The full moon setting over Longs Peak from the summit of Twin Sisters, Rocky Mountain National Park, Colorado. We all make mistakes and ruin our photos, particularly when we’re in a hurry and sleep deprived, as nature photographers often are. And we all try to learn from our mistakes. Sometimes the best I can do is to echo nature photographer John Shaw, who said, “I have learned from my mistakes, and I can repeat them with precision.” And sometimes I come up with a creative new mistake that I never imagined was possible. SAFE-D-WINS To Avoid Photo Mistakes To avoid repeating common photo mistakes and making new ones, I’ve developed a checklist of crucial camera settings to review before hitting that...