Most times when you’re on a trip, do you feel like taking a picture of someone, yourself, food, or the place, but you’re stuck wondering how to go about it? You don’t really need to be a photographer to take pictures and capture the moments and vibes during your journey.
Although you may just be bad at photography, other factors like bad weather, bad lighting, bad gear, fear, and anxiety can stop your pictures from looking good. Lack of preparation and thorough research can also be some major reasons.
But don’t worry, as a beginner, you have a lot to learn and plenty of mistakes to make, such as the different kinds of lighting and composition basics. In this article, you’ll get the best travel photography tips to ensure you keep the memory of your vacation forever.
12 Beginner Friendly Travel Photography Tips
1. Know How To Use Your Camera
While planning your trip, you should attend some photography classes, watch some YouTube tutorials, and read a few photography guides so you can know how to use the camera. During this time of learning, practice as much as you can.
If you want to take truly great photos, you have to take your camera out of its automatic mode and start shooting in aperture, shutter, or manual mode. Whenever you have time, try to read through the camera manual, then play around with the buttons and camera settings to know your camera’s limitations.
2. Focus On The Golden & Blue Hours
The Golden Hour is the first hour of light at sunrise and the last hour of light at sunset, while the Blue Hour is when the sun is just below the horizon, giving off a blue hue. During these times, the lighting is perfect for travel photography.
By now, you should know that light is very important in taking good pictures. It can take some planning, but one of the best travel photography tips for good lighting is to wake up early and stay up late to make the most of these times of the day.
Taking pictures on a sunny day might not come out well because of the harsh lighting conditions, but if there are some interesting clouds, then you can get some good pictures. If not, just scout out locations during midday and wait for sunrise or sunset.
3. Bring A Tripod
These days, you just need to travel with a lightweight tripod, especially as a travel photography beginner. This will help you hold your camera stable while you set the appropriate exposure settings.
Another good thing about using a tripod is that it will make you slow down with your photography and put more thought into each shot. Rather than just pointing and shooting, you will think carefully about where you want to set up your tripod and how you want to compose your shot.
To take better travel photography, you’ll need to invest in tripods, but if you don’t have them, you just need to find a sturdy, stable alternative, such as a rock wall or fence, but be careful cos any small shift will cause your phone screen to be shattered.
4. Rule Of Thirds
One of the best travel photography tips you can get is to follow the rule of thirds. You must have read it in the manual or heard it in the photography classes. So, the rule of thirds works by using the grid mode on your camera.
The grid mode divides your screen into 9 parts with some vertical and horizontal lines. Your job is to frame your shot in a way where your main subject is placed on one of the four points where the vertical and horizontal lines intersect.
Asymmetry adds to what makes your picture stand out, so don’t put your subject right in the middle of the shot, and don’t cut elements out of the frame. These rules might be theory, but they’ll help your pictures look better.
5. Ask People for Permission
Travel photography is also about capturing the people and not just the most beautiful sunsets and gorgeous architecture in the places you visit. But before you go around taking pictures of people, you must first ask for permission.
For shopowners, you may have to buy something first before you can ask them if it’s okay to take their pictures. This can still be tricky because some people and cultures don’t like their pictures being taken.
But if you want to get an unaware shot with the subject looking natural, then don’t make it obvious that you’re taking their pictures. Just act natural, keep your camera down by your side, point your lens in their direction, and use your zoom lens.
6. Create Depth
Most people take a photo by just raising their camera to eye level, pressing the shutter button, and moving on. This can give you good pictures, but a good travel photography tip is to create depth by changing positions and angles.
Good and well-balanced landscape photos have three layers: foreground, middle ground, and background. In landscape photography, an interesting foreground in your shot can make the difference between a good photo and a stunning photo.
Most travel photography beginners overlook the importance of the foreground, but it is what attracts the viewers to the pictures. So, give it enough thought and make it a compelling part of your photograph.
7. Frame Your Subject
A good travel photography tip is to make sure you’re taking in the entire frame and not accidentally cutting off something important. Though sometimes cutting it off from the frame can make a better picture, so don’t take this tip as law.
If you find a cool frame like an open door or window or an archway, then all you need is to wait for the right moment till someone appears in that frame to complete your visualized composition. When taking this picture, remember not to focus on only the subject.
You can also check to see if you can use something natural in the scene to create a frame inside your picture. Like looking out a window at a building, or a bent-over tree surrounding a pretty lake
8. Using The Weather Conditions
Obviously, with travel photography, you may not get the best at every location due to various factors beyond your control, like the weather. So, if it’s in the middle of the day and the sun is very high, producing harsh lighting, then consider taking black and white pictures or playing around with long exposures and filters.
If there is a bright and clear sky, but you’re not interested in taking pictures of the sky, then you can take a unique picture of the sun right at the edge of a building or a person. If it’s about to rain, then fill your frame with your subject and avoid adding the sky to your pictures.
9. Understand The Direction Of Light
There are three main directions from which the naturally available light might come, and each one of them has pros and cons that are only suitable for taking pictures of certain subjects. The front lighting gives the classic portrait look and is the most commonly used.
The side lit is more dramatic and used to accentuate textures while the back lit defines shape and is used for taking silhouette pictures. Apart from the lighting, you also need to understand the basics of colors.
This can help improve your travel photography, especially as a beginner. You can use color contrast between the background and your subject to make your main subject pop and become more interesting.
10. Do Your Research
Before you start your journey, do some research on the place you’ll be traveling to. What’s their culture like, what are the rules, is taking street photography allowed? Go through travel photography blogs about that location to learn the best places to get good pictures.
Once you get to the place, get postcards, magazines, and souvenir books to have ideas of how to take your own photos using the city’s popular landmarks. You can also get inspiration from Instagram or Pinterest.
Before you arrive at your tourist destinations, spend a few hours planning out your shot list of images you want to photograph using tools like Google Maps and social media. This will help you nail the shots you want to go, and give you more purpose and direction.
11. Move & Wander Off the Main Tourist Trail
If you want to take really good pictures, then you’ll need to move and wander around because sometimes, the best photos are those of people in their natural element. You could walk to the local market, local neighborhood, or a few blocks from the main tourist trail.
Don’t just arrive at a scene and take a shot from the place you’re standing; instead, take a few minutes to walk around and see if there is a better frame or composition. And take multiple travel photos of the same photo locations so you have lots of options when you get home to choose which is your favorite.
12. Get The Right Travel Photography Gear
For this trip, you don’t need to break the bank by getting all the latest and best travel photography gear to take good travel photographs. Use the camera you have with you; it may be your phone or even a digital camera.
You should also stick to what you can afford, and as you grow in your photography journey, you’ll know what photographic gear, like filters, flashes, or zoom lenses, is needed. For this trip, all you need is your energy, camera, and memory card.
Conclusion
Every location has its own charms, so your travel photographs should not only be good and lasting but should capture the uniqueness, characters, and qualities of the place. The picture needs to trigger memories and communicate how you feel.
So, when you arrive at your destination, be open, walk around, discover the charms of the place, and figure out what to take pictures of. Always have your camera with you, and always keep your eyes open.
Like anything worth doing well, if you want to get the best travel photography, then you’ll need to make time for it. But if you are committed and you have the energy, armed with these travel photography tips, you’ll be sure to get the best pictures on your trip.
