How To Take Great Photographs While You Travel

Travel photography

When you travel, if you either go for a vacation or just for business reasons, you can come across interesting places and people, and if you’re carrying a camera, those could turn into great memories. If you like photographing the places where you go, you may tend to overdo it and to photograph what everybody else does. Because of this, many people end up with photos that look like average snapshots. If you take your time to think a little at the composition and at some other aspects, you could return home with some great photographs. You’ll find in this article some tips that hopefully will help you to achieve this.

What gear to choose when traveling.

If your main purpose when traveling is not to take photographs then you should think of taking only the necessary gear, as weight quickly adds up and this could be a problem especially if you travel by plane. Photographers usually get carried away when choosing what gear to take with them but you should think according to your destination and planning, if you really need all those things with you.

• Camera. If you have a small compact camera and a DSLR too, you could take them both, if you have room. A good reason is that if you have a long distance to walk, a compact camera would be a lighter option.
• Lenses. The first option should be some versatile lenses like 18-70mm or more ideal 18-200mm that can provide you with a wide angle and zoom if necessary. This will be great if you can carry only one with you. If you have room for a second option, you could consider a wider angle lens, like 10 -24mm, this is a great option if you want to photograph large landmarks that are found on your travel destination. Fisheye lenses could also produce interesting pictures. On the other hand, if you want to photograph people, a good second option would be the 50mm prime lens.
• Tripod. Look for a small and light tripod that can be easy carried. It would be great to have a tripod if you visit some interesting landmarks that look great at night. This could help you get great pictures, even in a low light environment.
• Batteries. It would be a good idea to have a spare fully charged battery for your camera. It is light and you’ll never know when you might need it, especially if you find yourself visiting a lot of places and don’t have access to a charger during the day when you travel.
• Memory cards. Having more than one high capacity memory card is a good idea, especially if you don’t have somewhere to download your photos from your camera while you travel.
• Bag. You should take a good bag to protect your camera against moisture, sand and dust. It should also be light and comfortable, as you might have to walk a lot with it.

Tips for composition.

Composition plays an important role when choosing a subject to photograph. When traveling to a tourist destination for example, you have a lot of choices among landmarks, interesting places and even people. Making a good composition for your shot will make the difference between a good photograph and a snapshot, or like the ones you see on a postcard. Although they could be great, everybody has seen them before. Try something different.

The rule of thirds is one of the most important aspects in composition. Your travel photographs will look more interesting and dynamic if you try and place your subject according to this rule. It consists of dividing the frame into imaginary thirds and placing the subject on one of the intersecting lines that are used to divide the frame. This gives your main subject more emphasis and it also makes room for a second subject in your image. For example if you photograph a camel in the desert you could place it in either the right side or the left side of your frame and leave the background, which is the desert, to fill the rest of the image. This will give your composition a better balance and will make your subject, the camel, more dynamic and interesting in the context.

You could use the same rule to help you choose where to place the line of the horizon for example. This is particular useful when you photograph a landscape, like a beach scene that consists of sand, sea and sky. If you place the line of the horizon in the upper side of the frame it will give you more emphasis on the sand beach and the sea. On the other hand, if you place it in the lower side of the frame it will give more emphasis on the sky. This can make your photograph look more interesting. Try to experiment with this principle and see what the best option for your scenery is.

Different approaches.

Try different angles. Sometimes you don’t have room for the entire subject in your frame. For example, if you photograph a cathedral from close by and you have no chance to make it fit in your frame, try to shoot from an angle that will emphasize its size. Try to keep in mind the rule of thirds and leave room for other secondary subjects, like a sky background or something else.

Photo by Valentin G

You can also try and place your camera in different positions, like at the level of the ground. This could give you a more unique angle and it could make street scenery for example, or beach scenery, more interesting and this could also add more dynamics to the photograph.

In contrast with the ground level, you could try shooting from a high point, like a tall building. This will give a different perspective on a busy background that could consist of buildings or people.

Photo by Valentin G

You could also isolate a subject from its background by focusing the camera selectively. You could focus on the subject and leave the background in blur. This can be done by using a wider aperture on your lenses and focusing on a single subject. It will add an interesting effect to the photograph.

Photo by Valentin G

How to find the best things to photograph while traveling to a touristic destination.

With so many interesting things you can photograph when you travel to a touristic destination it is a good idea to do a little research to organize your time better. You could go to a touristic information point and ask them about landmarks, points of interest or even sight seeing tours which can provide a lot of opportunities for great photographs.
When you travel to a different country or even continent, you could meet a lot of different people with interesting cultures. They could also be a good subject for photography and you could try and take some close-ups if they give you permission. It’s always better to try and photograph people this way than to use zoom from a far distance. Find out if there are festivals or other cultural events during your time in that particular country. These events could provide you the opportunity to capture the cultural diversity of the place.

Try different settings.

While the common touristic points of interest could provide you with interesting things to photograph, it is a good idea to look for uncommon settings. An example could be a narrow street in an old town, or some old buildings in a less frequented area. You could also try a different approach and shoot these in black & white for a more artistic outcome.
Many travel destinations can also provide you with impressive scenery during the night. This could be either a busy city that has beautiful lights at night or even nature scenery where you can capture the reflections of the moon or stars on the ground or water. For these settings, it’s best to have a tripod with you which will enable you to shoot at low shutter speeds and low ISO settings. By doing this, you will be able to capture those beautiful details and lights.
Travel photography can be very rewarding and you could capture some great moments on your camera, but also some unique aspects of life people have in other places.

Below are some examples of travel photography

Photo by Blurry Touch

Photo by Weesam2010

Photo by Msoe

Photo by 13bobby

You may want to take a look at the following related posts:

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2- Wonderful Travel Photos By Sergio Pessolano

3- 5 Common Mistakes When Doing Travel Photography