How to Take Good Travel Photographs

To preserve those memories to the fullest, you want your travel photos to have crisp, identifiable images.

Difficulty: Moderately Easy

Instructions

Things You'll Need:

• SLR Camera
• Camera Accessories
• Camera Bags
• Camera Batteries
• Camera Filters
• Camera Flashes
• Camera Lens Caps
• Camera Lenses
• Camera Monopods
• Digital Cameras
• Film
• Point-and-shoot Cameras

Preliminary Concerns

1. Choose the right film. The ISO or ASA number on the film box - for example, 100, 200 or 800 - is the film speed. The higher the number, the faster the film. Faster films work best in lower light; slower films are commonly used for outdoor daytime shooting or indoor shooting with a flash and plenty of light.

2. Keep your camera ready. Keep it loaded with film and make sure the batteries for the flash are fresh.

3. Make sure you set your camera to the proper ASA or ISO setting. If you're using 400 film, set the camera to 400. This will help prevent under- and overexposure of your pictures. If your camera doesn't have a setting, use 100 or 200 film.

Framing the Picture

4. Get close to your subject.

5. Keep visual distractions away from the edges of what will be the final picture.

6. Keep good visual elements inside the picture. Bright shapes or objects too near the edges of the frame will pull the viewer's eye away from the subject.

7. Use lines in the background and foreground to enhance the photo. Horizontal lines can be calming, but they can also be static and boring. Vertical or, even better, diagonal lines can give the photo energy. Get the diagonal lines by changing the camera position, tilting the camera, or both. In landscape shots, make sure the lines draw the viewer's eye toward the subject.

8. Avoid clutter in the picture. Reframe the shot by moving the subject left or right in the viewfinder. If the background continues to be too cluttered, use a wide aperture. Using a wide aperture in the camera's aperture priority mode can throw the background out of focus so that the eye concentrates on the subject. You want to concentrate on the Acropolis, not on the Acropolis tourists.

9. Place the subject off-center.

10. Include the foreground in scenic shots. It adds a sense of distance, depth and dimension to the picture.

11. Avoid shooting into bright lights or the sun.

12. Avoid shooting directly into reflective surfaces like chrome, glass, polished wood or a mirror if you'll be using a flash. If your subject is wearing glasses, have her turn her head a little at an angle to the camera.

13. Avoid underexposed pictures by using a flash when there isn't enough light for the type of film in the camera. Make sure that your subject is well within the area covered by the flash (usually between 6 and 12 feet).

14. Hold the camera still as you take the picture. Brace your elbows against your body to minimize movement, or use a tripod.

Tips & Warnings

• ASA or ISO 100 film is best in bright sunlight. ASA or ISO 200 film is good in variable light and works well both outdoors and indoors with a flash. 400 film is ideal for extended flash range and outdoor shots.

on 11/22/2005 I get good candid shots by making a joke when I take a picture. I have a good sense of humor and I am good at one-liners.

on 11/22/2005 You can always buy some good slides or postcards of the buildings and scenery you see along the way. Pictures of the people you meet and those you travel with (and yourself on the trip) are what you can never replicate. Save your film for people.

on 11/22/2005 I recommend ASA 64 (or better yet, ASA 25) color slide film for outdoor shots. Your colors will be more vibrant and natural than with higher ASA films. Be creative with telephoto lenses and time-exposure night photography, as well.