Nature Photography How To

It's nearly mid-September, so you know what that means. It means the Halloween paraphernalia has been on display at the supermarket for nearly a month already, and the kiddos are happily (?) back in the classroom, using interactive smartphone apps to track the days until Spring Break.

But more important, it means that we'll soon be enjoying Mother Nature's fall festival of fabulous foliage. Here is the prediction map you've been waiting for, courtesy of the wonderful folks at smokymountains.com.

No one can predict the timing of autumn color change with 100% accuracy, but in our experience, the Fall Foliage Prediction Map from smokymountains.com has been very trustworthy. In fact, since they began inviting users to report local conditions back in 2022, they've gotten more and more reliable.

We're big fans of autumn here at Shutterbug, and we'd like to share some tips and tricks with you. All you really need is your smartphone, but if you want to record an album full of rich fall colors, use a full-featured camera. 

Using the right screw-in photo filters in front of your lens has long been the favorite technique of pros and passionate amateurs. These two stories will get you headed in the right direction.

3 Screw-in Filters for Fabulous Fall Foliage Photography Fun

Our 5 Favorite Photo Filters For Photographing Fall Foliage

For more general how-to info, check out this story:

Maps & Pro Tips for GREAT Fall Foliage Photography

We can't do anything to mitigate the misery of winter, but we can revel in the majesty of fall. Plan a weekend trip—or a day trip—with your family and go make some magical pictures.

Share your best fall photos with the rest of us by submitting them to Shutterbug for possible publication on our Photo of the Day gallery. It's super easy. The following article shows you how:

It's Easy to Become a Published Photographer

When you post to our Photo of the Day gallery there’s a chance that your image may be featured on our homepage for all to see. The internet reaches even the most remote corners of our planet (and possibly beyond—who knows for sure?) and endures essentially forever. You may even hear from friends you haven’t seen in years, after they see your photo on Shutterbug. And they'll be saying, "Wow, you took that?"

∞ Shutterbug Staff