Look around, select a subject and capture the moment. Give yourself up to the lens and let your mind wander through a multicolored reality made up of shadows, light, vertical lines and horizons.

Here are a few tips to get you started:

• Don’t just click away. Limit your picture taking to objects or images that capture your interest or attention.
• Don’t worry about what someone else may think. Take a picture each and every time it makes sense to you. You may be surprised to find that you have captured something that no one else has seen.
• Think about the adjectives you would use to describe a place or activity to a friend. Pick subjects that will enable you to communicate those words through film.
• Travel is not limited to a place, it extends to culture and history. The countenance of an individual, extravagant clothing, or a curious celebration will help you recount your experience. But always be respectful of the subjects you photograph!
• Identify a theme: animals, folklore, or architecture. This will help you to establish the shape without sacrificing new and exciting ideas that come to mind!
• There is no right or wrong time to begin taking pictures. But snapping pictures from the moment you depart up to the end of your journey may help you develop an effective story.

• Don’t be afraid to spend a few minutes just looking through the lens. Reposition yourself or the camera to remove objects, of little or no interest, from the frame.
• Insert elements such as people or animals that communicate a sense of space, big or small as it may be, such as the size of a tree or expanse of a pasture.
• Get close enough to your subject to appreciate its importance, a subject you are barely able to make out is hardly relevant.
• Be creative, take several shots of the same subject from various angles. A shot at eye level may not be the most effective photograph!
• Avoid positioning your subject in the center of the frame as rarely will it tell us anything about the subject matter or it’s surrounding.
• A firm stance and strong grip on your camera will reduce the risk of fussy pictures. Lock your elbows and hold the camera tightly. And whether you kneel or stand lean against a wall or tree.
• Photography is equivalent to drawing with light. Utilize the light available to mark the image you have in mind. Early morning and late afternoon are often the best time to take photos. Avoid taking pictures when the sun is in your eye as it can create reflections and other undesirable effects.
• Inclement weather? Don’t give up! The walls of a monastery immersed in fog can be fascinating.

The next time you pick up the camera, try to communicate the things that are significant to you: an immense landscape, high adrenaline activities or the emotions of a foreign land. Photography is nothing more than an instrument that facilitates understanding of oneself as well as the world around us. And it helps you to tell a story, your story.

BON VOYAGE!