The Photographic Process - A Guide to Better Landscapes & Street Images

Every photographer eventually realises that great images don’t begin with the click of a shutter. They start far earlier—with intention, awareness, and a willingness to revisit and refine.

The rough sketch below outlines some of my own photographic workflow, which I created for my own reference and to keep myself structured. In this article I’m pulling out just a handful of elements that consistently make the biggest difference in both landscape and street photography. This isn’t the entire process (which is important); it’s a practical selection of steps that help turn “nice” images into memorable ones.

Start With Intention: What am I Trying to Say?

Before lifting the camera, pause and ask:

• Why am I photographing this?

• What is the emotion, story, or environment I want to emphasise?

  
  

In landscapes, this might mean deciding whether the shot is about vastness, tranquility, or the drama of weather. In street photography, it could be tension, rhythm, quiet moments, or irony.

Why it matters: Intention is the anchor. Without it, every scene can look interesting to the eye when you stand there, yet the final photo lacks weight. When you know what you’re trying to say, composition becomes purposeful rather than reactive. The viewer feels that clarity.

Look For “Key Elements” Before Pressing the Shutter

My sketch highlights the idea of finding one element—something strong enough to build a composition around.

Examples:

• In landscapes: a line of wind‑shaken grass, a boulder, a tree tilting into the frame.

• In street work: a gesture, shadow pattern, or lone figure crossing negative space.

Why it matters: Photography is subtraction. Strong images often come from choosing one anchor element and letting everything else support it. Without an anchor, frames feel busy rather than alive.

Don’t Rush the First Shot—Let the Scene “Simmer”

When you arrive at a scene, resist the urge to shoot immediately.

Let your eyes adjust. Walk the edges. Notice the changes in light. See where people flow (in street work) or how clouds shift (in landscapes).

Why it matters: Most photographers capture the obvious shot first. But memorable images usually live a few minutes deeper—after the brain stops reacting and starts observing. This small pause changes everything.

Re‑Assess: Does the Shot “Earn Its Space”?

Every frame should justify itself.

Ask:

• Is this composition clean or cluttered?

• Are the elements working together or arguing?

• Where does my eye go first—and is that what I intended?

Why it matters: Editing begins in the viewfinder. By challenging each frame before you take it, you save time later and gradually raise your internal quality bar. (note - editing does not mean photoshop in this context, it refers to the selection of good images and the rejection of bad ones)

“Delete the Junk” (But Not Immediately)

Don’t delete in the field but do delete (or hide) the junk after the event. Certainly do not show everything to people and do allow emotional distance before culling.

Why it matters: Immediate deletions tend to be impulsive—based on how you felt about the shot rather than what’s actually there (it also distracts you from shooting). But keeping everything forever creates creative stagnation (and fills disk space). The sweet spot is a delayed, honest cull: keep the frames that say something; remove the ones that never will, unless you can learn something from them.

Get Critique—Real Critique

It is REALLY important to seek critique and accept it. You are not helped by people just liking your images to feed your ego - you will not improve and will be misled as to how good they really are..

Good critique answers three things:

• What’s working?

• What isn’t?

• What should you explore next?

Why it matters: Self‑editing reaches limits fast unless you are very good at it. Others notice what you overlook—both your strengths and your habits. Constructive critique accelerates growth far more than new gear or presets ever will.

Carry Lessons Into the Next Shoot

Insights should feed into the next shoot objectives. This is the engine of improvement.

Examples following review:

• If your landscapes often lack foreground interest, the next outing becomes a hunt for foregrounds.

• If your street frames feel hectic, the next walk becomes a search for cleaner lines, stronger shadows, or simpler scenes.

Why it matters: Without deliberate iteration, photography becomes random. With it, every outing becomes part of a long, enjoyable loop of learning and refining.

Final Thought:

Of course, the main thing is to enjoy it, but if you are a lazy photographer then you will only get mediocre shots. As with anything in life, if you want to get better you have to put the effort it. There is no such thing as talent (except in very rare cases), people get good through effort, practice and self scrutiny.

The full diagram includes inspiration, rules, simmering time, project thinking, and more. The complete workflow matters because photography is a cycle, not a linear path. But even focusing on just these few components—intention, key elements, simmering, re‑assessment, critique—can meaningfully raise the quality of both landscape and street images.