Today’s Post by Joe Farace
“People don’t take trips, trips take people.” – John Steinbeck
Here’s a few photo tips that will help you not only make some nice memories but also make any of your upcoming trips more enjoyable:
- Don’t carry so much gear that you get bogged down in the technical aspects of making photographs and forget why you’re on vacation in the first place. You’re not on assignment for National Geographic.
- Don’t buy a new camera right before a trip. This is second worst photographic idea of the history of bad ideas. What’s the first? A photographer once asked me, “I’m photographing a wedding on Saturday and need to buy a zoom lens.” Don’t do it. Even the simplest cameras and lenses have lots of features that when you know how to use them make creating great pictures a lot easier than just guessing at what to do next.
Read the manual whenever you get a new camera and don’t be embarrassed to take it on vacation. Packing, a manual won’t take up much space and will give you something to read on the plane. I know some (cheapskate) manufactures aren’t providing manuals making you view them on-line. If you’re flight that has free WI-fi maybe you can read it on your smartphone.- Take a second, smaller, pocketable camera with you, especially for shooting at night. As Wayne Gretsky once said, “you miss 100% of shots you don’t take.” (Don;t get me started on smartphones.)
- Use your flash. When taking pictures of people turning ton he flash is one of the simplest ways to improve your people photographs. Instead of getting underexposed pictures or silhouettes your friends will pop out of the background, as will the colors.
- Take pictures in all kinds of weather. My mom used to tell me, “don’t be afraid of the rain; you won’t melt.” I’ll sometimes protect my camera with a plastic shower cap that most hotels thoughtfully provide for the benefit of the traveling photographer. But you can get the real thing if you like and they’re no expensive.
- Use your zoom lens to get closer. If you like sharp pictures skip the mostly useless digital zoom that many digital cameras features and just take a step or two closer to your subject—unless you’re at edge the edge of a cliff, that is.
Along with photographer Barry Staver, I’m co-author of Better Available Light Digital Photography that’s available new from Amazon with used copies selling at the giveaway price of around five bucks.