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These simple guidelines will let you capture dramatic, memorable photos of snowy vacations.

1. Get out bright and early
Getting out early on a clear day has a couple of benefits. It lets you capture pristine scenes with a positive emotional impact before they fill with people and before the sun's light becomes more difficult to compensate for. If it has snowed overnight the snow will also be fresher and more conducive to good photos.

2. Look for more color
While photos of completely snow-covered landscapes can convey thoughtful and even brooding feelings, especially when combined with overcast skies, including color can add emotional complexity, visual interest and a cheerful note. Any visually appealing object placed in the foreground or middle ground that's not white, gray or black will help.

3. Compensate for glare
Shooting snowy landscapes can be challenging from an exposure perspective and not compensating for the bright, reflective conditions can result in dull, underexposed photos. This is especially the case when searching for good exposure of colorful subjects within your shot. A good guideline is to compensate from 1 to 1.5 stops. Use a 1-stop adjustment to concentrate more on the glow of the snow and 1.5 to bring out more detail in your subject. Also, bracketing your shot by a half-stop on either side will let you choose the best final result. For digital EV (exposure value) compensation use both a +1 and +2 setting as insurance.

4. Know where the sun is
The angle of the sun's light in relation to your scene is a critical element of shooting at any time, but especially in snow-covered conditions. Shooting with the sun in front of you, even if it's not in the shot, may overwhelm your attempts at compensation for glare. Keep the sun at right angles to your shot during morning and evening hours and at an acute angle from behind you when it's high in the sky for improved scene exposure.

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Best Regards,
Gary Hendricks
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