photo credit: Tarun K Photography

Then, there is only one solution: Be prepared!

• Explore the location: Know where you go, use Google Maps and Google Earth to discover the topography, the terrain, the location of monuments, roads and streets leading from one place to another.
• Orient yourself: the same tools will allow to see on what side you want to go to make the back-lit photos you want or to have the best angle at sun rise.
• Let inspiration come to you: There is nothing wrong in using Flickr to know what the other travelers have brought back from the place you don’t know yet. Discover the usual pictures that everybody gets and find some that are less common or more surprising : You’ll get the images that everybody expect back at home and a few good surprises too (even if you will not stay long enough to explore all aspects of a single subject).

But there is also a mean to speed preparation up and to go much further: Get a guide. It has many advantages:

• A guide knows every square meter of your destination: You will never be as prepared as he is.
• Choose a guide who knows what photography is. Most will only lead you to the place. This is even more important for difficult photo subjects like a safari photo trip: Your guide must be able to place himself (or place the car) at the right location, he will have to accept to stay longer in one location, near one animal; He should accept to leave early and stay late on the spot. You will avoid most of the tourist-run places. for this, the best is to find photo-oriented travel agents or to talk to the guide (even using Skype).

photo credit: SPM435
• You will be able to concentrate on photography without worrying too much about the rest (he’s not a body guard, but you shouldn’t have to keep an eye on your back and on your bag while you shoot).
• In some cases, the guide is the only mean to reach some locations: He’s the key to some religious ceremonies, to isolated places, to off-road tracks only accessible under precise conditions, etc.

Nevertheless, also think about keeping time to breathe, to think and to take the place in. Don’t stick to eye to the viewfinder all day long. Look around, widen your personal landscape. If your traveling with your family, also bring them into the photo business: I recommend making sure that everybody has a camera and you dispense some advice and make sure children participate (for example, a friend of mine had a real golden wooden frame that kids would use to frame themselves with monuments during specific photo games).

photo credit: EvelynGiggles

• …if the price difference with New is really large enough (don’t forget that in most countries and in Europe importing photo gear from outside requires to pay VAT and a few % of custom duties): Buy New if the difference is small, you’ll also get a manufacturer warranty.
• …if the selling web site is reliable ( is rather good but is not the only one – your recommendations down below? What do you think about KEH or Adorama Used?)
• …if the seller is reliable. Most of the second-hand web sites have a rating system to know if their sellers have previously satisfied their customers. A good rating and/or many satisfied customers is a god safety net for you. Beware of accounts hacked by a third party: An account which did not move for a long time and starts selling expensive photo gear out of nowhere.
• …if the seller offers a free return condition if you are not 100% satisfied.
• …if the camera, the lens is in good shape (precise photos are critical and must describe the real object, not Nikon, Canon or Pentax official photos).
• …if the object is not naturally subject to time degradation. For example, photo film has a “use before” date. But this is also true of some cameras whose leather-like covering will unglue itself in time, and some Canon zooms are known for a really high failure rate of the IS system, etc.

With these tips, you are now ready for second-hand gear and for purchasing expensive gear at a very low price.

1. Color: Even if the leaves are already colored, shooting at sunrise or sunset will add a little bit more of colors and it is always more natural than blooming it with a saturation filter in Photoshop.
2. Color: Green is also a color, so watch for color oppositions.
3. Polarizing filter: Reducing the specular light reflexion, some of the colors will be enhanced by the use of a POL-C filter.

photo credit: samenstelling
4. Background: Like always, check your background and if it is not adequate be sure to open the aperture to blur it.
5. Speed: If there is wind, even a light one, be sure to push the shutter speed up to fix it.
6. Speed: If there is a river, a stream or some other moving object, be sure to push the shutter speed down to blur them.
7. Tripod: If you shoot pictures under the trees, you will probably not have enough light for fast speeds, so bring your tripod.
8. Water: Leaves look better when covered with some water (it could be rain or some water you brought).
9. HDR: Many forest pictures suffer from extreme dark areas and very bright areas (specially when the subject is back-lit). It’s the right moment to try and use HDR (High Dynamic Range) techniques.

photo credit: Dinh Huynh

So, let’s not forget the basic advice for the photographer in cold weather and we’ll bring good pictures back from the near-Arctic zone of our holidays.

1. Protection against mist and water vapor: Cold generates mist any time hardware moves quickly from one place to another one, violently changing temperature. In a house, it’s warm with a lot of humidity; Outside, it’s cold and the air is dry. Use a plastic bag for freezing food. You’ll close the camera and lenses with outside dry air before getting back in. Don’t forget to remove the battery and/or memory card on the doorstep, of course.
2. Protection against snow: As for rain, you must be wary of the bad consequences of humidity directly one the photo equipment. If the camera is weather-sealed, you’ll forget about it, mostly. But, if not, don’t let snow fall onto it. It’s so much nicer, but it will short-circuit electrical contacts in about the same time.
3. Electrical storage: Be prepared: You need more batteries. In the cold temperatures, all batteries seem to loose a lot of their autonomy. It is advisable to keep unused batteries near your body (for body heat), but above all double all your habits for additional energy storage. You need twice the spare batteries.
4. Protection of the photographer: Hardware is not the only one sensitive to cold. The software photographer also gets cold. Remember to always be clothed more than adequately. You will not shoot good pictures if your are frozen to immobility and get a cold. Remember that it’s always more difficult if you are not moving for a long time.
5. Protection of the photographer: More specifically, choose cautiously your gloves. They must be as warm as possible and as thin as possible (to keep a good finger sensitivity on the controls). You’ll find excellent technical products in shops specializing in outdoor and alpine sports.
6. Don’t forget the light: This is the most common problem with snow, you must over-expose by 2 stops when snow is visible in the viewfinder. The metering sensor and system will try to render some kind of medium light grey color, and with all this white snow, it will strongly under-expose. You must compensate and OVER-expose.

Snap nice frozen photos! And show us them on the Facebook page, or in the Flickr group.

1. Just go there
2. Learn the Language and Smile
3. Be a Local, not to draw attention
4. Small, Quick and Quiet Cameras
5. Protect your Gear
6. Shoot from the Hip
7. Look for the Vibrancy
8. Move
9. Find a Distraction. Or Create Your Own
10. Know and Use the Right Settings
11. Find Context to Tell a Story
12. If in Doubt, Ask (but do not steal images)
13. Get out of Tourist Traps

And always remember that there are millions of good opportunities for photos, but do not forget to look by yourself (without the camera) and to always think of the people around you.