Children inspecting the photographer’s camera, Phoenix Arizona by Russell Lee, 1942.
Photos are a great way to share your travel experiences with family and friends. Here are a few suggestions to help capture vacation memories you will treasure for years.
Plan Ahead
Before you go, make sure your digital camera is in good working order and kept in a water—and shock-resistant case. Bring two rechargeable batteries, and don’t forget the charger and relevant cords. Make sure your camera has enough memory. Packing an extra memory card is wise, as nothing is worse than running out of room for pictures halfway down the Grand Canyon.
It may be tempting to lower the resolution so you can store more pictures, but you will regret this later, as it may result in poorer-quality prints or limited prints to smaller sizes. Set your camera at its highest quality JPEG setting and get more memory if you have to. You will appreciate this when you view and print your photos after your trip.
Take Lots And Lots Of Pictures
With a digital camera, you can permanently erase the photos you don’t want. Take pictures of anything you find interesting and focus on some details, such as an attractive doorway or a colorful market, not just panoramic scenes or major landmarks. Create a visual trip diary to let your pictures tell a story. Include street scenes, interesting signs, and people you see along the way. For variety, take both vertical and horizontal pictures.
Ready For Your Close-Up?
Two photographers taking each others pictures with hand-held cameras while perched on a roof between 1909 and 1932.
Don’t make the mistake of standing too far away when taking people’s shots. You want to be able to recognize the people in your photos. Get close enough to see the expressions on your subjects’ faces. Zoom in on individuals or capture them from the waist up. Pictures are often more interesting when catching people at candid, unposed moments. In posed photos, try to incorporate some of the background into your shot. Try snapping from interesting angles rather than simply head-on.
Use Your Flash
When photographing in bright sunlight, setting your camera’s “fill” or “forced” flash is very helpful, mainly when photographing people. Brilliant sunlight often makes people’s faces look harsh, casting dark shadows under the eyes and accentuating wrinkles. The daytime fill-in flash will soften the lighting and make the images more flattering. Your family and friends in the photos will thank you!
Edit And Enhance Your Favorite Shots
When you get home, you can edit, crop, and enhance your favorites using photo editing software such as Foto Finish, Ulead, or Photoshop. Consider adding drama to your images by turning some color photos into black and white or sepia tones. Then, upload all your images to an online photo printing service like Ofoto or Shutterfly for fast and convenient prints. Finally, you can take your best snaps and use your photo editing software to create a photo calendar, make photo cards for personal notes, or email your favorites to family and friends.
Most of all, have fun with your camera!
By Valerie Goettsch, Article City, March 2005, updated March 2025.
About the Author: Valerie Goettsch publishes the digital photography website http://www.digitalphotos101.com, which features reviews of photo editing and album software and digital photo printing services.
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