Q3A: Which Camera Do You Use for Photographing Landscapes?

Keep it Simple

Bill Neill: From 1982 until just a few years ago, I used a 4x5 camera shooting color slide film. That is really some of the foundation of what I've done over my career. I used a Wista 4x5 metal field camera with digital spot meter and two or three main lenses. That was my kit for a long time.

I continued to photograph in 35mm format over the years, mostly where's there's a distinctive advantage over a 4x5, say with macro work or telephoto work.

Currently I'm using a Canon 1DS Mark III. I most often use my Canon 70-200mm lens and a tripod. I use one of the current models. It's a carbon 6x tripod. That's really it.

I work best when things are as simple as possible. The more gadgets and tricks I try to pull, the more distracted I get.

Keep it simple dummy, that's for me.

Audri Lanford: Is it okay to use a small format, 35 mm or DSLR equivalents for photographing landscapes?

Bill Neill: I think the DSLR full-frame cameras are your best option, but most of the current sub-full frame DSLRs are fine for landscape work, for calendars or for magazines, as long as it's not being enlarged to 20x30 or 30x40. Even then, if you capture the sharp image, you'll be fine.

Basically, the answer is yes. I don't see any limitations there. Early in my digital DSLR days I used a lower megapixel camera when photographing landscapes. This was maybe 2004 or 2005. When I try to go large with some of those images, I pay for it. You see problems with noise as well as resolution.

Since the beginning of the use of the 1DS Mark II, I can go to 30x40, and with the Mark III now even larger.

Audri Lanford: When people are photographing landscapes they often talk about wide angle lenses. Do you use them much or not?

Bill Neill: I always carry one and I find situations where I want to create a more expansive image, which is a little out of style for me, but I certainly do use that. I have a 16-35mm lens but it's probably my least used lens.

The other lens I use quite a bit is a tilt-shift 90mm lens that Canon makes. I love that and I use it often. I have a 24mm of the same type of lens, a tilt-shift lens, and I rarely use it. I guess my style is to create tighter compositions and not include wide areas.

If I'm in a place like say Death Valley or at the beach where there's not a lot of clutter and I want to get a feeling of the expansiveness of the space and those types of environments, I'm happy to shoot wide. I don't have a rule in my mind at all. I just react to what I see.

In Summary

According to Bill Neill, it's not necessarily the fanciest camera equipment that gets the job done right. Sometimes simplicity is better when it comes to photographing landscapes. And Bill usually prefers a longer lens, which will surprise many people who believe landscape photography is all about wide angle lenses.