Travel Photography advice?

You would be well off to find out what kinds of pictures they want at such short notice, then search out and send only these.
I can't imagine they want all the pictures very quickly.
They probably have no idea how many pictures can result from a photographer working hard at documenting things.
If you have a laptop and Lightroom (or a similar image management app), you'd be well ahead of the game if you uploaded pictures to LR and tagged the ones for export every night.
 
talyaophotos said:
SNIP>>>>they need all the photos within 24hours of my return

Now that, that is a totally, totally unreasonable demand--one that borders on the ridiculous. No, not borders on, I take that back. That **is** without a doubt, one of the most idiotic demands one could ever make of a photographer undertaking something as big as this multi-day trip. The fact that somebody associated with this event has made that kind of a demand shows that that person is...clueless, to put it politely. Use the fact that one of the organizers has conveyed his/her expectations of immediate turnaround as a warning that the person you're dealing with is...to be watched out for.
 
1. no I'm not being paid, but its worthwhile for me to treat this as if I am getting paid.
You're not being paid, and you have to pay some for the trip, and the organizers want all your photographs within 24 hours of the end.

I'm sorry for you, but I certainly would not agree to those terms.

BTW: A speedlight is a flash attachment.
You will not need any of the longer lenses.
You do not have time to do editing, any more than culling the bad shots.
Typically, the "insurance" covers everybody on the tour, including their personal belongings.
I would not do this.
 
Tell them the turnaround time either needs to be higher, or they must suffice with unedited jpegs.
 
Let me add my 2 cents...

1. Lew does a tremendous amount of travel photography...so much so that I bet when he shows up at the door his wife goes "who are you?" The posts by Lew and Tirediron are absolutely, completely, totally spot-on.

2. As Derrel pointed out, the idea of getting all photos within 24 hours is unrealistic. Now, you can do some things to minimize this problem. But bottomline, you're going to shoot a butt-load of photos. Let me put it this way: a group of 80 people on travel to a range of settings....I think you're going to end up with a minimum of over 1,500 photos before you start edits. Just the act of transferring them (unless you give them a portable HD or hand over all the SD cards) will probably take you a ton of time.

3. "Camera condoms" basically are rain sleeves or protection for your camera if it's wet or snowing outside.

4. Okay, a couple of hints for this work:
--Yes, put together a list. If there are 80 people going (let's say...35 couples and a couple of singletons) and you miss 2 couples, you'll be labeled a crappy photographer. You need to be sure you "get" everyone. And not just once or in one setting. So it would behoove you to set up not just a list of shots to get, but a spreadsheet of people. You don't need to track each shot. But if the ONLY pictures you get of the Grabowskis are on the plane, they'll be pissed. Or the only photos of the Littbarskis are at dinner (and none sightseeing) they'll be disappointed. Track enough to be sure you (a) get everyone and (b) get them in a variety of settings.
--bring a portable hard drive. Each night, copy files from SD cards to the HD. I'd still keep the SD card files. But this way you've got double-coverage (SD card file plus HD backup).
--I'd do some edits every night. Don't plan on getting 'em all done. Figure on maybe 5-10 edits per night if you're willing to work late. But pick out a few likely winners to start with, a mix of shots. First of all, people will be excited to see a few photos from the day before and will likely cooperate more with you. Additionally, you'll have a pool of photos to give the client within 24 hours (the edits you've been doing each night) so you'll be given more time to do other kinds of edits. Finally, you'll look and you'll go "holy crap Batman, my WB is totally off!" or "there's a big ugly thumbprint on my lens!" But you won't know that unless you're checking some of the files each night.
--Get to know the tour organizer, they are your new best friend. Find out about locations before you get there. Some times you'll want to run out ahead to shoot the group as it's approaching. Sometimes there is a primo spot to get to and set up.
--Expect lighting and white balance to be a mess that is continually changing. You're going to be shooting under a mixture of lighting (much of it crappy). I suspect there will be a lot of indoor events (dining, parties, museums, churches...that kind of stuff) and the lighting in those places (especially Eastern Europe) ranges from....dark....to incandescent....to old CFL...to halogen...to candles (some religious shrines). Learn to be good with setting white balance on your camera and adjusting.
--Set up a checklist of things to do every morning before you leave the hotel. I mean write down an actual checklist and then use it every morning without fail. There are things you MUST check every morning before you leave your room (lens clean? batteries charged and in? SD cards in all cameras? yesterday's files backed up? Appropriate gear for what you'll be shooting? Cleaning equipment in your bag? Snack you can throw in your bag (b/c if you're doing your job right, you may be missing a lot of meals)? I am totally serious about this checklist...I've been shooting for 42 years now, I'm very organized and I still have situations where I get there and realize I forget that special lens or extra batteries for the speed light. But you're shooting for this group, so you can't screw up--its simply unacceptable for you to leave gear back at the bus or the hotel.
--Unless you get other direction contradicting me from the client, I bet you're going to need to shoot a diverse mix of photos. Yes, pictures of everyone in the group (probably a mix of candids and on-site portraits). Yes, pictures of people touring. Yes, some group pictures. Yes, pictures of people having fun (dancing, drinking, eating, etc.). But shoot some postcards too...the glorious sunset, the photo of the church surrounded by the fog, the picture of the cows in the pasture. Last of all, think of yourself as a photojournalist trying to take a picture that captures the essence of a location or of a day. So one day it rained cats and dogs...get a picture of a window that says "welcome to Gdansk" with water pouring down. Or the tour ended with a big party and much alcohol was consumed...get a shot of a bar with tons of empty bottles and stained glasses.
--At venues where people dress up (if there are black-tie affairs or dancing, etc.) set up a portrait station. A couple of speed lights, a decent background (it can be a white wall that won't show hotspots from your speed lights) and ask people to drop by and pose while they're wearing their best clothing and having fun.

Okay, that's all the advice I can think of for right now. Best of luck!
 
I misread the first post as 8 people.

You are supposed to be catching the reactions of 80 people as they experience emotional moments simultaneously - and catch all the setup pictures also.

I do know I couldn't do it - and wouldn't attempt it.
If there are 80 people going, you are totally set up to make 70 or more people very unhappy.
 
Travel Photography advice?
5. Tips in general?
Thanks in advance!!!
Tell them you are sorry - but you decline to be taken advantage of, and put in a position that guarantees that you will fail to come anywhere close to meeting their expectations and demands.
 

Most reactions

Back
Top