There is a big difference between a photograph and an oil painting when it hangs on your wall. Learn how to take the perfect landscape picture that will translate into a beautiful painting.

You could go to the store and purchase an oil painting of some place that looks pretty and it certainly may be quite attractive on your wall. However, you will not have any personal connection to that picture. Why not turn one of your own photographs into an oil painting? This will certainly be something that you will treasure.

It will be a picture that you have some type of connection to whether it was taken on a family vacation or it is the first trip you went on with your spouse. In any case, choosing to have your own landscape picture turned into a hand painted image will be something you like much more than something you purchased at a store.

Of course, to get that beautiful landscape painting, you need to take a good picture. Obviously, a poor quality snapshot will not translate well into a painting. How, then, do you get that amazing picture? Whether or not you are a professional photographer, you can get a picture you will love. All you need to know are a few simple tips.

Depth of Field

When it comes to landscape photography, understanding depth of field will be extremely important. Generally, you will want to keep the whole scene that you are photographing in focus. That’s because you don’t want to single out one focal point.

To do this, you need a wide depth of field and that means setting your camera to the smallest aperture. That actually means choosing the largest number on the aperture level on the camera. If you have a DSLR, then you can actually put the camera on the aperture priority setting that will give you direct control.

Tripods Are Important

You do need to invest in a tripod. That’s because you may find yourself shooting in low or poor light and that means keeping the shutter open for longer. If you shake the camera on a low shutter speed, the image will be blurred. Additionally, if you are photographing on rough terrain, it will be much easier to keep your balance if you have a sturdy place to set the camera.

Don’t Put the Horizon in the Center

You may think the best thing to do is put the horizon line in the center of the picture, cutting it in half. The problem is, this is just plain boring. You need to create a dominant aspect in the picture, and that means having either the sky or the ground playing a more important role.

You can think of the “rule of thirds” to make his easier. Just look through the viewfinder and pretend like there are two invisible lines that cut the picture in three sections horizontally. The two lines that cut the sections will be off-center and you should place the horizon on one of them. This will create more visual interest. Make the dominate part the most interesting part as well. For example, a cloudy, moody sky will be very interesting while a field of flowers could be more interesting than a basic blue sky.

If you follow these tips, then you can take an amazing landscape image. “There is something about getting out in nature with the challenge of capturing some of the amazing beauty that you see” (Digital Photography School) Knowing that you took that oil painting with your very own camera will make you love the image so much more.