Woodland and forest photography is a great way to connect to nature with your camera but it’s not always as easy as it looks.
Imagine walking into a woodland or forest, with a camera in your hand and having zero clue how to shoot it.
No clear composition, no “wow” shot in sight, just a maze of branches and twigs overloading your senses.
Now, picture that same woodland a couple of weeks later, where you confidently take images of sun rays slicing through tall pines, capture hidden macro details on mossy tree trunks, and create jaw-dropping photos that light up your followers’ feeds.
Sound like a newbie photographer’s pipe dream? Well, it’s not.
Let me give you some practical tips, broken down, to help you achieve gorgeous woodland and forest photography.
I will go over gear, shooting ideas, and editing approaches, all in simple terms.
Why Try Woodland and Forest Photography?
There are so many great subjects within nature photography that all have their own appeal, but there’s something about the woods that you just can’t replicate anywhere else.
I remember every single moment spent doing photography in the forest. Not just the time I turned up and realised I hadn’t brought any camera batteries with me and had to go home and circle back. I remember each time because the woods has always been a special place for me.
It feels like I belong there, amongst the ferns and the mushrooms.
So to be able to capture how I feel when I spend time there, is invaluable to me.
It’s a grounding practice too. You start noticing the little things. Like the tiny Mycena mushrooms and the colourful lichen on the bark.
Woodland and forest photography trains you to notice compositions and details that might not stand out at first glance. It also gives you a chance to get some fresh air and exercise which is always a nice bonus.
You can walk along trails or explore less-travelled corners of a local forest. This makes it a peaceful way to practice photography, whether you are brand new or have been shooting for a while.
Photo Accessories for Woodland and Forest Photography
I quite often cram every piece of gear I own into my backpack, despite knowing that I never use every single lens on a woodland shoot and it’s bloody heavy.
I’m a “just in case” kind of person, and while I have learned my lesson by keeping my kit light on hikes, I definitely bring too much to the party at every other shoot.
Perhaps it’s the wedding photographer in me, who absolutely needs to pack every piece of kit, plus backups.
Despite bringing everything and the kitchen sink, there are specific lenses and accessories that happen to be my go-to gear and if I do eventually pack light, will be my absolute non-negotiables.
This post may contain affiliate links, where I make a commission on purchases made through affiliate sites at no extra cost to you.
What I recommend:
- A wide-angle lens (I use a 16-35mm 2.8 so that I have some versatility) – Best for those big landscape “hero” shots.
- A macro lens (I use a sigma 105mm macro) – Because, hello mushrooms, lichen, bugs and moss!
- A telephoto lens (I use either a 50-500mm lens for birds and deer, or a 135mm lens for details) – Handy for any wildlife or details that are too out of range for a macro.
- Polarising filter – A really useful filter for reflection-free shots of wet leaves.
- Lens cloth – Honestly a lens cloth is a non-negotiable for every shoot but if you’re anything like me, you’ll be rolling around in leaves and moss trying to get a good angle. So it’s especially important, trust me.
- Tripod – You may have seen me mention this many times before, but I am super guilty of not using a tripod enough, I’m the queen of handheld. I always take it with me however, as it comes in really handy for woodland shots where you require a longer exposure. Especially if you’re trying to keep your ISO down and you’re shooting in fog or in a darker spot. You’ll find that most photographers that do a lot of woodland and forest photography, use tripods all of the time.
Times of Day to Shoot
Light in a woodland or forest can change more dramatically than you might expect and different times of day will also affect your photos.
Early morning is all about softer light and, in some cases, a bit of mist.
This is my favourite time for woodland and forest photography. Any mist creates separation between trees, giving your photographs more dimension and depth. If your morning isn’t foggy but the sunrise is epic, then the lighting is going to be *chefs kiss*.
Late afternoon/evening is another opportunity for golden hour light. As the sun will be at a lower angle, it might illuminate leaves from behind, giving them a gorgeous glow.
Overcast days work well for more even lighting, though the forest might look a bit flat.
Midday light is often considered the least flattering for photography, but you can still find pockets of shade or good shadows. Sometimes the contrast between bright spots and shadowy areas make amazing and dramatic shots.
Woodland Landscape Photography
The trickiest part of woodland and forest landscape photography, is that loads of trees together can look cluttered.
There might be branches crossing each other, random patches of light on the ground, or a lot of distracting elements in the background.
Your task then, is to find a composition that feels balanced and looks aesthetically pleasing.
One approach is to look for a clear path or a row of trees that guides the eye. If a single tree stands out, make that tree your main subject.
Another option is to frame a shot around a patch of light shining through the trees.
I won’t go massively in depth with composition, because we’ll be here all day, but I do have a guide on beginner composition rules in photography that I reckon might help if you’re just getting started.
How to Capture a Misty Woodland
There may have been a morning or two when I dragged myself out of bed at 4am, clinging to the last strands of sleep, all because I’d seen photos of a misty woodland and wanted to photograph it for myself.
When I arrived, it was simply overcast with no morning mist or fog and my photos fell flat.
Because here’s the thing…
You can’t just turn up and expect you’ll hit the misted forest jackpot. Not every morning will turn out that way.
Maybe you’ll get lucky and that’s how your first woodland shoot will go but you are more guaranteed to get results if you plan it.
If you check the Met Office forecast and notice the temperature dipping near the dew point at sunrise, you’ve got a solid chance of finding some mist among the trunks.
This video from Wex is a great one to watch if you want to get better at predicting misty mornings:
Woodland Macro Photography
I used to walk through forests noticing only the big picture – massive towering trees, streams and the mossy ground. But then I got a macro lens and suddenly everything was exciting to photograph.
Small details like clusters of lichen and tiny mycena mushrooms are now something I obsess over, to the point I even forget to take the big landscape photos sometimes.
A macro lens makes it easier to get in close and appreciate the smaller thing a woodland has to offer, but if you don’t have the budget, then a macro filter or extension tubes are a good alternative.
Take a look at my macro guides for some tips on shooting:
- Macro Photography Ideas For Beginners
- Mushroom Macro Photography
- Lichen Photography Guide For Beginners
Once you’re set up, experiment with angles. Shooting down on a mushroom cap captures its shape, while positioning the camera at ground level will capture the gills underneath.
Keep an eye on the background, too. A stray leaf or twig can distract from your main subject. Often, just shifting your position a little clears up the shot.
Once you start looking for the small stuff, forest photography becomes vastly more interesting, as you’re noticing details most people never notice.
Woodland and Forest Portrait Photography
Before landscapes, wildlife and mushroom photography started creeping into my editing pile, people were all I photographed.
Portrait work is still my bread and butter business and I use a lot of woodland locations to photograph my clients.
Whether I’m doing an engagement shoot or a horror shoot, the forest is my favourite backdrop.
There’s several ways that you can go about forest portrait photography; You can take natural soft portraits of someone with a wide aperture to blur the background, you can take a wider shot with everything in focus – showing the scale of the trees, or you could even “blend” the person into the landscape, having them pose with the elements.
Other Woodland and Forest Photography Ideas
Woodland and forest photography doesn’t just have to be all about landscapes, macro shots, or portraits.
You could focus on a single tree, capturing it in each season to show how it changes.
Another idea is to concentrate on textures. Bark, moss and lichen can all have interesting patterns that might look good as abstract images.
You can also try creative techniques like long exposures if you want to blur moving leaves in the wind or if there is a nice stream or waterfall in the forest.
There may be man-made elements like a wooden footbridge that would make a good photograph.
Seasons in a Woodland
Woodlands and forest change throughout the year. Even coniferous forests that are evergreen will have changes in different seasons – think of mushrooms in the autumn and frost or snow in the winter.
Spring is great for bright colours, new flowers, wildlife etc. Bluebells are a classic British woodland photography staple. The forest floor can be covered in them.
Summer is lush and green, but it does bring harsher light so you’ll have to work around it.
Autumn is amazing for vibrant, warm colours. All the orange and read leaves falling to the ground. Mornings are getting colder, which may lead to a bit of mist and fog. This is often a popular season for woodland photography because of the strong sense of atmosphere. It’s also a great season for mushrooms and deer as it’s rutting season.
Winter is brilliant for moody and dark forest photography, with bare branches and frost. If it snows, even better.
How to Edit Woodland & Forest Photography
Editing your forest photography is definitely a subjective thing and there’s no right or wrong, but here are a couple of tips to get you started.
Start by adjusting the white balance. Wooded areas tend to have a greenish cast due to the leaves reflecting light. Correcting that can keep colours more realistic.
You can also tweak highlights and shadows to recover details in bright patches of sky or in darker tree trunks.
Some people like to boost greens slightly or change their hue to emphasise the a specific mood. This can work well if your raw file looks a bit dull. Watch out for oversaturation though. It is easy to go too far.
I personally like to use a radial filter with a bit of warmth which helps guide the eye toward a lighter subject in the centre.
A bit of clarity or texture can highlight the bark on trees or the veins on leaves.
If you want a softer, dreamy look, you can lower clarity slightly, which can reduce contrast in details. Or you can use a technique called the Orton effect, where you blend two images of the same scene but one that’s sharp and one that’s slightly out of focus and overexposed. You end up with a photo that looks rather dreamy.
Final Thoughts On Woodland & Forest Photography
Woodlands and forests are way more versatile for photography than you first think. And part of overcoming the overwhelm of not knowing where to start is to break it down.
Start with the bigger landscapes, then look for smaller details.
Using composition techniques and working around weather & seasons will help you take way more interesting forest photos.
Hopefully the tips in the post will go a long way in getting you started.
I would love to see your results. You can follow and tag me on Instagram or use the hashtag #clicksphotochallenge to share your images.
Pin for later:
