Whether or not you a fan of photography at home, when we go abroad, photos are the best way to capture our holiday memories. Sometimes, it’s easier said than done to get some good pictures though. More often than not, you end up with lots of…well, boring photos of nothing much! So, take a look at these top tips for taking great photos on holiday and improve your future slide shows ten-fold…
Limit your scenery shots & shoot more faces
Stunning scenery and breath taking views are a favourite part of my holidays abroad. They set the scene and if you are like me, you will want to remember the view after you have left. In 5 years’ time however, when you go to look back at your photos, you will quickly become bored of clicking through 100 shots of mountains or a lake. It’s often the people you are with who help you create your favourite memories, so put more focus on the people you are with than the places, whether it be your kids, friends or your other half. Photos of them will bring more smiles to your face in the future!
Move in close and pay attention to details
If there is something specific that you want to capture then be sure to move in close and pay attention to the little details, otherwise you photo may lack perspective and can be overrun by the busyness in the background. This isn’t always appropriate, but you should try to identify fitting opportunities.
Share it around
If you are travelling with children, your own, friends’ kids or your grand-children, a fun idea is to provide everyone with a camera. Now depending on their age, I’m obviously not talking about a top of the range digital camera; a simple disposable will do. You won’t end up with award winning photos but it’s a fun way to experience the holiday through children’s eyes. Allow them to snap photos of whatever they think is fun or interesting and you then get the enjoyment of waiting for the photos to arrive in the post when you get home. It will serve as a fun reminder and because you can’t delete bad snaps during the trip it could produce quite a few laughs!
Add some colour where you can
If the weather isn’t playing ball and the weather is a little dreary, liven your photos up with a dose of colour. Find a colourful flower or bold street sign to include in the frame to give the photo a bit more personality.
Just like the Scouts, be prepared
There’s nothing worse than your camera battery dying in the middle of the day because you forgot to charge it the night before. So, why not think about purchasing a second camera battery that you can keep charged up and replace with the dead battery if you get struck by bad luck. In the same vein, ensure you have plenty of memory. The beauty of digital photography means the price of a photo is cheap and therefore your memory card can soon fill up; take another one with you so you don’t have to think about deleting anything until you have the chance to look at all of your photos properly once you’re back home.
Learn how to take photos in the dark
This is a tip that I personally still need to nail. When you are on holiday, your destination takes on a whole new persona at night time and sometimes you want to be able to snap your memories. The trouble is however, I often end up with blurry snaps if I take the flash off or bright, unbalanced and un-magical photos if I leave the flash on; if you’re a bit of a novice, you probably do too. Take a look at this great resource for improving your skills!
So there you have it, 6 top tips for taking great photos on holiday. Hopefully these will help you capture memorable and dynamic shots on your travels. Just to remember to have fun and have your camera to hand for those truly spontaneous moments!
