in July/August 2005
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resources_travelwisdom.html
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The Little Book of Travel Wisdom
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45. Just One More Day
Plan your itinerary to include a day at home of restful regrouping before racing into a frenzy of work and activity. "I try not to tell people the exact time of my return so that I can ease back into life at home," says international development worker Kyeh Kim. "I like having a day to unpack, do laundry, go grocery shopping, edit trip photos, and reflect on my vacation. The purpose of a vacation is to mellow out, so why undo your holiday cool as soon as you get home?
Be a Sharper ShooterAlthough the digital camera revolution is pushing film out of the picture, the fundamentals of great photography remain constant. No number of megapixels can compensate for bad composition or poor lighting. As Traveler's globetrotting sharpshooters explain below, the secrets to taking unforgettable pictures have less to do with equipment and more to do with elbow grease and imagination.
Steve McCurry: A comfortable pair of shoes is almost as important as film. As you're walking through your day, you need to be light and unencumbered to take your best pictures.
Keep your images simple—make them graphically strong and uncluttered. Identify your subject or center of interest— that is, your focus, around which everything else will be peripheral—and then compose the background. Work with just a few colors, perhaps only two. The same principle applies to color as it does to overall composition: Keep your images clean and focused. Where colors are concerned, less is definitely more.
When you're photographing people, strike up a conversation with them. Learn something about them that can help reveal their personality, and then photograph them unposed, and in a natural setting. When people are not self-conscious with the camera their personality will come through.
Carry a Leatherman Tool. I was just in Eastern Tibet and my Jeep broke down, days from the nearest service station. Fortunately, my driver was able to fix the truck using the Leatherman I was carrying. Photographers always need to be prepared.
David Alan Harvey: My background is in art history, and so my photography is often more artistic than journalistic. As a photographer I strive to share information about a culture and place.
Photograph something you can relate to, a setting or mood or subject that's familiar to you. Great photography doesn't automatically come from being in Nepal; often, you can get the best picture in your own backyard.
Take a good look at photography books and magazines, watch films, and educate yourself on the techniques photographers use to evoke feelings, moods, and a sense of place.
Push the envelope of light, particularly if you're working in color. Shoot earlier in the morning than you might normally and continue shooting late in the afternoon, into sunset's warm light and even 20 minutes beyond, to capture subtle, flickering candle- light and firelight.Composition is really a matter of personal taste. There are no firm rules on how to compose an image, but I've found that including people in your photographs (even if they're not the primary subjects) adds a crucial extra element that creates a "moment." People add scale, vitality, and sensibility.
Macduff Everton: Remember to look at the whole picture when looking through the viewfinder. Too often people only see the middle of the frame and forget the edges. But the edges are essential, and are often the first thing you notice when you look at the prints.
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