In Bruges

In today’s post I will try and talk a little bit about travel photography based on the photos I have managed to take while I was in Bruges, Belgium. Throughout my trip I was trying to capture the uniqueness of this beautiful little Flemish city.

First I wanted to photograph some buildings. But I always held in mind not to make them simple building images, but to show something different and exceptional in every photograph, even if with just a new angle. For me it was very useful to capture the smaller details, and some of them became very interesting and unique. The aim is to show the details of what make that particular place what it is and why it is special.

With the channel flowing through the city I have tried to take some pictures that captured reflections in the water. These were the best during nighttime. For this I used slower shutter speed, which I could only do if I put the camera down to a stone or rail. If there wasn't any, I set the ISO sensitivity to a higher level and set a wider aperture. I recommend the use of a tripod for this kind of photography because the high ISO sensitivity can take away from the resolution of the photograph.

Also the best night-photographs are made right after sunset, in the ‘blue-hour’ when the sky isn’t entirely black, and there are still details visible.

Another interesting discovery was how much can a person add to a usual city or travel photograph. With the first picture I was consciously composing the man on the bicycle into the picture, but on the second it was pure coincidence that he rode into the picture when I released the shutter.

Travel photography is an interesting source of inspiration and even the amateur photographers can experiment and take chances.  They are in a completely strange town and just for a limited amount time, so they can practice more freely.