Travel Photography How To

We all strive to improve our photography and continually evolve our skills. But if you’re consistently disappointed in your results, it’s time to try something new. The video below from one of our favorite travel and landscape pros offers some great advice for doing just that.

Some photographers think all that’s involved is a decision to frame a scene in either a vertical or horizontal orientation. But as you’ll see in the tutorial below, there’s much more that factors into the equation. One is creative cropping, and another is whether to modify the native aspect ratio of the camera you use—which varies from one model to another.

I don’t have to light up rooms or freeze fast action very often—travel photography doesn’t usually call for that, and, besides, I really prefer to shoot in natural light. Fortunately, most of the time I can, but there are instances when a flash will make the difference in a picture by narrowing the scene’s contrast range, making it possible for the camera’s sensor to capture the details in shadow and highlight areas. Often flash is the only way for me to make a picture, as I don’t have the luxury of coming back when the light is better.

Let’s say you arrive at a gorgeous location before dawn with all the gear you need for capturing epic winter sunrise photos. You’ve got it nailed, right? Well not so fast.

One of the challenges facing landscape photographers is dealing with the wide range of tones from deep shadows to bright highlights that often exist in outdoor scenes. With this broad dynamic range, high-contrast edges are very common.

The great thing about architectural photography is that it offers spectacular opportunities wherever you live. Most folks reside near a big city, and even if you don’t you’ll find interesting buildings nearby.

You’ve probably heard the silly adage that “If the mode dial on your camera isn’t set to ‘M’ you’re not a real photographer.” While most pros would disagree, there are clearly advantages to choosing camera settings yourself.