there are live webcams where you are trying to shoot. This will give you the best view of the clouds and allow you to decide whether the sunset looks worthy of your time. Remember, for a good sunset or sunrise, you’ll want the sun to be able to peak through at the horizon and then refract that light up into the clouds above. If the horizon cloud coverage is too thick(low clouds), you’ll end up with some pretty bland colors.
Conclusion
Even after all of your hard research——scoping out the location on Google Earth, finding out where and when the sun rises, checking the weather, cloud maps, and multiple sunset predictors, the chances for a good photo are at best 50/50. Do not get discouraged and lose trust in your preparation process. It will never be perfect because mother nature always has the final say. Scouting out a location through photos online is difficult considering angles are everything. So when your envisioned shot doesn’t exist in real life, try not to panic. Showing up with more time than you need is a great solution to the tricky process of location scouting. This will give you time to process the online images, recognize angles, and find a comp that you truly enjoy. The more you get to know the place, the better you’ll be able to tell its story.
If you enjoy these articles, I’ll be posting every Friday.
