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Tips for Perfecting your Vacation Pictures

7/5/2017

14 Comments

 
Picture
Taking a vacation, whether it’s on your own or with family and friends, is a happy and exciting time. There is always a memorable, funny or majestic moment to capture as you relax and unwind. Taking great photos is not a skill that comes naturally to everyone but there are a few things you can do to ensure that you have plenty of wonderful images to remember your vacation by.
Simple Photography Tips for the Traveler
  • The moments are what matters on a vacation so try not to get the people you’re with to pose too often. Instead, focus on capturing special moments between your children or between friends. You also never know when a unique moment might present itself in your surroundings so always have your camera ready. It doesn't need to be perfect, And you don't need a fancy camera!  Just remember it's the memories - but be sure to be involved in making those memories and not sitting on the sidelines.  I often take my waterproof point and shoot to the beach so I can be right there with my kids in the water and not worry about damaging my phone or DSLR. 
  • If you are looking to get some great shots of the scenery around you, it’s always best to get up early if you can. The lighting will be better earlier in the day and hopefully there won’t be as many people around. Not a morning person?  Head out an hour before sunset for that beautiful golden hour light!  This is great for mountains and beach pictures and if taking pictures of people, there’s less squinting and less likely for dark under-eye shadows!
  • Before you pack up your belongings and head out the door, become familiar with the settings on your camera. Take out your camera’s manual and have a quick read through the settings and features to ensure that you’re up to speed with what your camera is capable of.
  • If you have the ability to select the focal point (some phones have this as a setting or you tap the phone that you want to have in focus and properly lit) do this!  However doing this will lose focus and lighting on other parts of the image so you do not necessarily want to do this for scenic views.  Play around and have fun, you can always delete the ones that don’t come out the way you want!
  • Get in the images!  Even if it means a selfie or that the whole family is not in the image, be sure you exist in this vacation!  Many parents tend to hide behind the camera, your kids don’t care what you are wearing or what your hair looks like or if you are waiting to lose those last few pounds, just get in the picture.  Your kids will be thankful to have those picture to look at one day.
  • Don’t forget to take some detailed shots too. While you want to capture the scenery and be able to show others what you experienced on vacation, taking the time to zoom in on the smaller details can make for some amazing photos too.  Whether it’s a great meal that you had or the beautiful detail on a building, try not to discount those shots.  Going somewhere tropical?  Get close on those beautiful flowers, just not too close or you might not be able to focus!
  • Last of all, go home and PRINT the images!  They might not end up on the walls of your home, but we are so caught up in the digital era that we forget to print.  Think about how much fun it is to open a box and look through old pictures.  Do this for your children!  Print books or some cheap 4x6s just print!
  • Bonus Tip: Take short movies if you can!  This is a great way to capture action shots if your camera is not fast enough to capture the image without blur or taking in a huge scenic view of mountains, volcanos, beaches and more!
If you are looking to take your photography to the next level and/or learn more about your camera, please be sure to contact me!  I offer group classes several times a year and offer 1:1 or 1:2 classes as well customized to what you are looking to learn!  Find out more here.


Safe travels.​


14 Comments
Nikki link
7/12/2017 01:21:00 am

great tips!!! Especially love the reminder to take video. I don't do that enough.

Reply
olivia
7/15/2017 09:23:46 pm

love your work its all so beautiful, great tips for vacation

Reply
Ashley
7/19/2017 11:15:59 pm

I'm so glad I came across your blog post! We're going on a family vacation in the coming weeks and you just gave me all the important reminders. I especially love the tip to take videos because I always forget!

Reply
Sarah Jane
7/20/2017 08:32:00 pm

My favorite tip is "Get in the images," mostly because it is something I never remember to do! I know my children will want images with me in them one day.

Reply
Karena
7/20/2017 09:25:50 pm

These are great tips and I LOVE the image you shared at the top! So beautiful!

Reply
Amber link
7/25/2017 01:21:17 pm

Great tips! Now I just need to book a vacation! ha ha

Reply
Vanessa link
7/25/2017 10:30:02 pm

These tips are great! I love sunset beach photos!

Reply
Courtney Widener link
8/1/2017 11:03:06 pm

What fabulous tips! So sad that summer is quickly coming to an end! More reasons for me to get out there and capture some memories of our own!

Reply
Jenna
8/4/2017 03:08:45 pm

These are such great tips! I really love the sunset beach photos! Beautiful!

Reply
jas link
8/7/2017 04:31:20 pm

Beautiful memories.

Reply
MckinneyVia link
2/17/2022 06:13:15 am

Excellent article! Your post is essential today. Thanks for sharing, by the way.

Reply
Jackie Lou link
1/2/2023 02:08:25 am

Great article! Loved this post and I’m definitely pinning it to share! Thanks for the great read and ideas. Keep on posting.

Reply
Maribell link
1/2/2023 10:16:00 pm

You did a terrific job at writing it, and your concepts are excellent. This article is superb! I appreciate you giving me this knowledge. The information was both quite fascinating and very helpful.

Reply
Lhynzie link
1/2/2023 11:29:13 pm

Awesome content! Thank you for sharing your thoughts and ideas. It was very interesting and very useful content. I’m definitely pinning it to share!

Reply



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  • Home
  • Info
    • Meet Shannon
    • Client Reviews
    • FAQs
    • Classes, Mentoring and More!
  • Portfolio
    • Maternity
    • Newborn | Studio
    • Babies | 12 months and under
  • Session Information
    • The Client Experience Process
    • Sessions and Prices
    • Booking a Newborn Session?
  • Blog
  • Contact me
    • Contact
    • Sign up for Text or Email Notifications
  • Client Lounge
    • Print Guide
    • Newborn Prep Guide
    • Family Session Prep Guide
    • What to Wear