Travel Photography Vlog

What do you enjoy most about doing Travel Photography? What first got you into Travel Photography? Burning questions, right? For us, we love the memories, capturing those moments, and learning how to get the most out of our cameras. We’ve been working hard on this blog and we thought we’d share a bit on our thoughts to these questions.

 As a group, we worked really well together in sharing our passions and interest for Travel Photography with you. We each worked on our destinations and wrote up our posts so we worked independently when required. All up, 5 posts each. When needed, we all took the initiative to help the team. Katie took the lead for the blog design, Amit organised the schedule for posts, Lisbeth came up with the creative titles, and Chris edited the final video blog. Great team! That’s a wrap! Thanks for following our blog on Travel Photography – treasure those moments when you travel!

Top 10 Travel Photography Tips

Fitzroy Falls, NSW

Ever wanted to know what some good tips are for travel photography? Here is the top 10 tips from our photography crew. 

1. Research possible destinations, this includes accommodation, living expenses, extra tour costs, laws and anything else that will get you more familiar with the destination
2. Pack light. I know I always have trouble deciding what I really need but when it comes to travel photography, only take the bare minimum. Consider what your most basic needs are whilst you are over there and leave everything else behind. This means 1 camera bag, 1 camera, 1 hard drive, 1 lense etc. The research you've already done will help you decipher these needs easily.
3. Spend 90% of your day travelling around your destination location. Take up every opportunity you get to snap a great photo. Be sure to check out a range of different destinations where you are. You never know what will be a great photograph until you find one!
4. Budget! You don't want to end up coming back broke so book cheap flights and find relatively affordable accommodation. Make smart choices when it comes to travelling overseas, if you want avoid taking transport, do it. You will be much happier with yourself upon returning home. You may find the best photograph from your destination is lying just around the corner.
5. Photograph the people. Nothing expresses a culture better than the members of it's society. Photograph people candidly, rather than in a posed nature. Try to capture people going about their everyday lives and you will find the originalities of the people of the location are revealed to you.
6. Take notes. Write down the experiences you have while away at your chosen destination. Sometimes it's the small things you take note of that will end up selling your photograph and story later. Don't be afraid to do a little people watching to take note of the people too!
7. Know your hardware and software. Only use the tools you understand. If you are just starting out you may consider a simpler, easier model of camera. You might even consider buying a DSLR without an interchangeable lense. Often times they do the job you need and will suffice until you become more confident in photographing. Also using software such as photoshop can help to enhance the quality of photos you can produce.
8. Travel insurance is essential. When it comes to overseas holidays where things can go wrong, it's best to play it safe and get insurance. So if you end up in hospital or lose your luggage to can still have peace of mind.
9. Back everything up! In this day and age there is no excuse for not having your photos backed up. As soon as you take a break be sure to back files up on another hard drive and in cloud storage on the internet. That way you never lose a shot!
10. Don't work too hard! Remember you have paid a lot to be at your destination. Be sure to take a night off to let your hair down and have fun. The memories you make while travelling stay with you far more vividly than the photos you capture and never look at again.

Have fun, stay safe and capture some stunning art work. This is a wonderful career and can be incredibly rewarding to your soul and your wallet. There is a whole world out there for you to discover!
If you want more about travel photography check out More travel photography tips from National Geographic

Mesmerising Melbourne

St Kilda

Melbourne is a city I would love to live in. If it wasn't for such volatile weather, it would be a no brainer, but unfortunately, I prefer the all round warmer climate of Sydney. Otherwise, Melbourne really has it all, amazing views, good vibes, (no lockout laws), amazing art/culture and a strong music scene. 

Despite visiting Melbourne countless times and taking hundreds upon hundreds of photos, this spontaneous snap outside Luna Park whilst walking to the St Kilda beach has to be one my favourite photos. The gradient of blues from top to bottom, the mix of silhouetted trees to the actual brown and greens contrast really well with each other. To top it all off, the poking out of the Great Scenic Railway roller coaster gives the photo well rounded variety. 

To find out more about this amazing city, visit http://www.visitmelbourne.com/

Jumping into Japan

Sapporo, Japan

Lisbeth's factual opinions about Japan:

1. One will never be bored of Japan
2. Have you seen, smelt, and tasted the food there? Amazing!
3. The culture, history, architecture, and so much more make Japan such a photogenic place for a photographer to be in
4. I love Japan

Japan is a country which I will never ever tire of. Seriously. The abundance of delicious food will always make a person like me crave the place over and over again. However, there are also the shrines with its calming and spiritual auras against the busy, lighted up streets of the cities which can make a photographer have much to capture whilst in the country. There are just so many photo opportunities the country provides. 

The photo above was taken in Sapporo (札幌) at the Sapporo Beer Museum. It houses 'Sapporo Beer', one of the most popular and oldest beer brands in Japan. As I was in Sapporo during the snow season, my camera settings had to accomodate to the difference in lighting. When capturing photos, increase the exposure compensation on the camera - it can add to the textures and stop the photo from looking grey. Also make sure to stay warm and wear comfortable clothing as capturing photos in snow is only fun when you're comfortable! Japan is truly a place for people who seek out to explore a different culture, understand the history, try scrumptious food or see spectacular views - what more could a photographer want?!

Author: Lisbeth Wong

La Tour Eiffel est magnifique

Paris – the city of lights. One of the biggest Tourist Capitals in the world and it’s largely due to the wonderful architecture of the Eiffel Tower.

I was fortunate to have been in Paris during Bastille Day (French National Holiday) and the fireworks at the Eiffel Tower were a sight to behold. But the day before, I visited the Eiffel Tower during daylight and it was equally amazing. You don’t realise how amazing it is until you are right next to it and observe the fine architecture and design behind the masterpiece.

In the Eiffel Tower, the three lookout levels, including the very top of the Eiffel Tower are a must-do experience. It’s the perfect place to get a lookout onto the whole of Paris.

My greatest treasure from visiting Paris was the fireworks on Bastille Day. The video below is priceless experience. Many people talk about how amazing the Eiffel Tower is and for photography and video lovers, it never fails to deliver.

Author: Amit Balakrishnan

The Calming Canvas of Coffs Coast.

Ever felt like getting away from the hustle and bustle of city life? Ever wanted to capture the beauty of a beach or the sun setting over a set of stables on a farm? Well  you can do it all in one day in Coffs Harbour on the North Coast of New South Wales in Australia. One of my personal favourites destinations is this seaside country community. Coffs has everything you need to capture destination photographs and nothing you don't.

Situated about halfway between Sydney and The Gold Coast this is the perfect place for a short getaway with ample amounts of great photo opportunities.

In my 4 day stay I was able to capture many wonderful things. From the beaches to the bays and the big banana, to the open farmlands and outback bush, there is too many great places to name!

I loves the fact that it is so easy to capture the feeling of this place. The picture above was taken when I found a little lookout in Sawtell as I was out one day. The harmony between the ocean and the bush in the photograph is a perfect summary of the Coffs Coast. The entire region is a mashup of country towns and coastal suburbs. The best part about Coffs is everything is pretty close to the central shopping district where most accommodation is so you're not spending hours looking for one great location.

I recommend starting at Jetty Beach and adjacent headlands. Beach shots can be a great place to start when trying to capture the essence of Coffs as many locals spend much of their time at or around the beautiful beaches around Coffs Harbour. If you'd like to know more then visit the Coffs Coast Website!  

Fabulous Fiji

Fijian Paradise

The group of 12 boarded the plane ridiculously early in rainy Sydney eagerly awaiting our paradisiacal getaway. A few hours later when we landed, it thunderstorming and morale was low, all we wanted was sunshine, cocktails and relaxing days by the beach/pool. Luckily for us, it was a passing tropical storm, and by the time we got to our hotel, the sun was shining, cocktails were being poured and we chose our spot by the pool.

Fiji is truly a tropical paradise, with countless islands with amazing beaches, the friendliest people ever and all round good vibes, one would never want to leave. I captured the above photo on a day trip to a tiny island which only took 10 minutes to walk around. I purposely tilted the photo slightly and actively tried to contrast the greens, blues and yellows most effectively with the framing of all the different elements. This shot was more about composition rather than technical specifics on the camera.

There are countless activities for one to be a part of in Fiji, with spectacular boat cruises, inflatable water parks and just the general endless fun one can get up to on a beach, Fiji really has it all. To find out more, check out http://www.fiji.travel/