Travel Photography - Packing Your Accessories for the Journey

Taking your camera with you on holiday provides a great opportunity to
capturing on film new landscapes, different cultures and their
landmarks.
Whether you are at a beach, rural or city location, the pictures will
provide a record of the memorable experience whilst building your
photography skills and expertise.
It is always worth learning a few new tips to improve on those skills
and make those pictures more rewarding.


Before you travel

Get to know your camera and film well before packing all your
accessories to travel with. Be sure to test all your equipment before
you leave. Once you're there on your travels you may not be able to
repeat the visit for some time.
Your film sees things slightly differently from you so get to know the
characteristics of the type of film you use. This will help in
predicting any differences, in doing so prevent any unpleasant
surprises.
After booking your travel carry out some research on the area you are
travelling to, making a list using travel guides, magazines and books
will help plan for the location you are going to visit.
Try relevant web sites, online communities and newsgroups provide more
up-to date information to get some first-hand information, travel tips
and advice on finding some scenic spots.
This will save precious time when you are there and also help with the
type of shots you may wish to take when you are there, nature pictures
of animals feeding, sunsets, historical buildings or even fireworks.
Charge camera batteries before you leave, again this saves time. Take
an extra memory card with you and clear the memory on both cards
before you leave, this will help as with the modern digital camera
holding so many pictures
you can shoot lots of pictures of the same subject. Wait till you get
home before deciding on and sorting out the good from the bad before
printing them.
Try learning some of the language. Even a few phrases can go a long
way with people as in many countries people do not expect visitors to
be able to speak their language and are pleasantly surprised as this
shows that you are taking an interest.

What to pack

Make a list of items you want to bring with you before travelling.
You're guaranteed that whatever you leave behind will be the travel
accessory you need when you are travelling.

Aswell as your camera, keep in mind the following accessories to
travel with:

Batteries, extra batteries, battery charger, memory card(s)
Film (be careful, film purchased abroad may have been stored under the
wrong conditions)
Portable storage device, external flash
Tripod (useful for low light situations or when using a strong
telephoto lens)
Power adapter (if travelling abroad)
Camera case, waterproof if going to a wet location or beach (purchase
silica gel packs from your camera accessories store to reduce moisture
further)
Underwater camera if you are travelling to a beach location (even a
small disposable underwater camera will capture great shots)
Get a wrist strap for your camera, helps against the possibility of
losing your camera.
Using a flash, as fill flash can be more helpful in broad daylight
than at night. Typically an in built camera flash
will have a range of only a few metres.
Wide-angle lens, monopod zoom lens
Purchase the best lens you can afford, these are more important than a
camera with many features.
Take as many spare parts as you can, for example: second camera body,
small pocket tripod, wide angle lens and 50 mm lens incase light
conditions are bad. You can always keep these spare accessories at the
hotel if you plan ahead for your day trip.

Filters

To reduce contrast use a neutral density grey filter to cover the
bright parts of the picture
When using filters, always take an unfiltered version of the picture
aswell (except for UV or daylight filters).
A polarising filter may eliminate reflections and enhance saturation.

Airport X-rays

On flights, never check in film with your main luggage there is the
possibility that the strong X-ray machines at airports that scan
checked in luggage may damage your film. Hand baggage would be a safer
option.
The damage can range from a lack of sharpness or a cast to severe
damage.

Well that's it, I hope some of the above advice may help in your
travel planning.
More info at www.travel05.co.uk