How to take travel envy-inducing photographs

Natalie Roos in New York City

1. My essential travel setup consists of a mirrorless camera (Fujifilm X-T10) with an 18mm-35mm kit lens and a 35mm fixed lens. It’s light and easy enough to carry around everywhere - from a food market to a mountain trail, and these two versatile lenses are perfect for switching out between shooting landscapes or cityscapes and people shots or food. I also love having a La Cie Rugged drive with me, it’s a great way to make sure that I can immediately store all the photos I take.

2. I like to be in my travel photos, so if I’m travelling alone, I’ll take a lightweight tripod everywhere I go. I’ll take time to set up my shot before stepping in and using my phone to shoot using my camera’s Wi-Fi and mobile app. If you’re too shy to do this, I recommend looking around for a couple of travellers who are taking pictures of each other, offering to get a shot of them together, then asking them to just press the shutter release 10 times while you’re moving around in front of the camera. It takes several shots to eventually get to one great picture that’s why I enjoy having the LaCie DJI Copilot since it allows me to upload all the pictures I have taken without the need for a laptop which allows me to have the freedom to take several pictures, effortlessly transfer the entire batch and keep shooting stunning new content.

3. Before I shoot any pictures of people, I’ll ask if the subject minds being photographed. It can feel intimidating, but offering a quick smile and a “do you mind?” while pointing at the camera is easy to understand in any language. It’s especially important to remember this when shooting pictures of kids - I’ll always ask the adult with them whether it’s okay before I take a picture.

4. When shooting at night, a tripod is essential. Use whichever of your lenses that has the lowest aperture. Take your aperture down to the lowest possible setting, and set your ISO up to between 800 and 1600, depending on how dark it is. Set your shutter to stay open for 10 seconds. Set a two-second timer so that pressing the shutter release doesn’t cause your image to blur.

5. I try to shoot at golden hour - the hour just after sunrise and just before sunset. This light creates ideal shooting conditions, with soft golden hues that are great for both landscapes and portraiture. But if you’re shooting in the middle of the day you can take your ISO all the way down to around 400. In bright light you can set your shutter speed to around 125/1000. A polariser will also help you to work with bright light by filtering the harsh sunlight.

6. Great editing can really take your photography to the next level. I use Lightroom on desktop and mobile, to create a uniform grading aesthetic across all my images. You can create your own look and feel in Lightroom and save it out as a preset to add to all your images, or you could buy presets made by your favourite photographers and adjust them to suit your images. Using presets cuts down the time it takes to edit your images and helps you to create a style for your own photography.
   

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