I am currently in Nicaragua having just finished our most recent photography tour here with 10 fabulous people. We even brought my own mother along for her first visit here and she loved it.
So I wanted to share a few images from the trip with you and some tips you can learn from them. Recently I wrote these articles:
- 5 Travel Photography Tips to Help You Come Home with Better Photos
- 5 More Travel Photography Tips to Improve Your Images
Take those tips and the following images and see how you can apply them to you photography, whether you travel or shoot near home.
Street photography
More on Street Photography
We’ve got an entire section on street photography for you to look over as well. You’ll find lots of great stuff in there.
Use light to your advantage
For more tips read: 3 Tips for Creating Spectacular Sunset Photos
Watch for unusual things
The power of observation is a good thing for you to have as a photographer. Hone your skill in this area by people watching, even without your camera. Keep your eye out for things that are out of the ordinary and unusual. Here in Nicaragua, that is easy!!
People
People photography takes practice. If you do not feel confident photographing people try testing the waters at a parade or festival. At events, people performing are usually used to having their photo taken and there are many photographers. Or join a camera club and get a friend to go with you.
Using framing in composition
Sometimes if you find a good subject try backing up and shooting through a doorway or window and framing the subject inside.
Right: After I walked through the door on the right I turned around and saw the scene through the doorway.
Shooting action in low light
Read more here: Tips for Low Light Photography
Shoot details
Play with your food
Instagram is full of photos of food but if you’re going to do this, do it well. I used to do food photography professionally and let me tell you, food photography is an art unto itself. In these shots taken for Hotel Con Corazon in Granada (our home away from home) I got an action shot of the making of the drink, the creator, and the final product.
Yes, I did drink it and it was yummy!!
This is what the hotel looks like:
Starburst
To capture a starburst from the sun read more here: How to Create Sun Flares for Effect In-Camera
Your turn
Every chance you get to go out to photograph – do it. Take photos as often as you can. I told our group the goal of the tour was to have better photos on day #14 that those from day #1. From what I heard as feedback, that seemed to be the overall consensus.
The bottom line is the more time you put into photography the quicker your work will improve and you’ll see a difference.
Don’t compare yourself to other photographers.
Look back on your images from a year ago or more and see how far you’ve come. If you see an improvement then you’re going the right direction, keep at it. In the unlikely case that you don’t – you just need to do it more often.
Happy shooting.
Cheers,
PS: After sharing this post to your favorite social media site, I encourage you to continue reading this article on Creating Depth and Dimension in your Images.
