An occasional series…

On New Year’s Eve 2024, enjoying some very reasonably priced red wine on the Calçada do Duque in Lisbon, my wife and I (drunkenly, perhaps) came up with a plan for the coming year. Now, mid January 2026, I’m sat here reflecting on the 12 countries over 16 trips we visited, and what it might have taught me about this fine pastime of taking photographs in far flung places.

This suits me…

The first thing I think I have come away with is that this genre – Travel Photography – is definitely my lane. Since grabbing a “serious” camera back in the halcyon days of covid (remember that?) and trying, failing, and trying again to fall in love with taking street photography, things are starting to fall into place. Ultimately, I’m very selfish. I absolutely love the feeling of being in a place that is new and exciting. It’s a sensation that, whilst impossible to bottle and keep, can very occasionally be captured in an image. And that is what I think I am always striving for.

I want an image that makes me feel the way I felt when I took it.

And guess what, in the last 12 months, those images that have somewhat achieved this simple goal, have been objectively my best photographs. And they’ve been the most enjoyable to take.

Gear? Yes please

This is where most photography influencers will say “gear doesn’t matter”, “the best camera is the camera you have on you”, etc..which is all well and good, true, and ultimately quite dull.

I’d actually like to defend gear. I can’t quite remember if I got my first camera because I wanted to take pictures, or because I loved gadgets. The contents of my shelves (and drawers and wardrobes) would suggest the latter.

For me the relationship between new gear and travel is as symbiotic as that between buying a flight ticket and a new pair of swim shorts (or a bulk buy of 100ml factor 50 in my case). It’s not so much an excuse as an opportunity. And what better way to test this new gear than in a new exciting place? The surprising thing about that too is, because carrying all this stuff around is a bit of an agg, it becomes very evident, very quickly, which gear is worth keeping hold of. My camera and lens collection is actually smaller at the end of this year than at the start, and I absolutely love the kit I have.

But I won’t disclose what that gear is. Why? Because gear doesn’t matter! Keep up!

Perfection is overrated

Look at that picture of some flamenco performers in Seville. There isn’t a photography competition in the world that would shortlist it. Do I care? No. I look at that and can still hear the music. That’s the point. I can only hope this sensation in some way is also felt by those who weren’t in the room, but it’s not my first priority.

I also know how I’d approach that differently. I remember noticing a unique tiling pattern on the wall, and the alleyway we had to wander down was very picturesque. Having captured those would have given some context, some story to the images, and might help me make sense of it in a decade’s time looking back. It’s a lesson I take with me on subsequent trips – don’t sweat the big stuff, details matter.

But for now, I can still hear the music, and that’s all that matters.

And anyway, I don’t do competitions…

I really like STOP signs

No-one said all of these observations needed to be deep. I just really like them.

Editing is at least 25% of the fun

Obviously, the travel part of travel photography is the best bit. Followed extremely closely by the picture-taking part of it, but then you have the editing phase.

I used to hate the editing.

In some ways I do still strive to get that perfect straight-out-of-camera shot that’s going to convey the absolute essence of the moment and the soul of the destination. But let’s face it, that never really happens.

And whilst I would never rely on editing to save sloppy photos, what it can bring is that special something that transports me back to wherever it was I took the shot. Perhaps I wasn’t able to recreate the stifling humidity of Bangkok in the original RAW, or the cool breeze just before the sun came up. It’s amazing what a very subtle adjustment in white balance can do for an image. Again, my goal and what I am always striving for is that perfect encapsulation of the memory which starts to fade as soon as we step foot on that plane home.

It’s a goal that dictates the way I take photographs, use my camera, and process them, and it has been so much more useful to me than any number of likes on Instagram…

Did I mention…?

I’m not sure if I have adequately conveyed this, but I really love travel photography. And by that I mean photographs I take when I travel. I’ve not made a solitary pound out of the pictures I take – and that is fine! It’s cost an arm and a leg, and been worth every limb.

My wife and I have made some incredible memories and visited places that we’d previously thought would never make it off our “would like to visit one day” lists, and it just so happens that we now have a collection of images to share and enjoy together. Most of which I still need to sit down and edit!

I am constantly ruminating on this subject and vow to make more of this little blog. I’d really love to hear if any of this has resonated with you – I’m sure I’m not alone in enjoying this pursuit.

Also I am thinking of things to write about in future posts and any requests are most warmly recieved.

Ben.