June 20, 2012 |by Candice Walsh |
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Take Advantage of Instagram!
As my career progresses as a travel writer, I’m becoming more and more aware of how important good eye-candy is. (I’m referring to travel photography, and not lingerie photos, just so you know.)
The problem is that it’s an expensive hobby and I don’t have a clue what I’m doing most of the time. But even if you’re not a seasoned photographer, you can still snap some pretty good images. Here are a few things I’ve learned.
1. Keep an eye out. On the last few outings with my friend Leila, a photographer, I found her snapping images I would never have thought of as “interesting” or “unique.” But later, when she uploaded the images to Facebook, they appeared stunning. I asked her for the secret to her awesomeness. She told me, “Don’t look at the grand setting...find something small in the grand scheme of things and make it interesting.” In other words, pay attention to the details, folks.
2. The rule of thirds. Don’t ever place your subject smack dab in the middle of your photos. Yawn! Image your viewfinder is divided into thirds. Now, place your subject about one third of the way from the top, bottom, or one of the sides. Voila! Not your average photo. You’re welcome.
3. Look for the best light. That hour before the sun sets or rises is known as the “golden hour” because it creates a stunning soft glow across the world. Have you ever taken out your camera during the golden hour? You’ll be the next Ansel Adams, I swear.
4. Get some basic photo-editing software. Honestly, some of the best photographs I’ve taken that have sparked big conversations have come from Instagram, a super cool iPhone/Android app that lets you add filters and tilt-shift to your photos. The results are can seriously be impressive, and the app is incredibly popular, so sharing is easy.
If you want great options, however, I suggest Lightroom. I often use it to make images sharper, or to fix the exposure. (Like I know what I’m doing or something.)
5. Finally, be bold. I’m a pansy when it comes to taking photos of people because I don’t want to be too obvious (generally, you should ask for permission anyway). But you’ll never take interesting photos if you’re not brave enough to jump out into traffic for that magical National Geographic-worthy photo of a unicorn galloping across the bridge. Just do it!
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photo: Candice Walsh
