Quick, Easy Tips for Better Travel Photos

If you haven't already, pick up the current issue of PC Photo Magazine and read the article by Rob Sheppard called "Better Travel Photos Made Easy". In addition to tips on how to improve the lighting in your travel photos; how to pack photography equipment effectively and selectively; how to ensure battery power when you need it; and how to choose memory, storage and backup hardware Sheppard also covers some helpful guidelines for composing a good travel shot. So helpful that I'd like to quote these five obvious, but often overlooked travel composition tips:

Get close. Fill up your image area with the subject, whether that means zooming in or walking closer. Travel photos too often lack impact because the main subject is too small in the photo area. Look for interesting foregrounds. Usually, you can find something with good location detail that can be used in the foreground of a larger photo: signs, architec-tural details, flowers, even people can help give a stronger identity to your image. Avoid the middle. There’s nothing wrong with having a subject or horizon in the middle of a photo if it’s appropriate to the scene. The problem comes when every photo has the same composition because the subject or horizon is always in the middle (or close to it). Put your subject off to one side or corner and find ways to create relationships with the rest of the scene. Watch skies. Bland, washed-out skies should be avoided—keep them out of the photo if possible. If you have a dramatic sky, use it in the composition and look for ways to silhouette your subject against it. You also can use a grad neutral-density filter to balance the sky with the ground. Look for people to add to the scene. Many photographers are afraid of photographing strangers. You often can include people naturally going about their business in larger compositions, especially when you use a wide-angle lens, without being too obvious about pointing a camera at them.

Sorry if that seemed a little long and preachy, but Sheppard's hit the nail square on the head. We receive tons of travel photo submissions from travelers all over the world, and more often than not it's these five elements that distinguish a photo that's selected for publication from one that isn't.