15 Easy Travel Photography Tips

Travel photography can be a fun and rewarding way to capture memories and document your experiences. They say a picture speaks a thousand words and your clicks can tell engaging stories about the places you visit. Fine-tuning the skill of taking great travel photos can make your memories even more special.

Our goal at Wander Smartly is to make you travel smarter and help you focus on building memories. From our first-hand experience of seeing the world vividly, we share our simple-to-implement tips on taking great photos on your travels and it doesn’t involve spending hundreds of dollars on photography equipment.

Here are 15 tips to help you take better travel photos:

Let’s understand these tips in a little more detail.

1. Focus on Creativity Rather Than Equipment

This is the biggest myth about photography I’d like to bust right at the start. You may be reading a lot of information online describing fancy travel equipment to take on your trips. You do not necessarily need expensive equipment to take great clicks on your travels. Additional equipment like a wide-angle lens or a tripod may enhance the quality of your photographs. However, creativity eats equipment for breakfast.

All you need is a good camera. Even the one embedded in your mobile phone is a great tool to leverage. I don’t like carrying around heavy equipment so I use only an iPhone in all my travels and have received many compliments for my shots. You need to tap into your creative intelligence, not your wallet, for spectacular photography.

2. Keep Your Camera with You at All Times

The camera should be your constant travel companion. I remember while taking breaks on road trips we would leave our bags in the vehicle. We’d spot a great view and I’d instantly regret leaving my phone behind. That’s just the thing about travel. It surprises you in places you’d least expect it to. And when it does, you’d wish you had your camera on you to capture the moment.

3. Research Your Destination

It’s always a good idea to read up on the place the night before your visit. I personally avoid watching YouTube videos to retain the element of surprise. Looking up the location on Instagram, though, is a potent source of information. This gives a fair idea of the kind of pictures you can expect to take. Sleeping over it can make you think of better angles and perspectives for your own photos.

4. Make Time to Click Great Photos

When preparing your itinerary for a vacation it is natural to want to cram in the maximum number of places to see in a day. While this may tick off items from your list, it also results in more time spent traveling than really soaking up the feel of a place. Rather, spend an adequate amount of time at each destination and add time for photography. Great shots are often the result of successive trials. Move around, change your position, and take pictures with patience.

5. Use Natural Light

The game of hide and seek between the sun and the clouds can add a lot of personality to your photographs. If you have the flexibility, take multiple shots of a place at different times of the day. Sunrise and sunset are great times of the day for photography. The light during these hours changes frequently and adds immense variety to your photographs.

6. Experiment with Angles and Perspectives

The trick to great travel photography is to reserve judgment, good or bad, for your photos until you’ve tried different ways to shoot a place. Try shooting from different angles and perspectives to create unique and engaging photos. This could mean shooting from a low angle, a high angle, or even lying on the ground to get a different perspective. So don’t feel awkward to get into uncomfortable positions. Take a few steps behind, climb on rocks, or kneel down for more flattering clicks.

7. Consider the Composition

Think about the composition of your shots. Use the rule of thirds, leading lines, and other techniques to create interesting and balanced photos. The rule of thirds divides the photo into 9 equal zones using 3 vertical and 3 horizontal lines. The guideline is to place your object not in the center, but in the leftmost or the rightmost grid. The 4 points of intersection of the lines can be used to place points of interest. Using the rule of thirds has been known to create balance in photos. You can enable the photo grid on your camera or mobile phone using settings.

8. Capture the Essence of the Destination

The best pictures describe the destination without the use of captions. Capture the local feel of the place. Reveal its raw ruggedness through its landscapes, people, and culture. I personally love clicking photos of the local food and beverages served in the unique style quintessential to the destination. Zoom in to get the details and zoom out for a wider perspective. Play around and have fun. Don’t worry about getting perfect shots. Let reality take over in your photos and tell stories.

9. Balance People and Backgrounds

Traveling in a group is a lot of fun as you make memories together. Capturing those moments will make you smile as you look back on the photos. One guideline to keep in mind when photographing people is to balance them against the background. You want to capture them at their best but also capture the destination in the photo. Focusing only on people will make it seem like the photo was clicked anywhere. Ensure you get a feel of the place with the people you photograph.

10. Take Candid Shots

This is one of my personal favorite tips for great travel photography. People photograph the best not when they pose, but when they’re secretly captured enjoying the moment. Keep your camera ready and sneak in a shot of your travel mates when they least expect it. Capture them when they’re getting ready to pose for a shot, when they’re rubbing their hands in the cold, when they’re sipping a drink, laughing at a joke or simply marveling at nature. Trust me, this will create heart-warming memories and make you a favorite in your group!

11. Use Complementary Colors

One way to click great portraits on travel is to balance the color of the subject’s apparel against the background. The color wheel illustrates the relationship between colors. Complementary colors are right opposites on the wheel. So if the background of the place is yellow in tone, having the subject wear blue will make for a better click than the subject wearing white or orange. Balancing colors is a great technique to click spectacular travel photographs. Use this even while capturing landscapes or monuments. For example, I try to get bright flowers in the shot while capturing a river.

12. Infuse Personality in Portrait Shots

Posing well can add a lot of life to portrait shots. Take multiple shots of the person against the background. Get the basic smiling into the camera pose first. Then have the subject look elsewhere. Have them take one leg ahead of the other and shift their weight. Turning sideways and jutting the chin out can make one look slimmer. Have them keep one hand on the hip or touch something in the background.  Step down and capture them in full length.

13. Edit Your Photos

When taking photographs focus on getting multiple shots. Edit your photos later when you have time. Experiment with filters, crop the image, adjust the brightness, or add some light. This can liven up the photo. However, remember to not go overboard with editing. Your photo should look natural even when enhanced. Use the setting on your camera or mobile phone for editing. You can consider using photo-editing software for that extra finesse and professional look.

14. Remember to Put Down the Camera

Capturing your trip in photographs is a must, but so is focusing on the moment. Spend some time without any gadgets at each place you go to, to really soak it all in. When I get drawn to a place, I take as many photos as I wish to and then I put my phone away. I spend time gazing at what’s in front of me and try to be as present as I can be. I awe at the beauty of our splendid planet and am awash with a sense of gratitude to have been there. You leave a place of yourself behind wherever you travel, and you take a piece of the place back home with you.

15. Invest in a Photography Course

Travel photography is, after all, the best way to visually remember each place we visit. With practice, we all get better, but to crunch the learning curve you can consider investing in an online photography course. Investing to upgrade your skills is money always spent well. And if you can get better shots of the incredible scenes you see around the world, it is worth every penny spent.

Travel photography is no rocket science and with these simple-to-implement suggestions, we are confident you’d be adding a lot of depth and dimension to your photographs. To derive the most from your vacation you need to disconnect from work. Read our article on balancing work while on vacation.

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