With new more affordable cameras coming out every year, the world has seen and tremendous increase in amateur photographers producing amazing images. But, how do they do that? Well, I’m going to share a secret with you. It’s quite easy. All you have to do is continue reading to find out the best travel photography tips for beginners. Ach, but don’t be fooled, I’m writing this from the point of view of a travel photographer, because that’s what I currently do. But these tips apply to any form of photography so go ahead, stay with us!
Anyhow, let’s get started with the 3 best travel photography tips for beginners, shall we?
1. The Gear
Contrary to popular belief, you don’t need the newest, gnarliest, most expensive camera to get amazing shots. All you have to do is know your camera so well that you can get the best out of it. Whether it’s your phone, a snazzy point-and-shoot or a disposable one, know your tools and you’ll work wonders! If you don’t believe me, look at all those Instagram accounts (and other websites) featuring beautiful phone photography, like EyeEm.
But if you decide to go for a DSLR, go to a store next to you and try them, see which suits you. How they fit in your hand. It may seem silly but if you aren’t comfortable holding your camera, you’ll probably won’t. Also, if you can, get a tripod or monopod. You can get quite decent ones rather inexpensive and it will save you some headaches when, for example, trying to capture that beautiful sunset and you need a steady surface for the long exposure. I’ll tell you more about my gear and maybe settings next time if that’s something you’d like to know.
2. The Money Shot
BEFORE
Do your homework. Do some research before you head out to your desired location. Much like you’d do when organising a trip, you should check the internet, guide books, ask in forums and Facebook groups for tips on best locations. Search for the best times to shoot. Specially if you are photographing touristy places. You’ll want to know when will you have a chance at photobomber-free images (pro-tip: it usually requires waking up at ungodly hours of the morning/night, but I swear it’s all worth it!).
DURING
Once you’re at the location of your dreams, don’t just take a couple straight shots. Play around, go up, get down, come close, open up, play with angles, lights and shadows, just have fun! But please, please, please, be polite to other photographers that may be there too. Oh and one of the very best travel photography tips for beginners out there, don’t forget to shoot RAW if you can. It’ll be a bigger file but you’ll be glad you did when post-processing time comes.
AFTER
There is plenty of free and premium software out there for the post processing and retouching of your beautiful shots both on the go or in peace at your Desktop. From PicMonkey to Pixlr, Snapseed, VSCO, Lightroom and Photoshop, to name a few. Whichever you choose, play around until you find your style.
I love Lightroom, and I can use it both on my Desktop/Laptop and on my phone. As for my images, i adore color-rich images with loads of detail. To achieve that look, I lower the contrast, than kill the shadows and highlights slightly to bring back detail, then add a slight curve to bring selective contrast in, et voila!
3. Have Fun
And last but not least, the mother of all best travel photography tips for beginners. The mighty, they omnipresent, the glorious…HAVE FUN! Fun is a very important aspect of photography. Without emotions images are just plain. However, if you’re enjoying yourself, the image takes a different angle. If you’re having fun you’ll be more likely to experiment, play around, thus capturing unique moments from your exceptional point of view. And, is there anything better than that?
So with the above tips in mind, go explore, go follow Wanderwings on Instagram for regular stunning shots and a very nice community, tag on Instagram your photos with #wanderphotowings for features, and practice practice practice. Oh, and if you find yourself in Rotterdam (Netherlands), go check these Instagrammable spots!
Discussion point: What is the funniest/craziest thing you’ve ever done to get that perfect shot you wanted? Go! Let’s have a chat in the comments section.
8 Comments
discoveringnina17
May 17, 2017 at 2:16 pmThese simple photography tips are very helpful to beginners (like me!). Thanks for the help and awesome pics btw! 🙂
Henar
May 19, 2017 at 7:49 amI’m happy it helped!! That’s the most important part of this I’d love to see some of your work at some point
Penelope Smith
July 31, 2018 at 6:32 amThis is some really good information about starting taking travel photos. So, I liked your suggestion about thinking about having fun. After all, photography is fun. It might be fun to go on a photo tour in an interesting place.
Henar
August 2, 2018 at 8:36 amHi Penelope,
I’m glad you found this useful! And completely agree, photography is incredibly fun 🙂 It should be the number one tip for anyone starting out! Photo tours in interesting places are the best.
Cheers,
Henar
Holly Zink
January 15, 2019 at 6:13 pmLove your blog post! I love to travel and have just begun to experiment with photography. You provided some great starting points to think about.
Henar
January 29, 2019 at 3:12 pmHi Holly,
I’m so glad you found these interesting. What has been your biggest concern when taking on experimenting with photography?
Henar
x
Holly Zink
February 1, 2019 at 7:45 pmBesides my concern on being able to commit to pursuing photography, my biggest obstacle will be trying to think more creatively and out of the box when taking photos.
Henar
February 7, 2019 at 5:05 pmOh those are very reasonable concerns! Maybe it helps to just take it easy and enjoy it as it comes, don’t put too much pressure on yourself. It helps to try to always have a camera with you, be it your phone or even a disposable one. As for the creativity part, the best you can do is have fun with it. Observe, pay attention to your surroundings and play around, try different perspectives and angles, maybe try putting your sunglasses in front of the lens for a DIY filter, just have a blast with it 🙂 can’t wait to see what you create!!