They say you should “leave only footprints, take only pictures”—but from drained batteries to unimaginative shots, preserving your vacation memories isn’t as easy as point and shoot. To make your photo album look like a National Geographic spread, just follow the sage advice of the people who do it for a living. We’ve rounded up words of wisdom from five professional travel photographers, because your photos are the most precious souvenir you’ll bring home. Read on for the photo tips to know before you go.
1. Take classes.
A talent for photography surely comes naturally to professional nature and travel photographer Brenda Tharp, who has authored two books on the subject. Yet her best advice for aspiring shutterbugs is to take classes to build your technique and develop your creative vision. Once you know how to work that DSLR with your eyes closed, you can focus on capturing the beauty unfolding in front of your lens.
“The goal is to have the technical be second nature, to let the creative, intuitive
vision drive your compositions.” – Brenda Tharp
2. Keep shooting.
There are some pictures you know you’re going to take before you get on the plane—when you go to India, you shoot the Taj Mahal. But that doesn’t mean you have to settle for unoriginal images. U.K.-based professional travel photographer David Hobcote, whose photos have appeared in The Guardian and Daily Mail, offers this guidance: “Look at things in different ways, angles, and perspectives. Ask yourself, “How can I get the most out of what I am photographing, what is it saying to me!? How can I make it different… my own!?” When in doubt, just keep clicking that shutter.
“How can I make it different… my own!?” – David Hobcote
3. Bring the right plugs.
It’s happened to the best of us: finger on the trigger, “Say cheese!”… and the camera dies. Your digital camera or smartphone won’t be of much use with a drained battery, so never miss a shot by ensuring you bring the right plugs. “When traveling to a different country it always pays to do your research before on what power sources they have and what type of adapters you’ll need,” advises Australian travel photographer Drew Hopper. Pack an extra battery for remote locations where finding an outlet might be tricky, check which type of outlets are used in your destination, and consider investing in a universal adapter. (And if you really want to be worry-free, there’s always film.)
“When traveling to a different country it always pays to do your research before” – Drew Hopper
4. Ask for permission.
Portraits of locals make for some of the most fascinating travel photography, but not everyone wants their likeness to end up in your vacation Facebook album. Don’t know how to say, “May I take your picture?” in Urdu? According to Dave Bouskill, one half of globe-trekking duo The Planet D, that doesn’t mean you have to pass up on a great photo op; a smile is universal. “I try to interact with most of my subjects and gesture towards them to ask to take a photograph,” he explains. “Many times people are very happy to be photographed and if they don’t want to have their picture taken, I respect their decision and won’t.”
“Many times people are very happy to be photographed,” – Dave Bouskill
5. Don’t spend a fortune on equipment.
Osaka-based photographer Hideaki Hamada has three favorite cameras: film, digital, and iPhone. He takes advantage of each one’s strengths to suit different projects, but says that the quality of his work is less reflective of the quality of his equipment than of his passion for the subject.
“Cameras are merely tools for me to express myself. What matters are the process, thinking, intentions and attitude, and I believe that one must not depend on the performance of the camera itself. Such an attitude will enable you to take unique and original photos. Conversely, without it you can only take pictures which someone else has already taken, even with the most expensive, highly-functional camera,” explains Hamada. So when you’re trying to capture a once-in-a-lifetime moment, don’t sweat it if you leave your hi def lens in the jeep—just shoot from the heart.
“What matters are the process, thinking, intentions and attitude” – Hideaki Hamada
Dream it, Book it, Live it.
