Bringing Your Solo Travels to Life Through Photography
Disclaimer: “This post is sponsored and not my work—consider it a guest photographer stepping into my darkroom to help keep the lights on!”
Traveling solo offers an incredible opportunity to immerse yourself in new cultures, connect with nature, and choose your own itinerary. If you are as passionate about photography as you are about traveling, combining both allows you to showcase every sight, sound, and scene you discover from your own perspective.
Once you’ve planned an ideal trip, whether it’s to an eco-friendly resort in the Caribbean or an adventurous safari in Africa, the narrative photos from your travels act as a personal diary enabling you to document your unique experiences wherever you are in the world.
Understanding What Narrative Photography is
Narrative photography is the art of using images to tell a story. Going beyond capturing a beautiful shot, it becomes all about drawing the viewer into a journey of discovery. More than photographing iconic landmarks, captivating sunsets or stunning scenery, narrative images on solo trips often reveal intimate moments and meaningful encounters that reflect your personal travel experience.
When you’re heading off alone for an incredible African Safari, you can choose the perfect shots to create a visual storyline depicting where you are, how you feel, and some of the most amazing sights you’ve seen in the African bush. You might have had the privilege to photograph wild animals up close, which was always a childhood dream.
Documenting your personal adventures also gives you a fantastic focus in a new country. Perhaps when you are awestruck by spectacular scenery, or sampling delicious local cuisine. Narrative photography is a medium that allows you to convey a genuine reason for traveling as well as any emotional experiences you take away from your journey. Your travels equal the stories you tell.
Planning Your Perfect Destination
For your solo travel, planning where you go is something that will ultimately shape your narrative. When choosing your perfect destination, you’ll want to consider some of the most dramatic and inspiring locations, landmarks and architecture from around the world. Of course, in any country or region you’re heading to, you’ll want a compelling backdrop, whether it’s the Eiffel Tower in beautiful Paris or Edinburgh Castle, historic sites that are overflowing with photo-worthy opportunities are ideal.
For jaw-dropping natural photography, explore the polar parts of the planet or Patagonia’s rich offering of glaciers, mountain ranges, and wildlife that attract avid photographers each year. It may be hotter parts of the world that you’re interested in for their stunning beaches and hot springs, and opulent cities like Dubai with sprawling desert sandscapes. For a country with contrasts, New Zealand, Australia, the US and many parts of Iceland also known as “The Land of Fire and Ice”, offers the extreme contrast of nature’s landscapes in one place.
Capturing Unique Images for an Unbeatable Travel Story
While traveling you’ll want to share your best shots that capture the essence of the places you’re visiting. You can do this by going beyond the obvious landmarks and focusing on the hidden gems that reveal the true spirit of a destination. Photograph everyday scenes like locals shopping at a bustling market or children playing in a village square. You can also showcase natural landscapes by avoiding the most overcrowded beaches, historic sites, visitor attractions or iconic buildings.
The human stories are often the most compelling, and capturing people in their everyday life can be the biggest life lesson about any particular country’s local culture and traditions. Try to take portraits of individuals, (if they’re happy to be photographed), in the marketplace or spontaneous interactions of groups can also make powerful visual stories. The more candid the moments you photograph, the more authentic your travel story looks, and the more inspiring your images will be for other intrepid solo travelers. Whatever you are personally interested in, from nature and wildlife to history and human encounters, there is so much to inspire any narrative photographer.
Perfecting Your Narrative Techniques on Camera
When it comes to your narrative, however, for the best results don't view everything through your camera lens. Remember to stay grounded while traveling, take a step back and soak up the most special moments on your own, rather than sharing them on social media or frantically snapping away. By using photography with intention and purpose, you can share an impactful narrative that inspires travel in others.
Like any good story, your narrative photos should have a beginning, middle, and end together with great settings, human elements and impactful moments. So, consider an opening shot that is a scene-setter in a landscape city, as the first image. You’ll then add:
Transition shots that move the story from one location or moment to the next.
Detailed shots and close-ups of faces, food, and local crafts.
Interaction shots with locals or fellow travelers for that human element.
Activity shots that capture you engaging in local culture.
Closing shots to end your travel story.
For the more technical shots, however, self-portraits, shadows, and reflections bring a dull image to life, while quiet moments of stillness, contemplation, and insight allow your photos to reflect personal experiences and tell your story. It’s also good to master the art of composition, keeping in mind the rule of thirds, framed scenes, creative angles, perspectives, and light to add visual interest.
