During the summer my camera all but lives around my neck. I wouldn’t be surprised if I have a tan line from the neck strap. It seems like there’s no end of things going on that you can photograph. But one challenge I find myself struggling with is filling my memory card with shots that all look pretty much the same.

If you share my struggle you might enjoy this video from Mark Thiessen, National Geographic photographer. Armed with a trusty point and shoot ditigal camera, he demonstrates a couple great ways to enhance up your vacation/tourist photography. As you watch, be on the look for these themes:

1. Change your perspective.One thing I notice about almost all my “boring” shots is they were taken from approximately 6 feet off the ground (my height). Think high and low to give a fresh look to your shot.
2. Get close.  Your eyes tend to see a lot more than the camera can see, and with greater detail. A scene that looks amazing to you at life-size may look only so-so as an 8×10 and even worse as a 4×6. Look at how Thiessen captures isolated details from a scene that result in memorable photographs.
3. Repeating Patterns.A tree-lined road, a picket fence or even a brick wall can provide an excellent chance to capture repeating patterns. But pay close attention to how Thiessen captures the repeating pillars in the video. Note what he does notdo. He does not simply back up and shoot them straight on. A row of pillars from one side of the frame to the other would have much less impact than his dramatic shot with curves and diagonal lines. This rule also applies to groups of people. Whenever possibe, try to avoid putting everyone shoulder to shoulder and backing up. Your subjects don’t want to look like they are in a police lineup!

This entry was posted on Wednesday, August 26th, 2009 at 4:41 pm and is filed under Tip Sheet. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. Both comments and pings are currently closed.