Kyoto Autumn Foliage Spots Recommended by a Landscape Photographer Here we asked Yuka Hoshino, a landscape photographer living in Kyoto, to introduce temples and other architectural sites in Kyoto that she would like to visit during the autumn foliage season. However, the combination of architecture and scenery is a difficult subject to photograph well, even for photographers. For example, if you try to capture both the interior and the view from the window in one photo, the interior may be completely dark, or conversely, the view from the window may be completely white. This is where Adobe®︎ Lightroom®︎ (hereafter referred to as “Lightroom”), an image processing software that can be used on both PCs and smartphones, comes into play. Mr. Hoshino also uses Lightroom to adjust images, mainly for brightness and color processing that cannot be handled at the shooting site, to create stunning photographs. Let’s take a look at some of Mr. Hoshino’s recommended buildings and landscapes, and how he uses Lightroom to finish his photos.
Shooting Autumn Foliage Photos and Finishing in Lightroom To take beautiful autumn foliage photos, it is a good idea to take photos at different brightness levels, compositions, and angles, even in the same location, and if using a zoom lens, to take photos at both the wide angle and telephoto side. When you look back on your shots later, you may discover advantages that you did not notice at the time of shooting. After shooting, Lightroom comes into play. If the picture is well taken, adjusting the image to the level of “make-up” will result in a vivid picture that will leave a lasting impression on the viewer. Also, if the composition is good but the brightness of the photo is not, using Lightroom to “fix” the image will bring back the impression of the scene that was captured when the photo was taken. Below, Mr. Hoshino will use his own work as a subject to explain the temple, the situation at the time of shooting, and the finishing touches made possible by Lightroom. We can get a glimpse of what photographers pay attention to, how they shoot, and how they finish their work. We hope you will use this as a hint for your own shooting and finishing.
Yanggokji Temple – Scattered autumn leaves floating in the water at the temple where Hanatemizu originated – Camera: Nikon Z7 II
Lens: NIKKOR Z 24-70 f/2.8 S
Shutter speed: 1/25 sec.
Aperture value: f5.6
Exposure mode: Aperture priority auto
Exposure compensation: -1.0 stop
ISO: 800
White Balance: Sunny day ＜Mr. Hoshino’s comment
Shooting conditions:.
Yanggok-ji Temple is known for its “Hana-Tesui” (flower hand-watering ceremony). It is said that this temple was the first to use the name “Hana-Tesui” (flower hand-watering). Visitors can enjoy the floral hand-watering here and there in the temple grounds. The theme of this photo is “scattered autumn leaves” floating in the hand-watering basin. I wanted to capture the moist atmosphere of a rainy day, and used a PL filter to suppress the shine caused by the rain and to bring out the colors of the autumn leaves. I was worried about camera shake because I used a PL filter in a reasonably dark environment. Therefore, I used Lightroom to adjust the brightness and took darker pictures (faster shutter speeds). The tour of the temple follows the route indicated on the temple grounds. In the first part of the tour, you will visit the temple, and in the second part, you can enjoy the autumn leaves spreading in the sky. A “PL filter” is a black-colored filter attached to the lens of a camera. It has the effect of suppressing reflections on the surface of the subject, and can be used to express realistic colors and textures of the subject, and if used on the surface of water, it can clearly show what is under the water. However, there are some disadvantages, such as the fact that the filter itself is black, which slows down the shutter speed. Finishing in Lightroom
I wanted to make the scattered autumn leaves in the center of the image stand out from the state in which they were photographed. The overall lack of saturation was compensated for by setting “Profile” to “Vivid,” and then focusing on the scattered autumn leaves, I set the brightness to an appropriate level. Finally, I darkened the surrounding area to create an effect that brings out the scattered autumn leaves. STEP1 Change the base of coloring to “Vivid” for vivid colors In the default settings of Lightroom, the “profile” that serves as the basis of coloring is “Adobe Color. Although this is a versatile profile, if you want to bring out more color in a photo of autumn foliage, for example, you can use a different profile. Profiles such as “Landscape” and “Vivid” are suitable for landscape photos. STEP2 Brighten the portion of a dark shot Sometimes, depending on the situation at the time of shooting, a dark shot may be taken on purpose. Since I was worried about camera shake, I intentionally set the shutter speed to a fast shutter speed by setting the camera darker to avoid camera shake. Lightroom cannot fix a shaky picture, but if the picture is a little darker, Lightroom can make sufficient adjustments. STEP3 Darken the surroundings to accentuate the scattered autumn leaves Lead the viewer’s eye to the part of the photo you want to show. In fact, many photographers use this technique. One of the most common methods is to slightly darken the periphery of the photo. This technique takes advantage of the fact that people’s eyes naturally gravitate toward bright areas when looking at photographs and paintings. In this work, there are scattered autumn leaves in the center of the picture that I wanted to show in particular, and I thought that by darkening the surrounding area, I could more effectively direct the viewer’s gaze to the scattered leaves.
Shojuin ~ capturing the boar’s-eye window and 160 ceiling paintings at the same time ~ Camera: Nikon Z7
Lens: NIKKOR Z 14-30 f/4 S
Shutter speed: 1/30 sec.
Aperture value: f11
Exposure mode: Aperture priority auto
Exposure compensation: -3.0 stops
ISO: 400
White Balance: Sunny day ＜Mr. Hoshino’s comment
Shooting conditions:.
The heart-shaped window is called an “inome window. Although the word “heart” may remind one of Western culture, “inome” is a traditional Japanese pattern. This “inome” window and the cute ceiling paintings are very popular, and visitors line up to take pictures in turn. As one of the visitors, I was rushed to take pictures, so I took a series of pictures in a hurry. If I took pictures in the horizontal position, there would be a lot of white areas outside the porch. Therefore, I took a vertical shot to increase the proportion of the ceiling painting. The exposure was set to match the scenery outside, so the indoor areas appear dark, but the brightness can be recovered with Lightroom, so I did not worry about it. The visit to Shojuin is to have sweets in the main hall, followed by a tour of the guest hall with its inome window. Finishing touches in Lightroom:.
The indoor exposure was intentionally taken dark because the outside scenery would be blown out of the image. For this dark indoor scene, “Auto Correction” was applied, and then fine-tuning was done. For the ceiling painting, which I wanted to make brighter, I used “Linear Gradation” to brighten the image. STEP1 Applying “Vivid” and “Auto Setting” Looking at the photo before adjustment, I felt that the autumn leaves were not vivid enough. Also, because the exposure was set to the autumn leaves, the interior of the building appeared dark. I would like to adjust each of them. The vividness of the autumn leaves can be restored by changing the “Profile” to vivid. It may seem difficult to adjust the brightness, but once you apply the “Auto Settings” in such a case, you will be glad to know that it will show you the direction of adjustment. STEP2: Adjusting brightness and color saturation. Therefore, adjust the brightness manually. If the brightness is adjusted too much, it will affect not only indoor but also outdoor foliage. Finally, the ceiling was adjusted in the next step to give the overall impression of brightness. STEP3: Brighten the ceiling appropriately Finally, the ceiling should be brightened to properly show the ceiling painting on it. By using the partial correction function to brighten the ceiling, we were able to properly show a very luxurious space with a boar eye window, autumn leaves reflected in the window, and a lovely ceiling painting.
Arashiyama Yusai-tei ~Lighted autumn leaves and reflections seen from the round window~ Camera: Nikon Z7 II
Lens: NIKKOR Z 14-30 f/4 S
Shutter speed: 8 sec.
Aperture value: f11
Exposure mode: Manual
Exposure compensation: -2.7 stops
ISO: 200
White Balance: Sunny day ＜Mr. Hoshino’s comment
Shooting conditions:.
The illuminated autumn leaves seen through the round windows are a sight to behold. What makes them stand out even more is the reflection on the shiny polished desk. Tourists lined up next to the desk to capture this scene, and behind them were double and triple lines of people waiting for their turn. In addition to this “Round Window Room,” the building is also popular for its elaborate presentation, including a “water mirror” that reflects the nature of Arashiyama and a restroom with a goldfish tank. When photographing the round window, I laid a handkerchief on the desk to avoid scratching it, placed the camera on top of it, and used a slow shutter speed (using release). I also used a PL filter to bring out the colors of the autumn leaves and to reduce the exposure difference between the real image of the round window and the false image reflected in the desk. Finishing in Lightroom
The key to this photo is the bright autumn leaves seen through the round window and the reflection on the desk. I matched the exposure to the autumn leaves and used Lightroom’s finishing touches to brighten the image so that the interior of the room is vaguely visible. To emphasize the vividness of the autumn leaves, saturation was also increased. Finally, the brightness was increased only in the reflection area to create a more impressive photo. STEP1 Emphasize the vividness of autumn leaves The stronger the impression of vivid autumn leaves, the more they are beautified in our memory. This is probably one of the reasons why we feel that the colors should have been more vivid when we look at the photo later. If you feel that the colors are not vivid enough, you can change the “profile” to make the photo more vivid. Please give it a try. STEP2 Adjusting the overall brightness If the room is dark, the silhouette is too strong, so make the room bright enough to vaguely see the shoji screens and the ceiling. If you make it too bright, the impression of the autumn leaves seen through the round window will be weakened, so the key is to make it bright enough to see the interior, but not too bright. STEP3 Brighten only the desk with the reflection. Therefore, I used “linear gradation” to brighten only the desk area to clearly show the similarity drawn by the reflections.
Zempuji Temple ~ brilliant autumn leaves against the hazy landscape of rain fog~ Camera: Nikon Z7 II
Lens: NIKKOR Z 24-70 f/2.8 S
Shutter speed: 1/50 sec.
Aperture value: f/8
Exposure mode: Aperture priority auto
Exposure compensation: -1.7 stops
ISO: 400
White Balance: Sunny day ＜Mr. Hoshino’s comment
Shooting conditions:.
Nishiyama Zempuji Temple is home to the nationally designated Important Cultural Property “Taho-to” and “Daigensho Myoo-axe” as well as the nationally designated natural monument “Yuryu-no Matsu”. From the spacious precincts, you can see the cityscape of Kyoto and take pictures of natural scenery. Here, the autumn leaves are placed in the foreground and background with the roof of the hall in the background to create a sense of depth. It was raining that day. I wanted to express the fantastic beauty of the hall and the autumn leaves in the rain fog, so I took pictures while soaking wet. However, when I took the pictures, the red autumn leaves in the foreground were dulled by the large difference in exposure between the foreground and the background, and the rain fog, which was beautiful to the naked eye, was too white to be a work of art as it was. Nevertheless, the data was solid (since it was shot in RAW), so I made adjustments in Lightroom and was able to reproduce the image as it was at the time of shooting. Finishing in Lightroom
A distant scene in the rain or fog often does not turn out the way you expect it to. This is because there is a mixture of conflicting elements in the expression, such as the hazy appearance due to rain and fog and the autumn leaves that need to be clearly shown. This work was at a disappointing level when it was taken, but after adjusting it in Lightroom, it beautifully reproduced the image at the time of shooting. STEP1 Use “Auto Setting” to adjust the brightness to an appropriate level I wanted to adjust the brightness to an appropriate level while preserving the atmosphere of the rain fog. I tried the “automatic setting” and got an image that was quite close to what I envisioned, so I fine-tuned it. I also used “Remove Haze” to make the distant scenery appear a little clearer. STEP2 Compensate for the hazy atmosphere of rain fog We want to create a hazy atmosphere while balancing the adjustments made in STEP1. There are several adjustment methods, but here I used the “Tone Curve” to lift the shadow edges and pull down the highlight edges to express this atmosphere. STEP3 Making the foliage in the foreground appear more vivid Finally, I made the foliage in the foreground, which I felt was insufficient, more vivid. The image is that of a bright autumn leaf in the midst of a hazy, rainy scene. This adjustment also creates a sense of perspective between the autumn leaves in the foreground and those on the mountainside in the distance, giving depth to the photo.
Shorinji Temple ～Lighted autumn leaves and Japanese umbrellas that evoke elegance～ Camera: Nikon Z7 II
Lens: NIKKOR Z 24-70 f/4 S
Shutter speed: 1/13 sec.
Aperture value: f/5.6
Exposure mode: Aperture priority auto
Exposure compensation: -2.0 stops
ISO: 800
White Balance: Auto ＜Mr. Hoshino’s comment
Shooting conditions:.
The temple is also popular for its hanatamizu (flower water ceremony). We visited during the “Autumn Viewing” period when the maple trees in the temple were changing colors. There are collaborations of Japanese umbrellas and fox masks with autumn leaves here and there in the precincts of the temple. On this day, I started taking pictures when it was still light in the evening, and eventually the lighting up of the temple, which I was looking for, began. In the evening when the sky was still blue, there was little difference between light and dark, so I was able to capture both the scenery outside and the Japanese umbrellas that were lit up. I changed the camera’s white balance setting from “sunlight” to “auto” to preserve warmth, and hand-held the camera with a negative exposure compensation to prevent the blue of the sky from becoming washed out. Finishing in Lightroom:.
The lighted Japanese umbrella was shot very dark so that it would not be blown away by the white light. Normally, this would be considered a failure, but by shooting in RAW and making full use of Lightroom, you can turn it into a great work of art. STEP1 “Automatic setting” that sets the brightness just right If the white is blown out, it cannot be fixed even with Lightroom adjustments, so in scenes like this, I often shoot to avoid blowing out the white. In particular, if the Japanese umbrella, which is one of the important themes of this photograph, is blown out white, the work will be ruined. For this reason, I took the picture very dark, but Lightroom adjusted the brightness as expected. STEP2 Darkening the too-bright part of the Japanese umbrella Let’s leave the overall adjustment of the photo for now, and adjust the part of the photo that bothers me. First, the white Japanese umbrella on the left is too bright. The light from the back of the umbrella makes it difficult to see the butterfly pattern. I used the “brush” function of the “Mask” function to adjust that part of the image. STEP3 Make the illuminated autumn leaves bright The illuminated autumn leaves look a little lonely compared to the glossy and vivid Japanese umbrella. Therefore, the presence of the autumn leaves looks a little dimmed. Let’s make the foliage more colorful to properly enhance the two main characters, the autumn leaves and the wagasa umbrella. This was also done using “Brush” in “Mask”.
Disenchanted Hermitage – A temple with a beautiful garden that is open to the public during the autumn foliage season – Camera: Nikon Z9
Lens: NIKKOR Z 14-24 f/2.8 S
Shutter speed: 1/6 sec.
Aperture value: f/8
Exposure mode: Aperture priority auto
Exposure compensation: -1.0 stop
ISO: 800
White balance: Natural light auto ＜Mr. Hoshino’s comment
Shooting conditions:.
The main hall, tea ceremony house, and garden are open to the public only during the fall foliage season. The small gate that appears after entering a narrow alley surrounded by bamboo fences creates a secluded atmosphere. The garden is covered with beautiful moss, and in late autumn, scattered autumn leaves cover the moss, creating a colorful scene that can only be seen at this time of the year. The dry autumn colors on a sunny day are beautiful, but on a rainy day, the wet scattered leaves give off a different kind of beauty. I used a wide-angle lens to create a sense of expansiveness in the garden. However, because it was dark and I was shooting handheld, I did not use a PL filter. This resulted in the autumn leaves looking shiny, but I judged that this was within the range of adjustment in Lightroom, so I continued shooting. Finishing in Lightroom
This is a beautiful shutter shot of the wet, bright red scattered autumn leaves laying on the ground. I took this photo without using a PL filter, which can suppress shine, so the shininess was noticeable on the scattered autumn leaves. To suppress the shine, I increased the saturation of the red tones, and conversely, calmed the green of the grass. STEP1 Brighten the dark areas and slightly darken the bright areas Although the atmosphere before adjustment is tasteful, here I decided to make it a little brighter. Most of the brightness can be adjusted using the adjustment items in the “Basic Correction” panel. The entire image was brightened, but the back of the image became too bright accordingly, so the adjustment was made in the opposite direction. STEP2 Increase the red density of the autumn leaves and reduce the shine of the bamboo grass We want to make the shine of scattered autumn leaves less noticeable. Here, I adjusted the hue of the red tones and suppressed the brightness of the green tones to reduce the shine of the bamboo leaves, which are more noticeable. STEP3 Balance the brightness of the foliage in the upper right corner of the photo The last thing I was concerned about was the brightness of the foliage in the upper right corner. When looking at the entire photo, the upper right maple leaf is brighter than the others, which makes it easier for the viewer’s eyes to focus on it, resulting in an imbalance. By slightly reducing the brightness of the upper right maple leaf, I was able to create a calm autumn foliage photo of a garden.
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