A PHOTOGRAPHIC VENTURE INTO ADVENTURE

I want to preface this advice with this thought – I get asked a lot by my audience whether one should study photography to make it a career choice. My advice is this – if photography is your passion, pursue it wholeheartedly, take as many photos as you can and build up your “brand” and your portfolio. I am fully self-taught and you can be too, a few basics from reading online is enough to grasp the initial concepts, and once you understand these it’s all about practice, being self critical and learning from your peers and fellow creatives. There is not much to “study” in the way of photography, more so just evolving your style until it is at the point which people will hire you for it!

However, saying that, there are some general guidelines I can outline that might be of help:

Exposure triangle and the effect on image quality

ISO / Shutter speed / f/stop – all of these will impact the brightness of an image. In general, we want to keep ISO low to reduce image noise and get maximum quality, but there are times we keep this higher when there is little light in the scene, such as at blue hour or at night – in which case we need this higher to increase the gain on the sensor. Shutter speed ideally needs to be high enough to freeze movement and avoid camera shake. For landscapes, if you are using a tripod, you can usually get away with a shutter speed as low as you want, especially if you use the self timer function as it will reduce camera shake even further. If you are shooting wildlife, star images, moving people, you should vary the shutter speed to capture the movement or the light as needed. Lastly, F stop controls the depth and light of the image by widening the aperture of a lens. Low f number e.g. 1.4 (wide aperture) is used for shallow portraits or low light scenes, and a high aperture e.g. f/11 for landscapes to retain maximum sharpness at the expense of less light gathering ability.

Location & Conditions

The most important piece of the photography puzzle is location, and the time of day. Aim for golden hour e.g. sunrise or sunset for optimal conditions without harsh light or shadows. Look for locations that have some dramatic scenery, such as mountains, rivers, forests, lone buildings, unique structures, wildlife, flowers, insects, people, streets, your friends. Everything is a subject but find that unique angle and interesting take.

Google maps is your friend, especially satellite view and adding markers to a map so you can follow a set route. Plan your adventures concisely so that you can head to the locations for the time you want! Save your favourites you see on social media, most accessible spots have been explored so there is nothing wrong visiting and making your own unique artwork there.

Composition

Following on from the above, composition is also key and essential in creating a unique flair and atmosphere to a scene. Use leading lines, rules of thirds and centred subjects to maximise the eye movement in an image. Lead your viewer into the world you create.

Try to find some unique foreground to work with, or a new drone angle – the world is your oyster!

Post-processing / Editing

This is where the magic happens and where photographers sometimes fall short. Use some basic software like Lightroom or Capture One. Ensure a balanced image, using a calibrated monitor for accurate colours. Play with the white balance and tint to start.

Use brushes / radial filters for dramatic effect and use the colour sliders and tone curve to build your own style out.

By keeping a consistent grade to your images, you will stand out from the crowd and people will want to hire you for your unique work.

Gear

You can’t have a photo tip section without discussing gear. A sturdy but lightweight tripod is a must for any travel photographer, as you can slow down your shutter and iso for maximum quality.

Practice with a camera that you can afford, not the camera you think you need. I shot for 2 years on a basic Canon 1300D and it served its purpose of letting me learn its limitations and more importantly composing an image. Moving to a full frame then felt like cheating as it was so much faster and a lot higher resolution!

Lenses are just important as a camera, but pick something A) You will carry with you and B) focal length you shoot the most. 24-70mm full frame or 17-70mm range aps-c is perfect for most travel situations and is reasonably lightweight.

I hope this advice has been somewhat useful, be sure to drop me a message on Instagram if you would like questions answered 😊