[Gidders]

Originally Posted by Stephen

... For me the light is paramount too, it can make or break a shot...

I agree that this is very important to a good landscape shot and we only have to look at some of arneig's stunning work to see how that can make dramatic landscapes.

Originally Posted by Annette

... I think sometimes it takes careful editing and cropping to really show just what inspired you in the first place.

We had an interesting evening at our club a little while ago that demonstrates this point exactly. One member showed us a shot that he had taken. He had been driving down a lane when he saw a view, reversed up and took the shot only to be quite disappointed when he viewed it at home. He then gave the image to two of our best post processors as a challenge to see what they could make of it (with adding any Jessop's sheep or clouds) The end results were vastly different from the "out of the camera" shot. One had gone for a mono print, the other staying with colour. But the thing that both had done was enhance the subtle shaddows and highlight in the field, brought out the textures & tone in the sky and generally inproved the balance & drama of the shot, to the point where they had brought out what the guy who took the shot had seen. Not really photography some would say, but its no more than good darkroom printers have been doing for years!

Originally Posted by yelvertoft

What makes a good landscape? .... A photo taken outdoors that does not contain a specific, singular, point of interest....

One of our experienced club members always says that a good landscape shot should lead you into and through the picture. I've just had a browse through our own members shots in the rural landscape and there are some great examples of this & I hope they won't mind me linking to them to ilustrate this point.

Adey's Early Spring in The Vosges... - the snow covered wall in the foreground leads the eye to the right and then it is brough back by the road curling into the image towards the house.

Prostie's electric blue - strong diagonals lead the eye in from both sides and up the telegraph pole

Vidler's Findhorn Valley the little stream brings you in and the dark hills on the right stop your eye escaping and lead you back round.

Lifeboatman's Sunset over Llangbedrog the waves braking in the shore lead and then the headland in the distance brings the eye again.

Christine's Winter Sunset - one of my personal fav's - the water leads form left to right, snakes back to the left and finally disappears out to the right where my eye is caught by that glorious sunset.

We have soooooo much talent on this forum we only have to look through the galleries to see what makes a great landscape and, in my view, it comes down to composition & lighting.