GIVE US YOUR SUGGESTIONS & FEEDBACK ABOUT THE SITE
We will send you an E-mail every time there is a new article in your favorite section. Sign-Up For ALERTS.

Reed Hoffmann’s Tips for Improving Your Vacation Photos Without Ruining Your Relationships The challenge of shooting photos for yourself on a family vacation is balancing time. They'll come to resent your camera (and maybe you) if everything revolves around pictures. Article rating: 8.20

• Your family may not want to spend every sunset out with you taking photos, but they probably won't mind if you slip out quietly in the morning to shoot sunrise. My wife came to love that when we were camping, because I'd come back and fix breakfast, then wake her up.

• Do some photo research on the places you're going, using sites like Flickr. You'll get a chance to see what other people have shot there, giving you a better idea of what you might find.

• Accept the fact that there will be times you can't shoot the photos when you want to. Most people want dinner during at a normal time, which is often during the nice light of evening. Compromise. Make late reservations at a nice restaurant once or twice, then be sure that everyone gets a good afternoon snack (ice cream, anyone?). While they're digesting that, you can be out shooting.

• Family vacations are often best without computers. So load up on memory cards so you don't have to start stressing about how and where you're going to download your photos. With enough cards you can save that until after you get home.

• On the other hand, maybe you can sell the gang on how great it would be to have that laptop with you. They can watch movies on it in the car or plane, stay in touch with friends and post galleries of photos for grandma to see while you're still traveling. Oh, and you can download and play with your photos, too!

• Think light and comfortable. I shoot mainly Nikon, and find their 16-85mm f/3.5-5.6 VR and 70-300 4.5-5.6 VR to be a killer small combo, paired with something like a D80 (now D90). I can get great quality with that combo, yet need very little space to pack and carry it. There's nothing worse than carrying a heavy load of gear around all day.

• Don't forget to bring a tripod. On the other hand, you probably shouldn't take along the big one. There are some great small (think tabletop) tripods that can do a nice job helping you get those low-light shots without the bulk and weight of a full-size tripod. And, the bonus here is that they're great for taking self-timer shots of the whole family.

• Try to come back from the trip with a group of pictures that covers everything you did - the travel, people you met, places you saw, even food you ate. Then take those photos into one of the many programs that let you turn that into a slideshow with music (or narration). Render to DVD and you've got a video album of the trip that your family will love watching on the TV. Who knows, maybe they'll ask you to bring your camera gear on the next trip.

• When looking for photos, don't just see the wide view. Pictures that include everything can get boring. Look down, look up, try putting your camera on the ground for a shot. Look for details - the bark of a tree, texture of rock. These pictures add a fullness to the story of your trip.

• And forget sticking small prints in photo albums. Use one of the book publishing sites (Blurb, MyPublisher, iPhoto) to create your own hardbound book of that special vacation.

^ Back to top

	Thanks for the great tips. I just got back from vacation and have a card full of pictures that I wasn't sure what to do with. I like the DVD idea. Posted by: Diane Drinsinger Sep 24, 2008 @ 8:24 AM EST
	Nice article - Thank you. The tips are helpful, and your photographs are beautiful. Posted by: Daneale Gomer Sep 24, 2008 @ 10:18 AM EST
	I met Reed on a shoot in India. We were with Jay Dickman. If you speak to Reed, give him my best. Marvin Posted by: Marvin Cohen Oct 8, 2008 @ 8:16 PM EST
	Terrific photographs! Thanks for sharing these very helpful tips - really a good article Posted by: CONNIE EDWARDS Jul 20, 2009 @ 2:49 PM EST

* Your Name:
* Email address:
	(Enter the code shown)
	(Your e-mail address will not show on the site and is used so that we can contact you back if needed)
* Your Comment about this article::
	Include me in the TGP Monthly Newsletter