Most people carry cameras when they travel to record memories of the trip. What you photograph depends upon your interests of course, but it’s fairly common to see photo after photo of the traveling individual or couple or group, but very little about what makes the destination important. When my husband and I spent three weeks in Italy, we realized we only have one photo from the entire trip of us together!
Besides the pretty pictures – which I love, by the way – I want photos that convey a sense of place and a feel for the culture. While you look at these photos, remember what we already talking about in developing your eye, looking for texture, color, light, and so on. These photos also tell a story.
Here are a few examples of what I think makes a good travel photo.
This is a photo from Chongqing, China – the biggest city in China and one of the biggest in the world with a population of over 33,000,000 people – yes, that’s 33 million! This photo has several intriguing aspects. And at first, I thought well, it’s just a monochrome photo of infrastructure, boring. But – I couldn’t stop looking at the photo. It’s not boring. First the lines – the angles and almost parallel/perpendicular appearance. The perspective also gives you an idea of how massive things are in Chongqing. And in the bottom right you can see people. I took the photo from the bus window so it adds that interesting aspect of reflection.
So it’s a travel photo – it’s not “pretty,” I’m not in it – but it will certainly make me remember Chongqing when I look at it.
I’ve used this photo before to illustrate telling a story with your photographs. But as a travel photo it’ll be far more expressive of our experience and the differences between our country and China. So instead of just photographing pretty lakes or historic sites, photograph something that gives you a sense of place and culture.
The Battery is Retrieved!
This may possibly be my favorite photo of all-time. It conveys a sense of place and culture, certainly, with the Chinese characters. I took it in Xitang, a “water city,” not too far from Shanghai. This is like a mini-Venice and it has just appeared on the tourism radar, so we got there before it had turned completely commercial. So why do I like this? First, the Chinese love slogans and pronouncements. Second, anyone who has tried to put together a toy on Christmas morning knows that the Chinese to English translation can be confusing at best. This tells me that the people are being urged to recycle and this little box with two holes on the front is a receptacle for used batteries. But best of all, when I read THE BATTERY IS RETRIEVED I felt triumphant! I got a huge kick out of it. I thought, hooray! We have it! The battery has been retrieved! Almost like finding buried treasure.
This may be a highly personal reaction to a photo, but it tickles me and it conveys a real sense of place and of culture in a changing China.
Here’s a picture that is “pretty.” Actually, it’s gorgeous and it does convey a sense of place. I took it in Vernazza, Cinque Terre, Italy. Vernazza is one of the five hill towns on the Ligurian Sea. When I look at this photo, I am transported right back to the harbor in Vernazza, and the feeling of relaxation I had there washes over me. Definitely a sense of place.
But this next sunset photo is just as good in its own way.
Our last night in Shanghai, a city we loved. I looked out the hotel window and saw that the sun was just about to set. I grabbed the camera, aimed and shot – you know how quickly the sun disappears, so you do have to be fast. The sunset can be just as pretty in a city, silhouetting tall buildings. As a travel photo, it of course evokes this city we loved. So don’t fall into the trap of thinking infrastructure can’t be compelling.
This is the Grand Canal in Venice. The photo was taken from the bus system, which are boats called vaparettos. I had to take many photos because the boat is in motion – no stopping the currents and the bus system so I could line up a photo. This partiular photograph conveys a sense of motion, shows the wide opening and the curvature of the Grand Canal, and gives a sense of the buildings and boats. This is what I’d call a “pretty” photo but it sure conveys a sense of place! Dorothy may say there is no where like home, but I say, there is no where like Venice.
The final photograph I want to discuss is a tube station in London.
I was walking down this passageway and I don’t remember the name of the tube station (subway). I was in a hurry but I just grabbed my camera – which is always around my neck when I travel – thinking, I need a photo of the interior of a tube station. I wasn’t prepared for this photo – it surprised me! Besides evoking a sense of place and culture, I think of all the jokes about looking into the light, approaching the light. I think of the movie Poltergeist and Finding Nemo, which satirized “stay away from the light.” So this photograph makes all kinds of things go through my mind, but really, I just love the shape of it all and the stripes and handrail – those little bits of color.
I hope this has opened your eyes to how you can take interesting photos on trips that convey a sense of place and culture. Much more interesting to recall and look at than a bunch of people standing in front of each cultural attraction – but don’t forget to take some of those too!
