Travel Photography Tips
Here are some travel photography tips to help you capture the best of your trip. The ONLY caution I would give you is not to see India only through a camera lens. Sometimes that can just objectify things and distance you from the people, animals and places you could be interacting with. Please don't waste your time in India in this way. Do put the camera away from time to time and just BE there. Having said that, following these tips will make the most of the photos you do take. And at the end, there's opportunity for you to share your best travel photography tip with the world... Travel Photography Tip #1: Saddhus
One of the all-time, greatest travel photography tips would have to be the nab the Saddhus (wandering ascetics) when they're gathered together for a major temple celebration.
I took this photos at Shivaratri (Shiva’s birthday) celebration in Kathmandu, Nepal, but these same Saddhus wander the length and breadth of the subcontinent, so who knows where you’ll meet them next? Sometimes the Saddhus ask for money in exchange for a photo, which is completely fair, so I usually give something. They are quite the characters. Travel Photography Tip #2: Don't be afraid to happy-snap!Some of my favourite photos are of those magic moments, which in India seem to occur about every five minutes. The one that first comes to mind is when I was staying in Agra and about to leave the hotel. I looked up at the door to see a cow looking in at me through the glass. I took a quick happy snap and it never fails to please me, even though the lighting is very dark, so it's not technically a good shot. It just reminds me of that magic moment, and that's all that matters. More than anywhere else on earth, be ready to snap away anytime.
Travel Photography Tip #3: Digital/Analogue or PhoneThis is related to the tip above, because you want to be ready to snap. Digital cameras and camera-phones have one major advantage and one major draw-back: size and speed. I take most of my happy snaps with my camera-phone these days, simply because it's always in my bag anyway. So it's a godsend for happy-snaps because I don't have to be playing tourist with my camera round my neck to be ready to take photos. But the downside is that it takes a while to get to the camera function, and there's a delay between the time I press the button and the time the photo is taken. This has meant many times the composition I've aimed for is messed up, since there's more chance the magic moment has passed, or people have wandered into the frame etc. So there's a balance that you need to think about between size/convenience and speed.I still love the photos I have from the trips where I have taken my quality analogue camera (I bought a good one just as everyone else was going digital), but I must admit I love the convenience of instant download to my computer which digital brings. Then again, I've never gotten around to printing any of them, so my photo album has been completely ignored for years. Ahh, the dilemmas of travel photography! if you'd like help with selecting photographic equipment that's right for you and more travel photography tips, check
Denton Images. Travel Photography Tip #4: Taj Mahal Pre-DawnThe last time I went to the Taj, I did a big-day-out from our Delhi base, leaving pre-dawn from a hotel and back by late evening, fitting in the Agra Fort as well as the Taj. To be honest, this really didn't do it for me, compared to the previous times I went when staying in Agra itself. When we'd stayed in Agra, we'd gone to see the Taj multiple times, to take advantage of the change in light. It really does show up as different colours at different times of the day, especially in photos. My pick is going in winter and being there before sunrise, when the Taj glows a magnificent blue. My favourite pic is one of the turrets at the back of the Taj, by the river, with the moon setting in the sky beside it. I love this shot, even though it's a bit blurry (I was shaking with cold). If you do go before sunrise, my travel tip (wish I knew this one before I went) is to take some nice thick socks with you. To avoid damaging the Taj Mahal, you must remove your shoes outside, however the floors are made of marble and the cold goes straight through your feet you in winter.Just a note on going multiple times though. It used to be much cheaper to do so, there was a deal where you could go more than once. Now though, the price for foreigners has gone up considerably and so multiple entries are not as affordable. Plus you have accommodation costs rather than the day trip. But if you want some awesome shots, there really is no better time than pre-dawn. Travel Photography Tip #5: Always be Respectful!Never take photos at funeral ghats, it's not a tourist attraction, it's someone's funeral! If you are on the river in Varanasi, your boatman will probably remind you, but it's easy to get carried away in the moment and want that perfect shot of something so culturally different. Just try to always remember that, though it may seem like you're encouraged to believe it at times, India is not a theme park. It's a country full of real people, even if they're often doing really theme-parky weird things like walking around naked covered only in body paint.
Travel Photography Tip #6: Look for JuxtapositionsThe magic of photography in India is that there are so many quirky juxtapositions to enrich your composition. I have one photo I love of a lady sitting selling bananas in a regional town, I can't remember exactly, but I think it was Udaipur. Behind her, an ad for Coca-Cola had been hand-painted onto the wall, it was like modern product with olde-worlde delivery. Or people home delivering computers on an ox-drawn cart. Stuff like that just screams India. I'm sure you'll come up with many more.
Travel Photography Tip #7: Specialist Photography ToursIf you not satisfied with happy-snapping and you want to really focus on photography during your time in India, I've found a few specialist photography tours which sound awesome:1. Wildlife Photography in the land of the Jungle Book (Bandhavgarh and Kanha National Parks), in May. India is famous for being the home of the tiger, and this trip is geared towards getting you great tiger photos. The emphasis of the trip is on wildlife photography, and covers two of the best national parks in India - Bandhavgarh, famous for its tigers, and Kanha, known not only for tigers but also the variety of other game (and, of course, as the inspiration for Rudyard Kipling's Jungle Book). The tiger is the trophy animal for most photographers, and you'll use a combination of jeep and elephant-back excursions to track them. But you'll also spend time seeking out some of weird and wonderful species found in these parks (you may never even have heard of them!). The guides are experts in animal behavior and know the best places in the park for sightings. They'll help you anticipate and capture action as it happens. 2. Ladakh in August 
The 12 day "Best of Ladakh" trip lives up to its name, by getting you to all the highlights of Ladakh - this includes visiting some of the best-known monasteries in the area, as well as exploring some of the most beautiful sights of this remote mountainous region. The emphasis of the trip is on exploring the wonders of Ladakh - the stunning scenery, the exotic bird and wildlife and the traditional Buddhist way of life. The trip includes the famous Manali-Leh drive, with its breath-taking views and amazing landscapes.
This spectacular photo of Lamayuru Gompa in Ladakh is by Hadynyah and courtesy of dreamstime.com 3. The Pushkar Camel Fair in November. The Pushkar Camel Fair photo tour is designed to get you up and close amidst twenty thousand restless camels and an almost equal number of animated buyers and sellers. It is chaotic, it is colorful, it is lively, it is crowded, it is maddening and it is awe-inspiring. In short, it is a microcosm of India itself. If you're interested in one of these specialist photography tours, here's how you can find out more: Have A Great Travel Photography Tip?Are you the best happy-snapper you know? Do all your friends head straight to their travel agent after seeing your photo album? Then why not share your secret? Gooooo on, just between us? Back from 'Travel Photography Tips' to 'India Travel Secrets home'
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