Photographing Atmosphere in a Snowy Landscape

In landscape photography, we often look for spectacular and majestic subjects. Imposing mountains, breathtaking waterfalls, or lush forests are powerful and visually appealing. Even more so when shot under dramatic light. However, if you wish to obtain significant images, looking for atmospheres that resonate with our state of mind is often more helpful than focusing on famous, outstanding places.

This is because photography does not simply involve immortalizing what we see but instead interpreting it, filtering it through our perception, and making the atmosphere the true subject of the photograph. Today, I will discuss the art of landscape photography in the snow, how it relates to atmosphere, and specific tips for winter landscape photography.

Atmosphere Tells the Photographer’s Story

In my experience, focusing on atmospheres as a landscape photographer is better than looking for outstanding subjects. It is always a matter of light, shades, colors, and shapes – these factors combine to create the atmosphere in a photo.

But don’t miss the impact of the climate. For example, cold and windy winter days in the mountains, with heavy snowfall or even just a bit of snow carried by gusts of wind – you can already imagine the unforgettable atmosphere of such a scene.

The Emotions of Winter Snow

A snowy, nearly monochrome winter scene offers a rare atmosphere in landscape photography. It is very different compared to the screaming warm lights of the sunset and the shades of the blue hour.

Snow simplifies the scene, often making it minimalist, like a charcoal drawing. The diffused and directionless light gives me a sense of serenity and calms the chaos of a landscape.

Usually, composing images in these conditions is a game of small movements to avoid overlapping subjects, and choosing what to include or exclude by changing the shooting point or the focal length just a bit. Sometimes, it is just a patient game, waiting for the wind to move the fog a little, hiding or revealing something in the background.

Landscape photography as a whole is a complex process, and the results are not always guaranteed. However, when you manage to establish a connection between your inner self and the outer world, you can create very personal images that represent how you experienced the landscape. These images represent a moment in time; they reflect your state of mind and your essence when you took the shot. In this way, those images are truly unique.

Photography Equipment is Marginal

As with all photography, the technical aspects of photographing snowy landscapes are significant. You still need to choose your camera settings carefully, and some challenges increase in the snow, like avoiding overexposure and underexposure.

However, in snowy landscape photography, camera equipment plays a secondary role. Even a tripod can be optional, given how bright the snow is. The sharpness of a lens, absence of distortion, or the use of high-resolution sensors do not really impact these images. The snow hides many details, so the key element becomes composition.

I find that only focal length remains of extreme importance. For that reason, I prefer a zoom – a 24-70mm, or even better, a 24-120mm or 24-200mm, as they provide the most useful focal lengths without requiring lens changes. In some winter landscapes, changing lenses is acceptable, but if it is windy or snowy, it becomes a greater challenge.

To illustrate this article, I used images I took in 2019 with a Nikon Z6 + 24-70mm f/4 and pictures that I took last week with a Z9 and a 24-120mm f/4. It is interesting to me the similarities between the photos despite the large differences in price between the two kits.

In winter conditions, you should pay attention to humidity. A lens can fog up rapidly if you bring it from warm to cold conditions. If it is sufficiently cold, then merely breathing out will create fog, which can accumulate on the lens. Ice and snow can gather in the lens hood and freeze there. I recommend bringing microfiber cloths and even a lens warmer if you will be out for a long period of time. Upon returning home from winter landscapes, I typically put my equipment in a plastic bag along with a moisture-absorbing packet and leave it there overnight.

Place and Time Are Secondary

When the atmosphere is your subject, the place becomes secondary compared to the weather conditions. Even if you don’t travel much, you can find extraordinary subjects and opportunities almost everywhere.

For snowy landscape photography, even the time of day is less important. The ideal light may be available all day long. You certainly are not limited to photographing in a few moments at the edge of the day, chasing for golden light or blue hours. This also gives you the chance to take more time, slow down to look, wait, reflect, and ultimately interpret what you see with a more careful composition.

Stay Safe and Dress Appropriately

Putting yourself high in the mountains on a bad weather day is rarely advisable. As I said, it isn’t about the place, so avoid walking too far from the car, a town, or any safe place. Avoid being alone if possible; bring your phone or, even better, a GPS communicator if you are out of the grid.

Proper clothing is paramount for snowy landscape photography. I always dress in layers: merino wool on the skin, a fleece over it, an insulated layer if it is very cold, and a Gore-Tex shell to cover everything. I adjust the layers to the activity – when hiking uphill, removing or unzipping the shell, for example.

Don’t forget gloves, wool socks, waterproof boots, and a warm hat your head. Lastly, I love a thermos full of hot beverages!

By dressing properly, it is possible to stay out for many hours safely and comfortably even in very cold winter conditions. The converse is that dressing poorly can make you miserable and affect your photos, and you may never want to try snowy landscape photography again.

The Role of Post-Production

Post-production with gentle hands is crucial in bringing out the atmosphere of landscape photographs. It regulates tones while preserving them. And if your landscapes are stark and filled with snow, it is even more important.

White balance is one of the most important considerations. Should the snow be strictly white, or do you want it to reflect the subtle colors of the sky – bluer around midday or yellower near golden hour?

Regulating contrast and brightness is also essential. First, the histogram does not necessarily have to be filled from black to white. If you add too much contrast, you can turn a subtle landscape into something very aggressive and out of place. But let’s remember that snow, if not white, is very light, so avoid making it gray by underexposing it.

Conclusion

Landscape photography is not limited to capturing aesthetically pleasing images of beautiful places. It is a process that involves connecting with nature and expressing your perceptions of the world around you. Searching for and capturing specific atmospheres allows you to create images that, more than representing a place, tell a story of a particular moment in time.

I find that snowy winter landscapes work perfectly with this approach to landscape photography. They offer the photographer time to slow down and the ability to compose carefully. They are static in some ways and dynamic in others, just like the photographer’s mood. In this way, a good photo of a snowy landscape can be a portrait of the photographer’s soul.

I hope you found this essay about capturing emotions with winter landscapes enjoyable. If you have any questions or feedback, please don’t hesitate to leave them in the comments section below.