10 AMAZING AUTUMN PROJECTS TO SHOOT

With summer behind us and winter approaching, autumn is an exciting creative stopgap. James Abbott explores some of its possibilities

- James Abbott

An eruption of colour and beauty, autumn is the natural world's final and arguably most impressive performance before the onset of the winter months. It's not that winter doesn't have advantages, but autumn is one of the most highly anticipated seasons in the photographers' calendar - and for good reason.

Beyond the warm colours that bring the landscape to life, autumn also delivers an abundance of misty mornings and more palatable golden hour times after the long days of summer. This not only makes getting out and shooting at these times more achievable, but the opportunities for fantastic images naturally increase.

One of the most impressive aspects of autumn is that it's perfect for all types of photography: from landscapes to macro, wildlife and portraits. Here, our 10 projects focus on the natural world, but this doesn't represent the full scope of what's possible think of them as a starting point for your creative autumnal adventures.

PROJECT 1

CAPTURE THE COAST

Take advantage of more forgiving sunrise and sunset times for explosive golden hour colour

At this early stage, you may be wondering why we're suggesting getting to the coast to shoot seascapes. After all, most coastal locations barely change from one season to the next, but that in itself is one of their great advantages - you can capture them at any time of year and a shot taken in autumn or winter will be virtually indistinguishable from one taken in spring or summer.

The main advantage of this time of year is that after the brutally early sunrises and annoyingly late sunset times of summer, autumn delivers a much-needed respite from photographers having to essentially wake up in the middle of the night to capture coastal sunrises. So whether you're capturing seascapes or landscapes, now is the time to take advantage of the shorter days.