Challenging landscape photography

As many of you may know, I look at lots of photographs. I study them and enjoy looking at photographs. I also read a lot about photography and photographic composition. An almost universal common guideline of composition in landscape photography is a foreground element. But, what if there is nothing for us to use as a foreground element? While visiting the prairie last fall, there were many places where the view was fantastic. Wide-open spaces, and dramatic skies but the only thing in the foreground may be a tall plant with white flowers. Maybe this is why it is difficult to find many photographs of these types of areas.

There were some areas where I could find a larger element to use, such as this one with a colorful sunflower. This trip, now nearly a year in the past has inspired a challenge for me. My challenge to myself is to revisit these areas and create a project on the vastness of the open prairie. Not always with the typical abandoned structure in the frame or the ranchers riding through on horses. I can find those images all day.

Find a challenge for yourself. Experiment with it. No photographic experiment is a failure as long as you learn from it. Take the lessons learned from the challenge and apply them to the next attempt. I will cause photographic growth.