Photographing the most Photogenic Month of the Year (October Inspiration)

October's Photography Tips

Let the good times roll...

It’s that time of year where it becomes near impossible to avoid cliches. From puns with “fungi” to obvious topics like autumn colours, what is there to be said which hasn’t already been said? Or, more importantly what is there to be photographed that hasn’t already been photographed? Well, when we start to look deeper maybe quite a lot. 

From small unexplored macro environments featuring uniquely patterned fallen leaves to migrant species appearing in places never seen before. 

Technology too, allows us to capture the familiar in new and exciting ways. Focus stacked scenes, high dynamic range representations and pre-capture shots of split-second moments, the deeper you dive into your subject, environment and camera, the more original photos you're likely to uncover.

And if you’re looking for a starting point for that deep-dive, here are four ideas you could explore for the month ahead…  

Colourful Reflections & Complementary Colours

30 seconds f8  ISO 100

While it may sound obvious, it would also be foolish to ignore one of the most unique and magical aspects of the month ahead. The depth and variation of colour during October is simply breathtaking. These seasonal colours aren’t just reflected in our iconic landscapes like the Lakes and Scottish woodlands. They’re in our streets, parks and gardens. People too like to adorn colours that reflect the season which can create sensational juxta-positions for a street/travel photographer.  

The danger of photographing colour is including too much colour or over saturating it (in the edit). Often the less is more approach, with carefully selected palettes and/or use complementary colours that brings more punch to a photo. 

Further inspiration:  Steve McCurry is arguably one of our greatest, well known contemporary documentary photographers. Even if you’re familiar with his work it’s well worth re-exploring it with a particular focus on his use of colour and how that works in unison with his well-composed, exquisitely timed photos. 

Fungi Foray

30 seconds  f16  ISO 400 - Popular with dogs, it took a couple of years before I was able to capture these particular Fly agaric toadstools upright! 

I told you October was hard to avoid cliches! That said, now is the time to get out and capture the eclectic and magical world of fungus. I’ve often found the pursuit of good fungi shots is a bit of a race. As these fragile protrusions are so easily (and quickly) knocked over and damaged by a variety of elements including inquisitive dogs. Nature reserves with more observant visitors and restricted dog access can mean more fungi in better condition over a long period of time but so can finding less frequented spots locally. I’ve also found that many toadstools and fungi will reappear in the same area year after year, so if you miss that “perfect” shot, there’s always next year! 

Lighting can be an important consideration with this subject matter, so either a tripod (for longer shutter speeds) and/or some artificial lighting like a torch or LED light can help make that extra difference with quality. 

Further inspiration: The are a lot of photographers out there with stunning photos from the world of fungi, Guy Edwardes is certainly up there with the best   

Chasing Waterfalls 

0.60 seconds  f11  ISO 200 

Waterfalls solve that age-old question of "what to photograph in bad weather". It’s waterfalls.

Low light-levels with wet conditions equal some stunning photo opps with rushing water! Even the smallest beck can look like an Icelandic epic in the right conditions. Foregrounds are usually the trickiest consideration with waterfalls, too much or too little interest in the foreground can make or break the composition. Experimenting with shutter speed is also worth the time-investment, different scenes will work better at different speeds. 

For those super-slow water shots, you’ll want to use a Neutral Density (ND) filter, typically what’s called a big (10) stopper. 

Further Inspiration: In the world of outdoor photography there's not too many names bigger than Michael Shainblum right now, and his waterfall work is no less spectacular. 

Superstar Visitors 

1/1600  f6.3 ISO 2000 - Hoopoe feeding on a diveway in Leeds, West Yorkshire

There’s nothing like an autumnal storm for bringing exciting migrant visitors. Last year’s star bird making the headlines was the red-eyed Vireo which turned up in unprecedented numbers following a storm. This autumn the first alive Pale-Legged Leaf Warbler to ever be recorded in Britain caused quite a furore at Bempton Cliffs! 

While I don’t go chasing “star species” I do like to keep an eye on local/familiar sites for anything unusual. One of my favourites to date is a Hoopoe turning up on a driveway in Collingham, Leeds. As well as keeping up with local nature groups and social media, Birdguides and eBird can be useful for alerts on exciting species at various locations.  And of course don’t overlook our more common but no less exciting migrants either. 

If you’re going for a record shot of a superstar species, shutter speed is the most important consideration, usually 1/1000th will reduce camera shake on long focal length or zooms. If you get that all important record shot though, think about how you might create an even more interesting photo with consideration to the behaviour and habitat of the species. 

Further inspiration: For birders, twitchers and general wildlife seekers, Twitter or X still seems to be one of the best resources and up there with the best is birder Johnny Mac