Chapter 5. Photographing the World
You’ve finally made it to your destination, unpacked your wrinkleable travel items, ordered room service, and collapsed on your bed in a heap. Congratulations, now the fun begins.
Once you’ve shaken off the fog of jet lag, get outside and orient yourself by taking a long walk. I usually grab copies of any guidebooks I’ve brought along, local maps, a GPS unit, a compass, and a bottle of water. Then, depending on the length of the trip, I wander for a few hours to a whole day, just getting a feeling for where things are, and how to get from one place to another.
Make note of tall landmarks that are easily visible from the ground, boundary-forming geographic formations (a mountain to the east, a river to the west, and so on) or anything else that will help you form a mental picture of your shooting location. If you’re in a city, try to get an idea for where each neighborhood lies and what it’s connected to. Later, this will help you move around without looking like you’re lost, and it will give you ideas of where interesting places might be hiding. It’ll also help you figure out what areas to avoid.
Figure 5.1. “After 20 hours of sitting on planes en route to Croatia, I just had to get out and take a walk,” says Reed Hofffmann. “It also gave me a good chance to see the area around the hotel, including this trolley stop.” (Photo by Reed Hoffmann)
If you wander around clutching maps and guidebooks, your appearance is screaming “tourist.” Either bring your camera along in an inconspicuous bag that doesn’t say “mug me,” or bring only your backup point-and-shoot camera when you’re familiarizing yourself with a new locale. And always ask at your hotel or inn if it’s safe to walk the neighborhood with camera gear around your neck. (In South America I walked out of the hotel to find a man in the parking lot across the street guarding the cars and wearing a very large gun. I figured maybe that wasn’t the right area to wander around in.)
Once you’ve gotten oriented, get out your gear and get shooting.
Different countries often have different color palettes, sets of colors they use for everything from packages to houses. Keep an eye out for these color schemes and use them to make your photos different.
Figure 5.2. “Arriving in San Jose, Costa Rica in the evening,” Reed Hoffmann recalls, “we were warned not to stray too far from the hotel. Come morning, with lots of people on the street, I felt totally safe exploring the area.” (Photo by Reed Hoffmann)
The Rules
While you’re out photographing, it helps to keep in mind a mental checklist of the “rules” of photography that will improve virtually every photo you shoot. Like most rules, sometimes these should be broken, but having them in your photographic utility belt makes for better pictures.
Look at What You’re Shooting
It may seem obvious, but one of the most common reasons for poor compositionis that people often don’t take the time to look. Before you press the shutter release, take a few seconds to look at the picture you’re about to capture. There are occasions when it’s better to rush and get something than to take your time and miss the shot, but those are rare if you’re prepared.
Figure 5.3. The different colors that people around the world use for painting and decorating can be used by you to make your photos stand out, like this one taken in Eastern Europe. (Photo by Reed Hoffmann)
Figure 5.4. Reed Hoffmann: “The first view you see might not be the best. This scene caught my eye while driving by, so we stopped.” (Photo by Reed Hoffmann)
Figure 5.5. “Later, I found an even better view.” (Photo by Reed Hoffmann)
Before clicking the shutter, scrutinize the area around your subject. While looking through your camera, run your eye around the corners of the frame and see if any distracting objects are poking into or out of the frame, or worse, sticking up from behind the head of your subject. Nothing ruins a photo faster than a case of telephone pole head.
No Cutoffs, Please
If telephone poles poking out of heads are the most common photographic composition problem then the odd amputation of body parts is easily the second. Without thinking, people often frame their photos in ways that cut off a subject’s much-needed limbs. The choices of what to eliminate and what to leave are often amusing. Trees will loom above the subject of a portrait while the person’s feet are missing at the bottom of the frame.
Figure 5.6a. Reed Hoffmann: “Sometimes the easy shots are the best. I shot this from my balcony after arriving late in the day in Dubrovnik, Croatia, and never found a better view of the Adriatic. Until the next morning, that is (see Figure 5.6b). (Photo by Reed Hoffmann)
Figure 5.6b. Reed Hoffmann: “I was grumpy when the birds woke me up early the morning of my first full day in Dubrovnik, but once I saw the view from my balcony, I wanted to thank them.” (Photo by Reed Hoffmann)
Before you shoot a photograph, take a second to make sure you haven’t unintentionally lopped off a subject’s body part.
The time of day and the weather can significantly change the way your photograph looks, so it’s important to pay attention to atmospheric conditions as well as subject placement. The times after sunrise and before sunset are often called the golden hours by photographers because of the rich, distinctive light, and some will only work during these periods. Because the sun is low on the horizon, and because it passes through a lot of our atmosphere during these periods, it becomes diffused and casts everything in a warm, soft glow.
By contrast, the light of midday is directly overhead and usually casts harsh shadows. At such times, look for subjects that take advantage of shady cover (a farmer relaxing under the outstretched boughs of a tree or a group of shopkeepers beneath a canopy).
Move for a Better Picture
If you’ve checked the edges of your frame and don’t like what you see, move around and try recomposing your shot. Too often photographers direct their subjects to move when it’s much simpler for the photographer to do so. It’s perfectly acceptable to get down on your knees to take a low-angle shot, or look for something to climb on to get a better view.
Typically, when people talk to each other they stand one to three feet apart. Yet many people back up to take a photograph, resulting in shots that are full of distracting background. To compound the problem, most point-and-shoot digital cameras come with lenses that default to the widest setting when powered up. Shooting with a wide-angle lens has the same effect as backing off even further.
Figure 5.7a. Reed Hoffmann: “You can’t get a good feel for this beautiful little town photographing it from the pier.” (Photo by Reed Hoffmann)
Figure 5.7b. “Asking if I could use the upper terrace at a nearby restaurant gave me a much better view, and allowed for an interesting foreground as well,” says Hoffmann. (Photo by Reed Hoffmann)
While we feel comfortable talking to each other from a few feet away, we end up taking pictures that look as if we were a dozen or more feet from our subject.
Moving in closer to your subject is a great compositional trick allowing you to capture more feeling and detail. This won’t work for landscapes but serves other photographic subjects well.
Figure 5.8. “Make sure that what catches your eye is what you’re capturing with your camera,” Hoffmann says. “I liked part of this scene, but what I liked is lost in this framing.” (Photo by Reed Hoffmann)
Figure 5.9. Reed Hoffmann: “Lying on the ground and zooming in on the ferns and pot let me capture with the camera what I saw with my eyes.” (Photo by Reed Hoffmann)
Using a Wide Angle
Sometimes your subject demands a wide view, the sun setting on a marshland, or a shot of a tree and a blue boat come to mind.
A wide-angle lens can capture a lot of what’s going on, and it’s the right choice when you want to include a great deal of background.
Since a wide-angle lens can take in so much, you can use it to create eye-catching photographic compositions. Think about composing your photo so that your subject is close to the lens and something important is in the background. It’s an effective way to force perspective that can make an otherwise dull picture visually striking.
Figure 5.10. “The blue boat in the foreground and the tree above it made for a natural vertical with a wide-angle lens. Waiting to click the shutter until two people walked under the tree gave the picture even more visual interest,” Hoffmann says. (Photo by Reed Hoffmann)
Figure 5.11. “I wanted to photograph this friendly cat with a wide angle to keep the scene around it in the photo,” says Hoffmann. “It was perched on a wall, though, so I had to prefocus the lens and hold it above my head to make the shot.” (Photo by Reed Hoffmann)
Using a Telephoto
Some photographs need a more concentrated approach, calling for a telephoto lens. Not only are telephotos good for capturing far-away objects, but also details of objects, signs, parts of buildings. Even portraits of people often look best when you use the magnifying power of a telephoto.
Figure 5.12. Reed Hoffmann: “This guy had a great way of looking out from under the brim of his hat. I used a telephoto to reach in and capture that.” (Photo by Reed Hoffmann)
Improving Composition
One photographic technique to keep in mind is the rule of thirds, a simple composition tool that lends itself to making creative pictures.
Too often people plop their subject in the middle of the frame, which works fine when you’re looking at someone with your eyes, but frequently results in a terribly dull picture.
The rule of thirds separates an image into nine squares by dividing the area with two horizontal and two vertical lines. The idea is to center your subject on one of those intersecting lines.
Figure 5.13. The Rule of Thirds is more of a guideline than a rule, but it works well for people trying to learn new ways to compose. (Photo by Reed Hoffmann)
A tip from art school: An image is often more compelling if the subject touches two sides of the frame. This is an extension to the rule of thirds.
Figure 5.14. The LCDs of some cameras, like that of the Nikon Coolpix seen here, display an overlay of grid of lines to help you with framing. (Photo by Reed Hoffmann)
Some cameras have a rule-of-thirds composition mode that overlays this grid (figure 5.15) on the LCD. This helps with composition and is also a good way to make sure your camera is level when you’re photographing a landscape, a building, or any subject with horizontal or vertical lines.
Figure 5.15. “I wanted to keep the focus on the flowers in this market,” Hoffmann says, “yet retain the market feel. Using a wide-angle lens at f/4.0, and getting right on top of the flowers, let me do that while keeping the background elements soft, so they don’t distract from the scene.” (Photo by Reed Hoffmann)
Experimenting with Lenses
If a subject seems dull through the viewfinder, it needs an alternate approach. Using a wide-angle lens when you’re shooting portraits, or a telephoto when you’re tackling landscapes, might be exactly what’s require to give your shot more interest and vitality
Always look for alternate ways to capture a scene. Everyone goes to France and takes essentially the same photo of the Eiffel Tower—trying to make it look like a postcard. Instead, always be on the lookout for new perspective or a new approach to liven up a stale treatment.
Preventing Rain from Washing Away Your Photos
Coping with bad weather comes with the territory when you’re a travel photographer. The way to make the best of a rainy day, or a snowy one, is to plan ahead. When it comes right down to it, pictorially speaking, there isn’t any such thing as lousy weather. Certain weather has distinct photographic advantages and possibilities. Cloudy days have fewer problems with contrast caused by bright light and dark scenes in your photo, which is something most cameras don’t handle well. Rainy or wet weather makes colors more saturated and makes the roads look clean.
Keep in mind that world-renowned photographer Henri Cartier-Bresson was most famous for a photograph he took of a man jumping over a puddle.
Figure 5.16. If rain’s a part of your trip, then make it part of the story of your trip. (Photo by Reed Hoffmann)
Figure 5.17. When it’s raining, learn to relax, like Rolf Gestalter of Bremerton, Washington, did while on a photo trip to Costa Rica. (Photo by Reed Hoffmann)
Figure 5.18. This pretty shot of boats on a beach wouldn’t have been possible on a bright, sunny day. Sometimes the soft light works to your advantage. (Photo by Reed Hoffmann)
Dress for Success, Safety, and Health
Figure 5.19. You have to think about taking care of your gear and yourself when working in bad conditions, like these in Fiji. (Photo by Reed Hoffmann)
Figure 5.20. If your umbrella’s working, you’re more likely to be a happy photographer. (Photo by Reed Hoffmann)
Keeping You and your Gear Dry
Every photographer has his or her own technique for dealing with inclement weather. It’s OK for professional-level camera gear to get a bit wet, but nothing likes to get soaked.
A can of compressed air will blow raindrops off of your lens without leaving smudges, but remember you can’t take compressed canisters on the plane with you; you’ll have to buy them locally.
If your packing went according to plan, you’ve got some rain gear, a few plastic bags, Ziploc bags, and a pack towel in your suitcase. If you missed a few items, this would be a good time to head to the local grocery store for a box of garbage bags. Three holes is all it takes to turn a garbage bag into a poncho; a superb hooded poncho can be fashioned from a few garbage bags and duct tape.
A disposable diaper makes a wonderful water-absorbing tool, great for soaking up huge amounts of water. You might get funny looks using one on your camera gear, but you’ll prevent a costly repair bill.
Some photographers swear by umbrellas (especially the large “golf” ones, but I find those to be a too big and unwieldy if you don’t have an assistant). The more MacGuyver-ish photographers even concoct ways to attach umbrellas to tripods for hands-free, dry-as-a-bone photography.
Figure 5.21. A little thought and some time in the workshop turned this old flash bracket into a handy way to mount an umbrella to a monopod. (Photo by Reed Hoffmann)
To protect your gear from dust, sand, and wet, use freezer-weight Ziploc plastic bags. One trick is to take a two-gallon bagand cut a hole in the bottom just large enough to get the front of a lens through, then tape the bag to the barrel to hold it in place. Reach into the bag’s opening to use the gear or zip it closed when not using.
Camera bags like Lowe Pro’s AW series are excellent for weather protection because they come with built-in rain covers.
Figure 5.22. A little ingenuity can go a long way when it’s raining. (Photo by Reed Hoffmann)
Some point-and-shoots and SLRs can be placed inside waterproof camera housings developed for scuba divers. While I’ve never used one under water, I’ve found them great for high-moisture environments such as downpours and on kayaking trips. SLR-sized cases usually cost a fortune, so I stick with ones for my compact travel cameras.
Shooting in Cold Weather
Cold weather presents its own set of challenges. Rain turns to snow, and water turns to ice. Cold weather can hurt your performance, and I’m not talking about your ability to go on a long walk; batteries don’t do well when they get cold. When the temperature drops, it affects the chemical reaction inside your batteries; consequently, they run out of juice when you need them the most.
Most pros keep a few extra battery packs at all times. In the cold weather we keep them stashed inside our jackets, close to our bodies’ natural furnace. As a battery pack dies from the cold, we swap it with one tucked in a warm inner pocket and keep shooting. The good news: When you put the cold battery into a warm pocket it slowly comes back to life, allowing you to keep shooting with that one, usually by the time the replacement battery conks out.
Another issue that plagues cold-weather photographers is condensation. When a warm camera is brought to the cold, the moisture on the lens and body begins to condense, forming dew-like layers of moisture on your lens and viewfinder.
Figure 5.23. Dressing for the cold and using large battery packs, like this one by Digital Camera Battery, lets you concentrate on making photos, not staying warm and trying to keep your gear working. (Photo by Dick Whipple)
Never, and I mean never ever try to warm up a battery by putting it in something like an oven or on top of a radiator. The battery will explode.
Several companies, notably Quantum Instruments (www.qtm.com) and Digital Camera Battery (www.digitalcamerabattery.com), make external battery packs that you can wear under your cold-weather gear, and that tether to the camera via a cable. With this solution, it’s possible to shoot nearly all day in the cold.
The only effective solution is to leave the camera gear outside long enough for the temperature to equalize, but that often means overnight. If you don’t have a rental car with a trunk (in a place where your gear won’t get stolen) or some other way to safely store the camera outside, your only choice is to continually wipe the condensation off the camera. And then you’re back to the baby diapers.
Figure 5.24. Many beautiful photos can be made in cold, foggy weather, like this atop Grouse Mountain in Vancouver, BC, Canada. (Photo by Reed Hoffmann)
Nothing makes me grumpier than the aggravating cycle of continually donning and removing my gloves so I can take photos in the cold without my fingers falling off from frostbite. Luckily, I spend a lot of time in camping and hiking stores, and I’ve picked up a few pairs of gloves over the years with fold-down finger flaps that are secured by Velcro. These gloves, and mittens, have fingertips that flip out of the way, allowing me to tweak all the tiny buttons on my camera while exposing my fingers to the elements for the shortest time possible.
Working in the Heat
Hot weather can wreak havoc with sensitive electronics, and with your body too. If you’re photographing in a hot location, be sure to keep all of your photographic gear out of the sun.
Remember that the interior of a car in the summer can reach temperatures well over 100 degrees, high enough to cause your electronics to fail, and sometimes high enough to melt plastics. And the LCD screen on the back of your camera that displays the photos doesn’t like the heat, either. You’ll know your gear is getting hot when the displays start to conk out or become unresponsive.
Figure 5.25. The desert can be a great place to make pictures, but avoid overheating yourself or your gear. (Photo by Reed Hoffmann)
The best way to prevent camera heatstroke is to keep your gear out of direct sunlight and out of hot, confined spaces. Fortunately, the risks of high temperatures are less severe now that people shoot with digital cameras; film hates the heat. I vividly remember a photo shoot in the Nevada desert where I drove around with a cooler full of ice, and my camera bag in a Ziploc bag inside the cooler, to prevent ruining my images.
Figure 5.26. Hot weather can lead to good sunsets, like this one seen from a port city in Malaysia. (Photo by Reed Hoffmann)
Figure 5.27. There’s nothing wrong with taking a break to sit in the shade. Who knows, you might even get a picture out of it. (Photo by Reed Hoffmann)
Advanced Photographic Challenges
If you have the basic composition skills, there are certain subjects that are hard to photograph poorly. But there are also many tough-to-shoot subjects, such as sunsets, landscapes, and environmental portraits. The following sections discuss some of the tools, techniques, and approaches that will help you handle the more challenging photographic subjects.
Figure 5.28. Reed Hoffmann: “To get this sunset over Badlands exposed properly, I underexposed what the meter told me and used the LCD on the back of the digital camera to get it just right.” (Photo by Reed Hoffmann)
Shooting the Sun
Sunrises and sunsets have their place in the pantheon of photography—their presence in a picture evokes both emotion and the passage of time. The problem with photographing the sun, however, is that it’s extraordinarily bright.
The light meter inside your camera functions as a thermometer that measures brightness instead of heat. When you point your camera at a subject the light meter evaluates the brightness and darkness of the photo you’re about to take and sets the camera’s shutter speed and f-stop accordingly.
The problem is that most light meters are sensitive to very large areas of brightness, such as the sun. When a large portion of the viewfinder is filled with a bright area or object, the meter sets the exposure as if the entire image were bright. Anything less bright will appear to be a silhouette.
Generally speaking, the more expensive your camera, the more accurate your light meter will be. This is a key point because automatic exposure settings depend on the accuracy of the light meter. Expensive professional cameras split the incoming light into different areas and evaluate each area individually, which prevents something like a bright sun in one corner of your picture from ruining the overall exposure of your photo.
Figure 5.29. Many of today’s cameras offer various metering options that are well worth taking the time to explore. Even some of the compact cameras offer options such as this one with its center button that enables several ways of metering for your photo. (Photo by Reed Hoffmann)
Most meters focus on the center of the frame. Consequently, if you want to take a photograph in which the foreground is properly exposed and the sun appears as a bright spot in the sky, first point your camera at something that is not the sun or illuminated by intense sunlight, and press your shutter release half-way down. Then, without letting go of the shutter release, reframe your shot to include the sun, and press the shutter release all the way down. This will force the camera’s light meter to measure the nonbright area of the image and set the shutter speed and f-stop based on that meter reading—resulting in proper exposure of the darker foreground area. This technique works well for any shot in which one area of your image is much brighter than another, and you want to ensure proper exposure of the darker area.
Figure 5.30a. This is how the meter in the camera read the scene at Yosemite Falls. (Photo by Reed Hoffmann)
Figure 5.30b. Forcing the camera to underexpose a full stop darkened the surrounding trees and let the clouds and water stand out. (Photo by Reed Hoffmann)
Water World
At least 70 percent of the earth is covered by water, so it’s no wonder that water often ends up in photographs. Water, as well as glass, chrome, and other shiny surfaces, reflects light coming toward it. A tool called a circular polarizer is a filter that can be attached to the front of a camera lens to modify the way light enters the lens. If you turn it just so it will eliminate the reflection, allowing you, for example, to photograph water without a mirror image of the clouds and sky above.
Figure 5.31a. This picture was shot without a polarizing filter. (Photo by Reed Hoffmann)
Some photographers insist on using circular polarizers any time a body of water pops into the frame, but that seems too dogmatic to me. Like any tool, a polarizer is best used sparingly and when called for.
Circular polarizers work well with other reflective surfaces too, allowing you to photograph through a window instead of just capturing a shot of yourself in front of the window. They’re also good for skies because they can be used to increase the contrast between sky and clouds.
Figure 5.31b. The same picture shot with a polarizer. The sky looks darker and the light brown stems stand out more dramatically against it. (Photo by Reed Hoffmann)
Figure 5.32a. Polarizers can also be used to reduce glare and reflections. In this photo, no polarizer was used, and the reflections are obvious. (Photo by Reed Hoffmann)
Figure 5.32b. With a polarizer filter attached, the reflection is gone. (Photo by Reed Hoffmann)
Water is the archenemy of most electronic equipment, doubly so with salt water. With the exception of some water-resistant cameras, water should be kept away from your photographic gear. Use clean, dry cloths to wipe down your gear if it gets exposed to salt water, followed with a wipe-down from a slightly damp cloth (water only) and then another dry rub.
Remember to treat water like a subject; positioned properly it can define an image, but if it takes up too much of the frame it can drown out everything else.
Waterfalls are a special subset of water photographs. Shoot them, or any moving water, at a slow shutter speed with your camera on a tripod; the result is a dreamy scene with magically flowing water.
Figure 5.33. Slow shutter speeds can create the feeling of motion, like this shot of a stream at 1/15 second. (Photo by Reed Hoffmann)
Shooting with a Long Exposure Time
Figure 5.34. This 66-second exposure was done on a tripod in the middle of the night during the Leonid Meteor shower, in Missouri. The meteors didn’t show up, but the moon silhouetted against the tree still made a nice photo. (Photo by Reed Hoffmann)
The Sporting Life
The running of the bulls in Pamplona, the Tour de France finish line in Paris, the Olympics—some sporting events are worth a trip in and of themselves, and they’re perfect opportunities for sports photography.
One of the best things about photographing sports is that so much is happening. Team sports have jerseys with vivid colors, there is often fast action, and there’s usually plenty of lighting available—few sports are played in the dark.
The most common mistake in sports photography is improper shooting distance. Most of the great sports shots are up close and personal. When you watch a game on television, glance at the sidelines now and then. When a ball goes out of bounds, you’ll notice a group of people who scurry out of the way of the action, cameras in hand. These sports journalists have access to the field, and photograph with long telephoto lenses. They’re also down on the field because sports photography shot from a bird’s-eye view is rarely interesting. Try to do the same. Bring your telephoto lens to a sporting event, and get as close to the action as you can.
That’s not to say that a good wide-angle lens won’t bring home the bacon. Some wide shots, especially in events such as marathons with numerous competitors, can really be brought to life with a wide-angle lens.
When shooting fast-moving sports, you can choose whether you want a blurred image or freeze-frame by how you adjust the settings on your camera. Many people shoot sports with a fast shutter speed, freezing the image in place, but the resulting picture can feel static and devoid of action. A freeze-frame shot works perfectly for a basketball slamdunk or the moment when one of the Pamplona bulls tosses someone into the crowd. But it doesn’t work as well for car racing.
Blurry shots convey motion, but if there’s nothing but blur the photograph loses all meaning and becomes abstract. It’s a great idea to make sure that something in a photograph is in focus, and that should be the athlete’s face or the object that’s the center of attention.
Figure 5.35. A telephoto lens and good autofocus system will help you get more worthwhile sports photos. (Photo by Reed Hoffmann)
Figure 5.36. Wide-angle lenses can also be used effectively with sports, but always look for a unique perspective. (Photo by Reed Hoffmann)
Pan your camera—move it horizontally—when taking a photo to create background blur while keeping the subject in focus. For a good pan, simply set the camera to a slow shutter speed, point the camera directly at the moving subject and turn your body to track the action while you press the shutter release. Moving the camera will blur the background, but if you can keep the center of your viewfinder on the moving subject, the subject will be sharp.
Figure 5.37. Panning means shooting at a slow shutter speed while following the subject with your camera. If you get it right, you should have some sharpness in the subject, with the rest of the scene a blur. (Photo by Reed Hoffmann)
Be very safety conscious if you’re going to participate in the sport you’re photographing. If you want to shoot rock climbers, take courses at your local climbing gym, for example. Don’t get in the way of the athletes or you can hurt them, or yourselves.
Figure 5.38. When shooting on vertical surfaces—whether rock, ice, or a building—make safety your priority, and always safety-tie your cameras and lenses. (Photo by Reed Hoffmann)
Making Panoramas
In the days when film ruled the earth, panoramic cameras were either bulky medium-format devices or systems that used multiple frames of 35mm film to produce a single super-wide image.
Today, even most digital point-and-shoots have a panorama mode that enables photographers to shoot multiple frames that they later stitch together using photo software to create a panoramic image. The pictures from these cameras can look strange, since each frame is exposed differently; more expensive cameras try to match up the exposures while the images are being saved to the digital media card.
Figure 5.39. This panorama shot at Glacier National Park was stitched together from five frames. (Photo by Reed Hoffmann)
Succeeding at Safari Photography
Figure 5.40. Giraffe and baby sharing a quiet moment together. (Photo by Bill Durrence)
Figure 5.41. While on a safari, don’t forget to also acquaint yourself with the local people. (Photo by Bill Durrence)
Photographing Animals
Even if you’re not on safari, you’re likely to encounter animals during your travels. Animals make terrific subjects and they’re often more agreeable to photographic intrusions than people are. It’s usually best to photograph them at their eye level (this works well with children too).
Figure 5.42. Not all wild-animal photography has to be done in the wild. This shot of a coyote was taken through a fence at the Arizona-Sonora Desert Museum outside of Tucson. Careful choice of background and use of a zoom lens makes it look as if it was shot in the wild. (Photo by Reed Hoffmann)
An animal portrait is best when it shows the animal in its environment, giving a sense of place, experience, and action (Figure 5.43). It’s one thing to see a photograph of a bull grazing in a field, but another to see him running toward the camera. Naturally, your own safety, and the safety of the animal, should always be your first concern.
Figure 5.43.
Sun shining between tall buildings produces shafts of light most any time of day that can be visually striking in photographs, while glass structures can function like giant reflectors (Figure 5.44, next page). Watch for the contrast between light and dark, and the dramatic interplay of light, to create powerful images of cities and people.
Figure 5.44. It would be only natural for a visitor to New York City to go home with a photo of Trump Tower, considering the popularity of the TV show “The Apprentice.” (Photo by Reed Hoffmann)
Capturing Cultural Icons
When traveling in foreign countries, you’ll be surrounded with icons of culture and heritage. Look for the features that make regions unique—the lochs of Scotland, the canals of Venice, the castles of Spain.
When photographing these locations, pay attention to what’s in the background of your picture. Take care to eliminate anything that distracts from the ambiance of the shot. A modern car among windmills in Holland clashes with the old world atmosphere you’re trying to capture.
On the other hand, that may be exactly what you’re after; a shot of people dressed in traditional ceremonial garb while chatting on cell phones captures a cultural event at the same time it illustrates the changes in that culture’s traditions.
Figure 5.45. Power lines and a satellite dish certainly take away from the quaint feel of this old European town. (Photo by Reed Hoffmann)
Shooting Indoors
When traveling, you’ll often find yourself photographing inside buildings, frequently under artificial light. The light indoors is both dimmer than outdoors, and it’s a different color. Every light source gives off a different tone: Fluorescents are greenish, tungsten light is yellow, and so on. When shooting film, you’d use either an indoor or outdoor film, depending on where you were photographing, or your pictures would end up looking like an old TV with the color adjustment out of whack.
In the digital era, you simply change the white balance of your camera to match the type of light. Check your manual, most cameras use a standard set of symbols to signify the different lighting types.
Figure 5.46. With digital cameras you can change white balance with the flip of a menu item. You can even create a custom white balance for the particular light in which you’re shooting. (Photo by Reed Hoffmann)
Bring a tripod if you’re going to shoot inside buildings. Lower light levels in most indoor spaces call for a slower shutter speed.
Many professionals carry high-end lenses, with aperture settings in the f-1.2 to f-1.4 range, specifically for shooting indoors under low light. A lens with a 1.4 f-stop lets in twice as much light as one that’s f-2.8. An f-1.4 lens can make all the difference when you’re handholding a shot, but want to avoid a blurry image—because the amount of light it takes in enables you to use a high, movement-freezing, shutter speed.
Figure 5.47a. This old city street is shot with a daylight white-balance setting. The streetlights make it appear too yellow-orange. (Photo by Reed Hoffmann)
Figure 5.47b. The image should have been shot with the incandescent white balance setting, giving it this look. In this case, however, the photo was shot in RAW format, allowing the photographer to later make the change to incandescent. (Photo by Reed Hoffmann)
Taking Pictures of People
Photographing people can be nerve-racking to the inexperienced, but it can also be rewarding. Some people have no problem approaching strangers and politely asking to take their photograph; for others it’s extremely difficult. (Regardless of the category you’re in, always ask permission to take someone’s picture. Even if you don’t speak thelanguage, gesturing to your camera and then to the person while smiling is usually all it takes.)
Figure 5.48. Using a fast lens with a wide aperture keeps the background out of focus so it’s not distracting. (Photo by Reed Hoffmann)
Once you’ve been given permission, your best path to a good picture is to make your subjects comfortable. If you speak the same language, even a little, ask about their life. Most people will be flattered you asked, and talking with you will put them at ease. Such times often turn into ideas for great photographs. “Did you know,” they might ask, “that this house has the oldest flour mill in Ireland?” and off you go to photograph someone using a piece of history.
Always look as if you’re comfortable with your camera gear and know what you’re doing, even if you don’t. No one wants to have their photo taken by someone who is fumbling with buttons and wasting time. Let your subject participate, even if you don’t want the photograph they’re suggesting; shoot it first and suggest another pose afterward.
The best photographs of people are what I call “environmental portraits”—pictures of people doing what they do for a living or for fun, in the environment in which they do it. Begin with a wide-angle lens, and then experiment with portraits and abstracts using a longer focal length lens to isolate parts of the action.
Figure 5.49. A stop in a small mountain town for lunch resulted in a nice photo and a memorable meal. Friendliness goes a long way in opening doors to people’s lives. (Photo by Reed Hoffmann)
Figure 5.50. Spending time learning about someone’s job may also get you permission to take a few photos. (Photo by Reed Hoffmann)
As you shoot, ask questions about what your subjects are doing and let them show their world to you. You’re much more likely to get a good shot when someone’s passionately involved in work.
There are no rules about whether your subject looks at the camera or away from it. Experiment, compose a variety of shots, and see what works. But pay attention: The best photograph often presents itself just as you’re putting away your gear, and your subject relaxes.
Studio photographers may take dozens, or even hundreds, of pictures in an effort to get a subject to relax. During the first few clicks of the shutter, people being photographed are often nervous. As you shoot they become less self-conscious and loosen up. Inevitably, the best shots are made near the end of a shoot.
Figure 5.51. Try a close shot for a change of pace, if your subject is comfortable with it. (Photo by Reed Hoffmann)
Figure 5.52. Snake charmers in India are out there to make their living; paying them a modest fee for photos is more than fair. (Photo by Reed Hoffmann)
A studio photographer friend once told me that he likes to “fix” something on the clothes of the person he’s photographing. He’ll remove a stray hair or adjust a collar. This tells his subjects that he’s is trying to make them look good. It doesn’t always work. Some people don’t like to be touched, but others find it reassuring and it relaxes them.
With so much to photograph, it’s a challenge to keep from shooting everything on your trip. You’ll be astounded at the opportunities around you if you look. Shapes, colors, motion, activity, and people are everywhere. Keep shooting pictures and keep experimenting for the best travel photography ever.
Figure 5.53. It’s a big, beautiful world out there. Keep your eyes and, more importantly, your mind open to the possibilities. (Photo by Reed Hoffmann)
