Assuming they don't run when you take out the cameras, it's fun to make travel portraits of the family members or friends that you're traveling with in front of some of the landmarks that
you're visiting together. Even if (like me) you prefer to rarely make
an appearance in the photos yourself, you'll always be a part of the
photos because you shot them. Taking snapshots of your travel companions
just standing there staring back at the camera can get old pretty fast,
however, so it's important to find some way to make the experience a bit more
interesting for them and you.
One
way to change things up a bit and get some creative photos in the
bargain is to use lenses, like ultra-wide-angle lenses, that were never
really meant for portrait photography. To take this shot on the steps
of Assateague Light in Virginia, for example, I used a Sigma 10-20mm
ultra-wide-angle zoom (equivalent to 15 to 30mm on my Nikon D90 camera
body) and an extremely low angle to stretch out both the doorway and my
friend and make them both seem much taller. In
order to get his very low angle, I had to literally lay down in the
sand at the foot of the stairs and shoot nearly straight up. I also
used Nikon's "live view" feature on the D90 that lets you compose on the
LCD--a feature that I rarely use--to make composing the shot easier on
my neck.
You might also try going
the opposite way optically and using a very long telephoto lens to
photograph someone in front of an interesting background. You'll have to
shoot from farther away, of course, but the compressed feeling that a
long telephotos lens (any lens that is say, the 35mm equivalent of
300mm or longer) creates can be very eye catching. If you were to
photograph someone standing on a street corner in Manhattan with a very
long lens, for example, the compression would compact the spaces and
press your subject into the traffic and crowds behind them. Your
subjects will probably find the idea of posing a half block away more
interesting too and they will no doubt feel more relaxed by not having
to smile into a camera three feet away. (Just don't let them wander so far
away that they can escape on you.)
Whether you're shooting with
a super-wide or super-long telephoto lens, take time to pause for a moment and
show them the first few frames on the LCD. Once they see how off-beat
the photos look they'll be more willing (hopefully) to pose a bit
longer and be open to trying some of your extreme portrait ideas later
in the trip.
For this shot I used a slow-sync speed with the flash and then moved the camera side-to-side after the flash fired but while the shutter was still open. We won the little critters in a claw machine inside the Sycamore Drive-In in Connecticut.
In front of a the East Haven Lighthouse on Long Island Sound.
Entire Site Contents Copyright 2012 Jeff Wignall
An Ambitious Dogs Production In Association with Boo Boo & Mama Cat Films Please also visit my Photo Tip of the Day blog.
