We all faced a barrage of so-called “photography rules” when first starting out, and one of the most enduring for outdoor shooters is the familiar Rule of Thirds. This is a compositional guideline that involves dividing an image into nine equal parts and placing the subject where two of the vertical and horizontal lines intersect.

This simple rule is a worthwhile starting point for beginners, but there are far better framing techniques to explore as your skills evolve. Let’s face it:  if you’re a regular Shutterbug reader it’s time to move beyond baby steps and take a more creative approach when framing up your shots. Doing so will result in compelling photos and help you establish a far more sophisticated photographic style.

Instructor Jalen Oban is a landscape pro based in the Pacific Northwest who is very generous about sharing the secrets to his shooting and post-processing success. He describes today’s video like this: “I’m diving into advanced techniques that will help you elevate your compositions and create dynamic, compelling images.”

Oban takes prides in being an adept visual storyteller, and you will too after following his advice. He punctuates the lesson with eye-catching photos that illustrate how to compose different types of outdoor scenes under various lighting condition for maximum impact. His goal is to enable you to “capture the view and the feeling you experienced on location.”

The idea is to utilize concepts like symmetry, balance and tension, depth and dimension, and other pro tricks. You’ll also see how the inclusion of subtle easy-to-ignore details can be helpful for guiding a viewer’s eye.

The discussion also includes some great advice on how the thoughtful use of light, perspective, and focal length can completely transform your compositions and contribute to truly immersive imagery. In essence, this is all about changing your mindset and being receptive to news ways of visualizing the world around you before snapping the shutter.

There’s much more to learn on Oban’s instructional YouTube channel for outdoor photographers of all skill levels. So be sure to pay a visit.

We also suggest watching a thought-provoking video we featured with another accomplish pro who raises this interesting question: Should you spend your hard-earned cash on a new hi-res camera or invest in lenses with superior optical quality?

We’re all at the mercy of Mother Nature when shooting outdoors, and sometimes this means missing a great shot because of a featureless white sky that spoils would have been a very compelling image. Today’s quick Lightroom tutorial will convince you to keep shooting the next time you confront these less-than-ideal conditions.

Instructor Matthew Gehly is a professional wildlife photographer whose straightforward shooting and post-processing tutorials will improve the quality of just about any image you capture outdoors. Today’s nine minute episode involves a quick-and-effective technique to recover hidden details in bright white skies.

Gehly demonstrates the process in the context of bird-in-flight imagery, but you can just as well use his suggestions to significantly improve other once-in-a-lifetime images. In Gehly’s case, the subject was a Short-Eared Owl and he explains his excitement like this: “I’ve spent a lot of time trying to photograph these guys, and I never before had an opportunity to even see one in the wild.”

In other words, a dull and lifeless sky wasn’t going to stop Gehly from making a few shots, and then rehabilitating the cloudy sky in Lightroom. Before demonstrating the step-by-step procedure, he discusses two crucial in-camera techniques that will make these types of photos easier to process.

First, “it’s extremely important when shooting in these conditions that you don’t blow the highlights. So you want to check your histogram and make sure to leave a little space on the right as you’re shooting.” Otherwise it may not be possible to effectively recover hidden details in Lightroom.

Another important consideration when shooting against a white sky with minimal detail is to be sure to use the Raw file format “so you have as much image data to recover as possible.”

The foregoing suggestions will help you capture the best possible base image for the Lightroom transformation that follows, and Gehly demonstrates everything you need to do and the best tools to use. Just remember to keep your expectations realistic so that you’ll be pleased with the subtle but noteworthy improvements you receive.

Gehly’s instructional YouTube channel features many more lessons for levelling up your photo-editing skills, so be sure to take a look when you have time to explore.

And don’t miss the tutorial we featured with another accomplished pro recently who demonstrates a simple in-camera technique for avoiding boring landscape photographs, environmental portraits, travel imagery, and more.