WOW! Eye Opening Numbers For Wildlife Photography!

Good Morning Everybody,

Last evening we had a fun Zoom meeting with our first Safari group.  Don Dickson, who runs the "Internationally" famous Texas School [link] put the whole thing together for us.  It was a "hoot" reminiscing about the great times we all had on that trip.

Yep, we do get kind of close to the animals, lion included.  That's probably the biggest surprise for first-time safari adventurers. Thanks to Kevin Dooley of Idube Photo Safaris [link] for sending this photo over to me this morning. That's me next to the driver with LaDawn behind him. We are really only a few feet away from the lions - safaris are definitely an adventure!

We joined the Dicksons on their Safari and then were to follow up with two more of our own when the bottom dropped out of our travels. No problem though, we already have them rescheduled for about the same time next year.  I put the links at the end of this post.

Anyway, I hope you all got a chance to view the YouTube video I put up just a few days ago.  It really shows what an exciting trip it was. If you missed it, here is the [link] to the video one more time - Enjoy!  Now on with the show....
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WOW!  Eye Opening Numbers For Wildlife Photography!

Last Thursday I did a post entitled "Camera Settings for Wildlife Photography - Mostly Manual Mode and Why" [link] which really got down to the "nitty-gritty" of my wildlife shooting strategy.  Today I want to ramp up that post with some surprising statistics about the Shutter Speeds, Apertures, and ISOs I used most often.  These numbers are based on the EXIF data of 20,179 wildlife images I made two years ago during our safaris back then.

Shutter Speed

Take a look at the table to the right.  I think you will be surprised by the numbers here. As you can see, my exposures ranged from 1/50 second and lower up to 1/8000 second.  OK, how did I come up with this data?  It was easy once I really got the "hang" of some of Lightroom's EXIF data reporting features. I asked Lightroom to just report all exposure data from my Canon 5D Mk3 and my Canon 7D Mk2 and presto, the Shutter Speed info appeared!

OK, back to the numbers. Take a closer look at the chart to the right. Notice that 67% - that's 67% - of my shutter speeds were 1/1600, 1/2000, or 1/2500 second! A quick point of clarification... NOT all those exposures were made on Manual mode. A large number of them were made on Shutter Priority mode as well.  I'll cover that shooting strategy in an upcoming post next week. Needless to say, two-thirds of my photos were made at very high speeds for all the reasons stated in my post referenced above.

Keep in mind that safari shooting conditions vary widely.  Birds are flying, animals are moving, and the safari vehicle is bouncing, sometimes like crazy.  All these factors require faster shutter speeds to freeze the action.

Aperture

Now let's move on to Apertures. I used the same Lightroom reporting technique to determine my most used range of shooting apertures. Once again, check the table to the right.

In most cases, I was shooting wide open with my telephoto lenses. When shooting the Canon 5D Mk3 I mounted my Sigma 150-600mm lens with its maximum aperture of F6.3.

When shooting my Canon 7D Mk2 fitted with its 100-400mm lens (my all-time favorite wildlife shooting combo), again maximum aperture F6.3. You can see from the data that nearly 1/2 of all my exposers were at the maximum apertures of both the lenses.

If the light was bright, like at mid-day, I would stop down 1/2 to one full stop just to pick up a little more depth of field.  I found that mostly helped with my bird photography.

Still, you may be questioning my use of both lenses maximum apertures for so many of my photos.  The answer is quite simple - both of these lenses are super sharp lenses.  I never felt I was compromising the image in any way when shooting wide open.

ISO

Now on to ISOs ...  As I mentioned in my early post (referenced above), I do like to "float the ISO in these kinds of shooting conditions. I don't want the ISO to go to high, but I do want it fast enough to allow me to use the necessary shutter speeds I need for my wildlife photography. Now take a look at the ISO chart to the right. OK, OK, I did let the ISO float a little on some occasions - I'll get to that in a minute. But DO notice that 56% on my images were in the ISO 1600 - 6400 range.

The reason for the higher ISOs is accounted for by our early morning and our late afternoon/early evening shooting.  But, let's re-analyze the data differently. If you total the ISOs from ISO 400 to ISO 2000, the total number of exposures accounts for over 44% of my images.  That means that most of my images were made at very manageable ISOs.

With the use of software like Lightroom, I can easily manage the slightly higher ISOs.  Heck, back in my "wedding days"  I would routinely shoot all my reception images at ISO 3200.

Still, I think the analysis of this data is really fascinating to see.  It really shows what the Apertures, ISOs, and Shutter Speeds need to be to get the optimum photograph with the gear I was using. Had I been using a 300mm/F2.8 lens, my data would have been different, obviously.  But I was using gear that worked great for these wildlife shooting situations.  The gear is reasonably priced and gave me a great result for our Safari experiences.

Take a look at the photo having "lunch" to the right. Notice the camera specs: Canon 7D Mk2 fitted with 100-400mm Sigma lens: 1/2000 second @ F5.6 zoomed to 123mm at ISO 2500. Anything less than the higher shutter speed and high ISO and I would have missed the photo.

I hope everyone enjoyed the discussion today and I certainly hope it will at least give you some starting points in any upcoming African adventures you may have in your future.

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Hey Gang,

That's it for me today.  I can't believe it's Friday already. Have a great weekend and I'll hope to see you next week for a few more ideas and discussions.

Cheers for now, David


Oh, BTW, Here are the links to our rescheduled Safaris for next year.

South Africa at Thakadu: March 30 - April 9, 2021 [link]

Botswana, Africa at Mashatu: April 9 - 19, 2021 [link]

We are sorry we couldn't continue on Safari this year but both LaDawn and I are really looking forward to next year - hope to see you there!  David and LaDawn

Our African Safari in 1000 photos or Less

Good Afternoon Everybody,

I hope everyone had a great Easter weekend.  It was quite a bit different than in years past but connecting with family and friends still made it a special day.  I hope yours was special too.

I thought one of the most creative ideas to "church services" in these days of "sheltering at home" was the approach taken by the paster at Bellarmine Chapel at Xavier University here in Cincinnati, Ohio. He gathered photos of all the parishioners which he then proceeded to print out and tape to all the church pews.  It was quite an uplifting Easter story - here is the link to the short video [link]. Enjoy!

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Our African Safari in 1000 photos or Less

Now back to what we do here at DigitalProTalk.com, I want to share our 2020 African Safari with you this morning. As many of you know, LaDawn and I have been traveling with our good friends, Kevin and Tricia Dooley of Idube Photo Safaris [link] these past few years. 

Kevin has been leading safaris around the world, but mostly to Africa, for nearly 20 years.  About 4 years ago he asked if I would be interested in joining him - I leaped at the opportunity!  And now we have been on four photo safaris with the Dooley's - all pretty cool!

Our other two sold-out safaris for this year had to be postponed till next year because of all the current travel restrictions.  If you are interested in more info, please let me (david@ziser.com) or Kevin (idubephotosafaris@yahoo.com) know.  We will be happy to get you more info.

Anyway, after a big trip like this, LaDawn and I (mostly LaDawn, really just LaDawn), will edit the thousands of images, tweak the favs, and design a Blurb book telling the entire story from start to finish of our adventures.

LaDawn just wrapped the album design and exported the double-page spreads for upload to Blurb. But I had another idea for the 350 or so spreads.  I thought I would load them in ProShow Producer [link], a great video/slideshow program that I've been using for years with my wedding photography. Unfortunately, they just shut their doors, but the program still works very well for these types of projects.

Anyway, I loaded up all the high-resolution double-page spread, added my royalty-free music,  tweaked the show a bit, and let it rip.  About an hour later I had a very cool video of the entire album of images.  I have to tell you, it looks GREAT on our 82-inch Samsung 4K TV ;~)

I then uploaded the video to my YouTube channel for all to enjoy.  Just click the PLAY button below and enjoy the show.  Most of us have a smart TV so I would recommend loading it up from your YouTube app on your TV for the best viewing experience.

These videos have been a great way for us to re-live our travel experiences. LaDawn and I both agree that after spending hours, days, and even possibly weeks designing these albums and then"arm-wrestling" with Blurb to get them uploaded and published to the tune of about $250/book, the best way to enjoy the whole travel experience is much better accommodated with the videos. BTW...LaDawn LOVES the elephants so be prepared to see LOTS of elephants in the video.

I'm currently in the process of updating our other travel books to videos as well. LaDawn is currently working on a new travel book of our experiences in Iceland and Ireland, one of our favorite trips from 2018.  I'll plan on sharing those images with you as well.

But, in the meantime enjoy this video, including several images of LaDawn and I (lol) and if you have any questions, just leave them in the comments section below and I'll do me best to answer them for you in a timely fashion.

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Hey Gang,

That's if for me today.  I really hope you enjoy the post and the photographs.  I'll plan on putting up a few more Tips and Tricks in the coming days.  Remember, leave your comments below.

Adios for now, David

Just Back From Africa

Good Afternoon Everybody,

We just returned from South Africa a little over a week ago - we were on Delta's third last flight leaving the country - whew!  We had spent about 9 days on a wonderful safari and another 9 days enjoying the wonderful surrounds and fabulous wines of Capetown.

Today, in the short post, I just want to touch a bit on the excitement of our Safari experience.  Turns out this was our fourth safari with our friends Kevin and Tricia Dooley. As LaDawn and I know, every safari experience is a trip of a lifetime and this trip was no exception.

For those of you who never have experienced a safari, your first thought as you are sitting in the safari vehicle is... "Uh, aren't we really a little too close to those lions?!!!!"

In fact, that is the edge of the safari vehicle you see on the left in the above photo - nothing between you and the animals - "Hey, you lookin' at me?"  But the excitement is worth it!

All the animal sightings are really exciting.  LaDawn loves photographing the baby elephants - they are a kick to watch as they travel by. Here is an image LaDawn made just a few weeks ago - kind of fun.

I'm a photographer who really enjoys watching the large herds of elephants gathered around the watering holes.  It's almost like clockwork when the show up - usually at the start of the heat of the day just before noon. This image below is actually one of my favs - and it was taken on my cell phone. OK, I did use the Picturesque app to "artsify" the image, but I still like it.

In closing this short post, I still want to mention one last thing.  At the end of the day, all the safari vehicles pull over to a safe area, break out the snacks and beverages (all varieties) and we all kick back reminising about our wonderful day's experiences and enjoying an always beautiful sunset.

Hey Gang, I going to let that be it for today. I sure hope you enjoyed the few photos I posted today and I hope you will check back for more of our adventures in Africa.

Cheers for now, David

It Looked Like A Snow Day to Me, What an Honor & More…

Good Morning Everybody,

I hope everyone survived the “Deep Freeze” last week. I read that parts of the mid-west, including good ol’ KY were colder than Antarctica – WHEW!!! Too cold for me. But, then again, I wasn’t here. 

Holed Up In Whistler, Canada

Yep, I was holed up in Whistler, B.C. Canada – home to the fabulous Whistler/Blackcomb ski resort [link]. The temps only dropped to around 30 degrees on the coldest evenings – I sure loved that considering the temperatures back in the states.

  

This trip has been part of annual ski trip that goes back 23 years.  I was asked to join this group of illustrious photographers and skiers a number of years ago and finally made it an annual occasion these last several years.

My skiing days are pretty well numbered as gravity treats this “vintage” body of mine with less curtesy and respect, meaning I hit the ground harder these days;~)  But, I still enjoy the beautiful mountain scenery and all things snow related especially on those breathtaking sunny days.  The good news is that we had about four spectacular sun-filled days on this trip and the views were fabulous!

One of the highlights for me of this year’s trip was our day long photo-walk with my good friends Paul Wright of Wright Moment Photography [link] and Dennis Walsh of Walsh Photographic Design [link]. Both Paul and Dennis are great photographers – that’s Paul’s image above of the speed skater on the left and Dennis’ “light painted” car image on the right.  Head over to their respective websites and prepare to be “blown away”!  We all got some beautiful images that day. It was just a really good time to be hanging with like-minded photographers enjoying both the art and craft of the afternoon’s shoot. I highly recommend that everyone stir those creative juices and give a photo walk with friends a try!

What an Honor – ASP Honorary Educational Associate

The week before I traveled to Whistler, Canada LaDawn and I were in Atlanta at Imaging USA, one-of-the-best photography conventions in the country. We both really like attending this convention because, in addition to the wonderful learning experiences, we also love the opportunity to catch up with all our vendor and photography friends that we don’t often see.  But this trip was also extra special this year.

I received a calI in mid-November telling me that I was to be presented with the American Society of Photography’s Honorary Educational Associate Degree. Wow! I couldn't believe it! That’s some pretty good company you are keeping in that league of photographers with the likes of Julianne Kost, Clay Blackmore, Tony Corbell, just to name a few.

You know, one receives these kind of honors because they shared their knowledge with so many photographers worldwide. But for me it was different. I was thrilled to have received the honor because of all that I learned from so many photographers worldwide that I’ve encountered in my life journey.  My THANKS goes to the ASP Board for this special award – Cheers!

Don’t Forget PhotoPro Expo February 21 – 25, 2019!

As you know I was deeply involved in PhotoPro Expo [link] for many years. But about three years ago we handed the reins off to my good friends Bert and Al Behnke.  What I love about Bert and Al running the show is the fact that they can bring to it a brand new perspective keeping it fresh relevant and alive – and they have done that again for this year’s extravaganza! Just check out all the PhotoPro Expo details right here. 

I think one of this year’s Expo highlights is the day-long program presented by Kevin Dooley, wildlife photographer extraordinaire! Kevin is the photographer/ licensed safari guide LaDawn and I spent 4 weeks with on Safari in South Africa last year at this time. Inexcusably…I’m still editing through over 45,000 images from those weeks!

Kevin’s work is astounding and his program should not be missed! Heck, seeing his program will be almost as good as going on a real live safari;~)  Definitely check it out!

DAZNOTE:

Kevin and I have been working together to put another exciting photo/travel experience together for 2020. This time it’s going to be in Botswana on the exciting Mashatu Preserve [link]. Here are the dates: March 20-30, 2020. 

Registration is limited as on our previous safaris. In fact the Safari is already half sold out with many of last year’s Safari attendees jumping in early on this one, too. Check out some of the details right here. Hope you too can join us on this amazing adventure.

BTW, I’ll be presenting at the PhotoPro Expo convention this year. You can find me in the Expo Theater on Saturday at 12:15 p.m. I’ve put together a brand new program entitled “How My Astral Photography Has Eclipsed My Wedding Photography”.  In it I’ll cover many tips and tricks on how to photograph a Total Eclipse of the Sun.  I promise, it will be a fun program. Many additional free programs to follow after mine on both Saturday and Sunday during the Trade Show hours. Here is the link to all the programing right here.

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Hey Gang,

That’s it for me today. I hope you enjoyed the update. There are some great learning opportunities coming up – hope to see you at a few of them.
Cheers for now, David

Announcing My 2019 Photo Safari To the Galapagos Islands! and a Quick Wrap up of 2017!

Happy New Year Everybody,

I hope everyone had a fantastic 2017, wonderful holiday season, and a great welcome to our brand new year - 2018.  I've got three things I want to share with you in this quick newsletter. First, a few exciting personal notes - at least for LaDawn and I; secondly, my "once in a lifetime" event - don't miss this read; and finally, details of our 2019 Photo Safari to the Galapagos Islands.  Here we go...

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World Travels - 50,000 Miles, 8 Countries, and 34,000 Photos!

Since I last visited with you LaDawn and I have been around the world, well, not all the way around, but half-way at least. It's been quite a series of Fall adventures for us to say the least.

We started with a 5-day visit to Vancouver, Canada, then crossed the Pacific on a cruise ship hanging out in Hawaii, the lava was really flowing as we circumvented the Big Island around midnight and even with a rocking ship and misty rains I was able to capture some amazing images. Check out my favorite below.

Then it was on to Tahiti, Bora Bora, and New Zealand finally completing our 4 weeks on water in Sydney, Australia. Below is a photo from the aft of the ship as we departed Auckland - pretty cool!!!

After our quick arrival in Sydney we flew back to Auckland, NZ where I discovered my driver's license expired two days before we were to pick up our rental car - WHOOPS!!! You guessed it - LaDawn had to rent the car with the steering wheel on the right side of the car and had to drive on the left side of the highway, which she had never experienced - YIKES!!! 1400 beautiful miles later we returned the car safe and sound to Queenstown, NZ. Actually…. she really did a great job driving!! Here's a photo of a stunning sunset on our first evening in Rotorua, NZ.

After 14 days of adventures in New Zealand we flew  to Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam and spent two weeks traveling up the Mekong River through Vietnam and Cambodia - our most astounding two weeks travel EVER!!! Check out the Angkor Wat sunrise below. Sadly it required waking-up at 5:00 a.m. to capture this image. But… well worth it!!

Our next city of adventure included a 5-day stop in Seoul, South Korea stopping off at the DMZ or Demilitarized Zone which USA Today called the most dangerous places on earth [link] – hey, who knew;~) It was just for a little additional excitement.  That’s a photo of North Korea below.  Our family was "freaking" out when we told them  we planned to visit the DMZ. Hey, you only go around once;~)

It was home for Thanksgiving with family and then off to Cabo, Mexico for 3 more weeks and returning home a week before Christmas. Thus completing our three months of travels.

On top of that LaDawn has become a grandmother for the third time on Christmas Eve - her best Christmas present ever!

Here is a quick photo of handsome Sam about 6 hours after he was born - Wow, just look at all that hair!

Speaking of our travels, we are looking forward to our African Photo Safari [link] in just a few weeks. If interested we had two people that had to cancel so we still have one room (1-2 people) left at the main lodge for either safaris.

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Announcing My 2019 Photo Safari To the Galapagos Islands!

That's right everybody, we're heading to the Galapagos Islands in mid-May, 2019. Join me as we follow in the footsteps of Charles Darwin. The Galapagos Islands  are considered one of the world's foremost destinations for wildlife viewing. It should be a photographer's paradise. I’ve spent some time talking with other photographers and travel enthusiasts who have been there, they say that it truly is amazing!

Space is super-duper limited - only 12 seats total! If you are interested please drop and email to me at david@ziser.com or Kevin at idubephotosafaris@yahoo.com.

Kevin tells me that he is also planning another two Safaris to Africa next year.  This time he’s going to be doing one in February and one in March. One will go to Zambia [link] and the other to Namibia [link], both locations are home to utterly beautiful scenery, interesting history, and amazing African culture.  It sounds like a great trip, too.  I'll keep you posted when I have more details.

Anyway, if you have even the slightest interest in the Galapagos trip drop myself or Kevin a line at our emails addresses above and let us know so we can at least get you on the waiting list.  It's going to be a first-come-first-served booking opportunity with only 12 seats available.

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Oh, I Almost Forgot!!! PhotoPro Expo 2018 Is Right Around The Corner

That's right PhotoPro Expo is coming up next month, February 8 - 12, 2018 at the Northern Kentucky Convention Center located just across the river from Cincinnati OH. This year the Expo is being planned by my good friends Bert and Al Behnke. Bert has been extremely active with the Professional Photographers of America Imaging convention for years and was a natural fit to take over the reigns of PhotoPro Expo.

Click the banner above for all the details.  It's shaping up to be a great show with a fantastic 24 person/speaker line-up, the best in the industry and BIG trade show.  I plan to be there - I hope you will too.  See ya' there!______________________________________________________

Hey Gang,

That's it for today - I've got to get "scooting" out of here. I hope you enjoyed the images and the article links in the newsletter this time around.

I'm heading up to Whistler Mountain in beautiful British Columbia, Canada tomorrow morning to join 21 of my photography buddies for a guys week of skiing, fine wine, and good food (I'm the guest chef on Monday evening's dinner). It should be a blast!

Cheers, David

4 Important Updates and More!

Hi Gang,

I really appreciate you joining me again today.  I know you just heard from me a few days ago but as promised I wanted to give you the latest updates on the home front. It's very exciting!!

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Second African Safari Just Announced!

February 22 - March 4, 2018

That's right! My first Safari [link] sold out within two hours of my announcement on Thursday! I have to tell you - I was extremely, as well as, pleasantly surprised.

Kevin called me immediately and cleared calendars and set dates for a second African Safari. Those new dates are February 22 - March 4, 2018.  Feb 22, 2018 is your travel day from the states to arrive in Johannesburg on Feb. 23. Kevin called me Saturday and told me the second Safari is already 50% sold out. That means we only have 6 seats available. 

This is going to be a once in a life-time event.  Even if you're hanging on the fence, please give Kevin a call at 505-345-6322 or his cell at 505-401-2988 for all details.

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 Wow! I've been called a Legend! 

I kind of smile about that but here's the backstory. So right before Christmas I received a call from my good friend Sandy Puc to be part of her Legends of Photography Tour [link].  Not only is Sandy a fabulous photographer running a successful studio in Denver, she is also one of the best trainers/teachers in the industry.  She has conducted some of the biggest and best attended tours in the country.

Like I said, she calls me right before Christmas to ask me if I would be part of her brand new Legends Tour for 2017 [link]. I have to say... that I was very honored.  The line up is fantastic! Just look at all those good looking folks below and you'll get an idea that this will be the biggest tour series this year!  It's a big deal!

For all the details about the tour just hit any of the links or images above. Now for the really good news. Registration is now listed at $40 but since you are reading this newsletter, I can get you in for only $20 with the

Only $20 with Secret Code DZ20

Register NOW!

Check it out to see which "Legend" is visiting a city near you. You'll find me in Orlando on Tuesday March 28, 2017 - I hope to see you there. D

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PhotoPro Expo 2017 Wrap Up

PhotoPro Expo 2018 Announced

One last thing - we just wrapped PhotoPro Expo 2017 [link] and it was a fantastic conference! Our 24 fabulous instructors rocked the house! Literally - Tony Corbell, our Master of Light turns out to be a master guitarist as well. 

I couldn't believe it but Tony and several others rocked on till the wee hours of the morning (like 4:30 a.m.!) Friday, Saturday, and Sunday. Folks said it was the best time of their lives.  You know, you just can't get that on line.

Plus we raised approximately $3500 for our favorite charity Crayons to Computers and presented them a check for $20,000! They were thrilled as you can imagine. 

And just like every previous year, if you register for next year's PhotoPro Expo 2018 [link] you'll get the best price ever! Details of next year's show have not been posted - but the first 50 or who register get the lowest price possible and Priority Seating - only $109.00 with

Promo Code PPEVIP18.  So don't wait...mark your calendars NOW and register for PhotoPro Expo 2018!

REGISTER NOW!

to reserve your space. 

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GEEK TIP OF THE WEEK - Hacking The Amazon Echo

OK, this is a random thought before I sign off today.  I think most folks in the USA bought an Amazon Echo Dot this year over the holidays as they quickly sold out at $39 on Amazon's website. We have one in about every room of the house right now - LaDawn is totally ready to kill me for my "geeky" habit ;~)

Anyway, here is my Amazon Echo hack.  As you know Pandora Radio, my favorite streaming radio station only streams in the good ol' USA so when LaDawn and I are traveling the world I miss my Pandora.

But I discovered that you can make the Amazon Echo Dot stream Pandora from anywhere in the world.  The secret to getting the Amazon Echo Dot, or any Echo device for that matter, is to set your local USA Zip Code as your location during the set up then hit the road.  The down side is that if you request time or weather you'll receive the zip code you entered not your local out-of-the-USA location. Hey, a small price to pay, right? Still kind of fun.

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Hey Everybody,

That's it for me today. I'm on my way to Cabo San Lucas to spend most of the week with my good friend Kent Smith.  He's got that brand new super cool DJI Mavic drone and we plan to check out.

Until the next time -

Adios for now, David

”Colors of Norway”

”Colors of Norway”
©David A. Ziser

While traveling through Norway a few years ago on a wonderful ocean cruise we stopped at the fascinating and beautiful city of Alesund, Norway. On a cloudy, rainy morning and after departing the ship LaDawn and I explored the city on foot eventually finding our way to the Aksla View Point overlooking the city below.

The geometric layout of the city from that vantage point really facinated me.  There were so many colors repeated and so many shapes and details also repeated that all combined into a certain photographic rhythm that I found fascinating.

After a little post-production in Lightroom and Photoshop to enhance the colors and details, I had the result I wanted.  To me it looks like a photo-realistic painting of the city more than a photograph – I like it.

Camera specs: Canon 5D Mark III fitted with Tamron 28-300 VR lens at  84mm, F8.0 at 1/400 second, ISO 800.

Enjoy!  -David

Travel Photography Pointers: Portugal & Beyond

Good Morning Everybody,

After our brief stay in Gibraltar we headed out to Villamoura, Portugal which was about a 2 1/2 hour drive.  Once again, we were presented with the ever changing landscape.  From wind turbines to those beautifully designed Spanish bridges.  I have to say – Spain has the most exciting modern architecture throughout the country – more than any other country LaDawn and I have traveled.

We finally arrived at our newest destination about 3 in the afternoon. A quick side note – we had always wanted to stay in this resort.  It is one of the jewels of Hilton’s resort locations.  On a whim, I dialed up the US Hilton reservation headquarters and asked if there was any chance in getting into Hilton Villamoura.

It had ben sold out months before when I tried to book it.  Low and behold, there was a last minute cancellation and we were able to change our reservations to this fabulous property.  Clean living, I guess ;~)

Villamoura, Portugal is one of the most popular European travel destinations with it’s beautiful beaches, marinas, and warm weather. This locale also made for a good home base for us to explore the surrounding areas.

Travel Photography Pointers:  Portugal & Beyond

As a professional photographer, photography during our travels is essential.  Remember, I’m not just documenting our travels with “vacation pictures”. My main goal is to capture some great images for fine art posters, wall décor, and app development. More on the app later.

LaDawn and I always travel with two cameras – me with my Canon 5D Mark III and she with the Canon SX50.  Both together offer quality output and an unbelievable range of focal lengths that works perfectly for our travel photography.

Storytelling: Get The Overall Views

One of my goals when shooting travel photography is to tell a story – it’s not just landscapes and sunsets. I like to capture the flavor of the cities and towns.  That may even include the KFC or Pizza Hut restaurants tucked away in some of the far flung locals.

I also like to show the people. This is an image (right)of a young entrepreneurial couple  who just opened their shop one year ago.  They custom create, design and manufacture cork related accessories.  Their products are fascinatingly beautiful and the price is right.  I love the fact that they have put together a concept that is looking to be quite successful for these young entrepreneurs.

Just as you have seen in previous posts, I like to show images that feature the emblematic icons of the country.  Just as the bull is emblematic of Spain, so is the Rooster of Barcelous to Portugal. 

We always try to explore the surrounding towns, villages and often the roads-less-traveled. This is where we really start burning through the megapixels.  Sagres Point was by far the most fascinating locale we visited in Portugal. Sagres Point is a plateau that drops directly into the sea.  Please hit the link right here to get the full details on the really cool part of the world.

The views and the photographs can be quite extraordinary when the weather is just right.  Even with our rather overcast weather during our visit, I still think we captured some very good images.

Another cool thing about this part of the world beyond the churches and castles is how the architecture of the buildings still shows the influence of the Moors from so many years ago.  Check out this image above from the Loule, Portugal showing the market across the street. It looks like is was transplanted from Morocco.

Another thing I like to include in our travel photography is the local cuisine.  In Salamanca, Spain it’s Pulpo – that’s octopus to you and me.  Here in Portugal it’s sardines.  Hey, when in Portugal eat what the Portuguese eat, right?  I dug right in and it was super yummy ;~)

Why not check out the sampling of images below – it will give you a good idea of the photographic story we try to tell during our travels.

		Villamoura, Portugal and Beyond VIEW SLIDE SHOW DOWNLOAD ALL

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Hey gang, that’s it for me today.  I’ve got one more stop in our travels to share  before we fly back to Barcelona, Spain and board our cruise ship for our Atlantic crossing back home. That stop is Seville ,Spain – one of Europe’s most beautiful cities. Hope to see you soon.

Adios for now, David