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Master Photographers Tell You How

Justin Guariglia – Ten Tips on how to photograph a foreign place from the inside Article rating: 8.34

The difficulty of shooting in a foreign location, knowing time and budgetary constraints, lies in trying to capture the essence or heart of a place within those constraints. The fact of the matter is that most people in a new environment find difficulty in knowing what to shoot and how to shoot it. The essence of any location is its people and its culture, regardless of where in the world the photographer is. Finding out how to photograph a place with intensity is not easy, especially when it is someone who doesn’t live there. Justin Guariglia approaches his work this way, through the eyes of a local with genuine interest and respect for the location and its inhabitants. Guariglia is a master at this. Here are some tips on trying to get the most out of your pictures from a foreign location.

1. Have a genuine interest in the culture that you are photographing.

A woman sits on a stone near the Baldan Baraivan monastery. The Baldan Baraivan monastery is being renovated as part of a the Baldan Baraivan restoration project (©2005 Justin Guariglia/National Geographic Image Collection)

2. Learn aspects of the culture, such as, language, art, writing, philosophies, and attitudes.

3. Speak to people who live or have lived there, listen to their stories, and ask them what moved them about their experience there. This is a great way to find places to shoot.

4. Don’t worry about equipment, use what you have.

5. Use the available light to capture what is there, the purity of the moment.

6. See movies or work of photographers from the region to get to know culture’s visual aesthetic.

7. Don’t just photograph what is typical or what is unique.

8. Walk around with your camera, interacting with the locals.

9. In whatever way you shoot a place, remember that people make a location, they are the heart of that place.

10. Take a lot of pictures. The more pictures you take the more chances you have a capturing a pure moment.

>>Click here to read Justin Guariglia's Bio/Background...

>>Click here to read our interview with Justin Guariglia...

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I thought the 'tips' were very thoughtful - espeically 'don't just shoot what is typical or unique'. I hadn't thought about the impact of the everyday activity...good tip. j. Posted by: Jody Ellis Oct 5, 2006 @ 10:41 AM EST

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