10 Countries, 10 Days, 10 Tips: Day 5 - Kenya

June 07, 2012 in Africa Adventures, Africa photo tours, African photo safari, Kenya Photo Workshops, Kenya photo workshops and tours, Travel Photography, photo workshops

Rick Sammon photograph. Canon 100-400mm IS lens.

It's Day 5 of my series on travel photography here on my blog. Thanks for joining me.

Location: Kenya's Masai Mara. I took the photographs in this post on a recent trip to the Mara that was expertly organized by &Beyond.

Tip: Go in the rainy season.

Rick Sammon photograph. Canon 17-40mm lens.

I know that may not sound like a killer tip, but I think it's an important one to consider. In the rainy season, the sky can be filled with beautiful and dramatic clouds. Those clouds make a wonderful background for your wildlife and people photographs.

I enhanced the clouds in the scene above with Topaz Adjust/Spicify filter. Info on all the plug-ins I use are on my plug-ins page.

In the dry season, you'll probably get a beautiful clear sky, which can be boring. In those conditions, it's best to compose your picture without too much sky in the frame - as I did for the last photograph in this post, which was taken in the dry season. For more on composition, check out my Composition class on Kelby Training.

Rick Sammon photograph. Canon 24-105mm IS lens

In the rainy season, it will probably not rain all day. In fact, when we were on the Mara in November, it only rained in the late afternoon for a hour or so - but boy did it rain!

Rick Sammon photograph. Canon 24-105mm IS lens.

If you go in the rainy season, you must be prepared with rain gear for your camera and yourself.

Rick Sammon photograph

Another advantage of going in the rainy season: the overcast sky makes getting good exposures of wildlife easier than it is on bright, sunny days - because contrast is reduced.

You can see more of my Africa pictures, and order prints, in my SmugMug gallery.

If you like traveling and photography, check out my workshops and photo tours.

If you want travel photography tips at your fingertips, explore my app: Rick Sammon's 24/7 Photo Buffet.

Rick Sammon photograph.

I'm leading a photo workshop to Tanzania in 2013. I hope you can join the photo adventure.

Explore the light,
Rick

10 Countries, 10 Days, 10 Tips: Day 4 - Galapagos, The "Enchanted Islands" of Ecuador

June 06, 2012 in Adventure travel, Digital Photography, Galapagos, Travel Photography Workshops, blue-footed booby, camera recommendations, cameras for travel photography, lenses for travel photography, photo workshop

Photograph by Rick Sammon

It's Day 4 of my series on travel photography here on my blog. Scroll down for past posts in this series.

Location: Galapagos Islands, Ecuador.

Tip: For wildlife, bring your wide-angle and super wide-angle lenses as well as your telephoto lenses. Because the animals are not hunted, they are not afraid of tourists and photographers - so you can get very close to them.

Above, marine iguanas: Canon 15mm lens. Below, sea lions: Canon 17-40mm lens.

Note: marine iguanas "sneeze" a saltwater spray, so perhaps you don't want to get too close. :-). If you do get a "sneeze" on the front element of your lens or filter, wipe it off carefully with a lens cleaning cloth. The salt can scratch a lens or filter.

Photograph by Rick Sammon

When it comes to a telephoto lens, I'd recommend the Canon 100-400mm IS lens. I used that for the photos below of the blue-footed booby and the giant tortoise.

All my gear recos: My Gear.

Photograph by Rick Sammon

In Galapagos, when you are not on the beach, you must stay on the paths. Keep that in mind when thinking about your lens selection.

Photograph by Rick Sammon

Finally, plan to visit the Galapagos on a live-aboard boat. . . the best way to see as many islands as possible in a relatively short period of time.

You can see more of my Galapagos images in my SmugMug gallery.

• • • • •

If you like traveling and photography, check out my workshops and photo tours.

If you want travel photography tips at your fingertips, check out my app: Rick Sammon's 24/7 Photo Buffet.

Explore the light,
Rick

10 Countries, 10 Days, 10 Tips: Day 3 - Mongolia

June 05, 2012 in Adventure travel, Digital Photography, Mongolia, Travel Photography, Travel Photography Workshops

Photograph by Rick Sammon

It's Day 3 of my series on travel photography here on my blog.

Location: Mongolia.

Tip: Plan your trip for June.

Each June, the Nadaam festival takes place just outside of Ulan Bator, Mongolia’s capital. During the festival, 500 or so soldiers from the Mongolian army get dressed up like the soldiers in Genghis Khan army and put on a spectacular reinactment. Witnessing the festival, you can see why at one time Khan’s army scared the hell out just about everyone in its path.

Do you homework on the web. Note the show hours. Find out the earliest possible arrival time so you can get in a good shooting position. The more you plan, the fewer surprises you’ll have on site.

Photograph by Rick Sammon

On site, ask for a general timeline of events. This info will help you plan your day so you don’t miss festival highlights. In addition, take behind-the-scenes shots of performers getting ready. Ask if that’s okay and find out where to shoot.

Here are my recommendations for sharp shots of fast-paced action: set your shutter speed to 1/1000^th of a second to freeze action, set your auto focus to AI Servo or Continuous Focus to track a moving subject, and set your frame rate to the max for the greatest number of frames per second.

When it comes to choosing an exposure mode, go for Shutter Priority. In that mode, once your shutter speed is set to 1/1000^th of a second, if the light level changes, the shutter speed will remain at 1/1000^th of a second. To get that fast of a shutter speed, on a cloudy day you may need to boost your ISO to 400, 800 or even 1000. Don’t worry about shooting at high ISO settings. If digital noise is added, you can reduce it in Photoshop and Lightroom.

Lens recos for photographing festivals:

Canon 24-105mm IS lens

Canon 70-200 f/4 IS lens
Canon 100-400mm f/4.5-5.6 IS lens

If you like traveling and photography, check out my workshops and photo tours.

If you'd like travel tips at your fingertips, check out my apps.

Explore the light,

Rick

Photograph by Rick Sammon

P.S. Explore the countryside, too. You'll find many more people photography opportunities. While in Ulan Bator, take in a cultural show.

Photograph by Rick Sammon

10 Days, 10 Countries, 10 Tips: Day 2 - Cuba

June 04, 2012 in Cuba, Cuba Photo workshops, Cuba travel, Photo workshops., Travel Photography

Street scene in Old Havana. Rick Sammon photograph.

It's Day 2 in my travel series here on my blog.

Location: Old Havana, Cuba.

HDR image of the interior of the Florida Hotel. Rick Sammon photograph.

Tip: Tell the whole story. Be prepared to shoot indoors and outdoors and in bright light and in low light. Wear sneakers and walk, walk, walk around the city. Get up early before the streets get crowded with tourists. Also dress appropriately. It's hotter then heck in the summer months.

Photograph the cool old cars parked in front of the cool buildings. Shoot at an angle to create a sense of depth in your photographs.

Street portrait, Old Havana. Rick Sammon photograph.

In telling your story, shoot HDR. I am always ready to shoot HDR, caring a tripod with me all the time. Use a strap on your tripod and you'll always have two free hands for shooting.

Rick in Old Havana with creative camera maker. Susan Sammon photograph.

My basic street shooting/telling-the-story gear:

Canon 5D Mark III (Two bodies so I am already ready for wide-angle and tele shots).
Canon 70-200 f/4 IS lens

Canon 24-105mm IS lens

Canon 600EX-RT Speedlite

Here's a nice lightweight travel tripod for a wide-angle lens set-up.

I used Topaz Adjust on the first image and Nik HDR Efex Pro on the interior image. Check out the plug-ins I use here.

P.S. Cuba is a wonderful place to photograph wonderful, friendly people. Keep in mind that a smile can open many doors for photographers . . . including car doors.

10 Days, 10 Countries, 10 Tips: Day 1 - Bhutan

June 03, 2012 in Travel Photography, photo tours. photo adventures, photo workshops

Today starts a 10-day series on travel photography that I'm running here on my blog. Enjoy.

Location: Royal Kingdom of Bhutan.

Tip: When looking through your camera's viewfinder, scan the scene and be on the lookout for special/unique moments. Keep your finger on the shutter release button and be ready to shoot - before that instant is gone forever.

In the photograph that opens this post, the expression on the little boy's face in the center of the frame makes this photograph special . . . for me. Good thing I was scanning.

If you like traveling and photography, check out my workshops and photo tours.

If you want travel photography tips at your fingertips, check out my app: Rick Sammon's 24/7 Photo Buffet.

Explore the light,
Rick

P.S. If you go to Bhutan, hike up to Tiger's Nest Temple. It's quite a hike to 10,000 feet, but well worth it.