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Planning a Picture-Perfect Adventure

Jen Shook works at National Geographic in the department that awards research, conservation, and exploration grants. Jen’s background is in archaeology and photojournalism. She loves supporting the important work National Geographic explorers do around the world and enjoys occasionally being an explorer too.

While most people plan their honeymoon with relaxation and margaritas in mind, my fiancé and I had our own agenda: photography. We had both dreamed of shooting in New Zealand for years and a honeymoon seemed like a great excuse to go do it. Planning your travel around photography isn’t as hard as it seems and can actually lead you on a journey that's much more personal than the highly curated vacations most travelers take. Having just returned from my honeymoon in New Zealand with my now husband, I offer the following advice for planning your next photography adventure.

First, research your destination and plan your itinerary with photography in mind. The obvious research—the historical and cultural significance of a place, the monuments and must-see sights posted on Pinterest boards—is a good starting point but includes attractions that almost everyone has photographed. Remember to think outside the tourist map.

The most important thing to do is to plan your shot list—thelist of photos you want to capture. On the ground, a shot list will keep youfocused. Check out local photographers’ websites. Find out which images havealready been executed well by others and consider how you might shoot themdifferently. I didn’t want to take the exact photo of Aoraki/Mount Cook that everyone else had taken. So I planned to be there the night of the new moon so that I could shoot in the Aoraki Mackenzie Dark Sky Reserve the entire night.

Think ahead about how you might get to a different take on thecountry. I would highly recommendplanting yourself in accommodations that are off the beaten path. In New Zealand, we camped at several Department of Conservation campsites, which allowed us to photograph less visited sites at all hours of the day, with the added bonus of being economical!

Don’t expect to get that image you’ve thought about for months in a single hour: Plan for flexibility in your itinerary. Bad weather, bad lighting, equipment malfunctions, and getting lost are always a possibility. Keep in mind that you may need to work a scene for a few hours or days to get “the shot.” When we were hiking the Routeburn Track, we found ourselves in a total whiteout. We couldn’t see anything but foggy clouds a foot in front of our face. So we waited, experimenting with the bizarre illusions the fog portrays in photographs. Then after an hour, there was a break in the clouds and we photographed the 360-degree view of mountains for another couple of hours, which turned our two-day trip to Fiordland into three days.

Get a sense of the day-to-day life in a region and how to photograph it. Before I travel, I like to go online and listen to local radio stations and read local newspapers. These reveal smaller towns that are worth a visit and often produce hidden photographic gems, such as local festivals or events most tourists won’t detour for. When you’re on the ground, talk to the locals about their favorite place in the country to visit. A man we met at breakfast in Wellington told us his favorite place to vacation in the country was Golden Bay. After several other locals agreed, we made room in our itinerary for a daylong detour to shoot at Golden Bay and eat at his favorite spot, the Mussel Inn.

Be comfortable with your equipment and use it often before you travel. That way you can spend time shooting, not reading manuals. Don’t forget to consider the direction of the light and the time of day you’ll be shooting. Get to your destinations early enough to shoot during the golden hours around sunrise and sunset. Lastly, enjoy yourself. Don’t sweat it if you don’t get every photo on your list. You may have planned your trip around photography, but remember that the ultimate goal of photography is to have a meaningful experience and connection with people and place.

See more of Jen's photos in her Your Shot gallery.