How to Take Unusual Travel PhotosRichard Martin challenges himself photographically in Venice and Cuba with the Tamron SP 24-70mm VC lens. |
Article by Jenn Gidman Images by Richard Martin |
Few people have been to Venice and Cuba as many times as Richard Martin, but each time the Ontario photographer heads to either destination for one of his annual photo tours, he always finds new subjects to photograph. "People ask me why I keep going if I've been there before," he says. "But there are so many different things to see. I look for the real side of a place, the 'other' shots you wouldn't find on a postcard. If we're walking and everyone's looking in one direction, I'll look in the other direction and find different things to photograph. In both Venice and Cuba, I wanted to capture the culture through architectural elements, color abstracts, and street photography." |
The Tamron SP 24-70mm VC lens accompanied Richard on both trips. "I consider my camera equipment and technique to be extensions of my creative process," he says. "For me, the lens is a design tool that has a powerful effect on the way the subject is presented by altering the shapes, lines, textures, and perspective in a photograph. You want to develop an awareness of how to use your lens to distort perspective and isolate your subjects through focus and depth-of-field to create expressive images." |
Read on to see how Richard used the 24-70 to capture visually striking photos during his travels. |
Challenge yourself by using one lens. |
The 24-70 is my standard workhorse lens. The sharpness is fantastic, and the autofocus is superb; it works with my camera so well and snaps into focus very quickly and accurately. The autofocus highlights are nice and neutral as well. |
Another big selling point for me is the Vibration Compensation feature. Using the VC with the autofocus gives me at least 2 extra stops. At 70mm, the most telephoto end of the 24-70, I can get down to 1/15th of a second with the VC turned on; when it's off, I have a hard time getting under 1/60th. |
The quality of the 24-70's build is really solid, too. The moisture-resistant construction is important when I'm traveling outdoors in different climates and can't always control what environments I'll be in. |
Break travel photo stereotypes by looking for relationships between image elements. |
I tell the folks in my workshops to look past the obvious. They'll often see me taking a picture of something and ask, 'What were you taking a picture of? I don't see anything.' Then when I show them the way the light is playing on the arch of a doorway or the way a little red chair looks against an otherwise ordinary-looking curtain, they start to see the potential. You just need to be receptive to your new surroundings. |
This year in Cuba, for example, we spent some time in Havana and then also some time in Trinidad, a colonial town that's a nice contrast to the city. Every place in Cuba is unique - with all of the people milling about and the old American cars driving around, I felt like I was in a time warp or on a movie set! It's impossible not to see something there that you want to photograph. |
I also believe you should always be on the lookout for humor you can incorporate into your photos. Being playful with your camera doesn't mean you're not being productive; in fact, being dead-serious all the time can be deadly for your pictures. Don't be afraid to make mistakes. If you try too hard be a perfectionist, you won't break new ground in your photography. |
Go off the beaten path. |
Use light and shadow to your advantage. |
In fact, sometimes the shadow is the photo. When I was in Venice, I went down a side street and saw someone's laundry just hanging in the sunlight. It wasn't the laundry itself that caught my eye, though - it was the shadows of the laundry on the clothesline that I wanted to photograph. The pants looked almost animated, like they were about to get off the line and walk away! |
Slow down and be patient - and flexible. |
It's like being a soccer player: You have to be aware of what's going on around you so you can position yourself for the best shot. You have to anticipate the light, the people, and the motion in street photography. |
An image I made of a man walking down the street in Cuba is a perfect example of this. I spotted a long, beautiful shadow against the wall and thought at first that that was my subject. Then I noticed out of the corner of my eye that this guy was walking down the street and thought it would be perfect to capture him right as he hit the bottom of that shadow. I shot the shadow at many different stages as he approached walking into the frame, but the one where he ends at that focal point is the one I liked the best. |
This is why I always have a flexible itinerary. I never know when I'm going to come across an amazing old-fashioned car on the streets of Cuba or a beautifully colored boat in a Venice canal. Some of my favorite images have occurred between selected points of interest. |
Be respectful. |
To see more of Richard Martin's work, go to http://www.richardmartinphoto.com. |