Vacation photography tips

I'm a camera nut on vacation and often times only see the scenery through the lens of the camera. Over time I've found a few tricks to help me take better pictures to capture the memories. The most important thing is to be prepared for anything.

I usually carry a camera bag filled up with my Nikon D40x, a basic 55mm zoom, a 300mm zoom lens with vibration reduction, 200mm zoom lens, lens cleaner, extra battery and an extra HCSD card. With that many lenses I decided to get a backpack to carry it all without killing my shoulder. After much research I found a great bag from Lowepro which has a side load which makes it easy to access my camera within seconds without stopping to put it down. The bag came in handy in Europe because I could take pictures and change lenses without losing the rest of the group.

The next most important thing is lens selection. Excursions usually include some kind of travel in a vehicle which means the possibility of shooting through a window without much time to think about setting up a shot. I learned the hard way that a 55-200mm lens is a bad idea for these situations and recommend something a bit smaller to enable shots of the occasional statue or building. There is nothing worse than seeing a great potential shot and loosing it because you left the zoom lens on the camera the night before. I find that I use my smaller lenses much more than my zoom while out and about but my zoom more when I had plenty of time to set up a shot.

I tend to buy large memory cards so I don't have to worry about filling it up. I tend to take multiple photos of the same thing. While my wife finds this annoying I have saved myself a lot of grief over time when the first picture doesn't come out but the second shot is perfect. Remember that you can always delete extra shots but once the opportunity has passed you can't usually go back to take more pictures. Seeing how most of my shots are taken from a moving vehicle there is a high probability that a picture will have blur, improper framing or an object (person walking, tree or light pole) that ruins a shot. Taking multiple shots improves your chances of a great photo.

Another great tip is to follow your instincts. The best shots most times are not set up but taken on the spur of the moment. I'll be walking along and constantly looking around for a photo opportunity. While a photo of flowers can be pretty, it can also be boring so try to incorporate something else in for a bit of contrast. In some cases patience is a virtue as it will lead to a better shot. Good photo subjects usually draw a crowd which makes it hard to get a shot without a bunch of people blocking it. Sometimes simply waiting a minute is all it takes for a crowd to disperse and improve you chance of getting a better shot.

The last tip is to always check your battery charge and carry a spare. It doesn't matter how big and fancy your camera is when the battery dies.