8 Travel Photography Tips For Solo Travelers

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When you travel alone, the hardest part is getting a good photo of yourself in front of all the iconic landmarks. Hey, you want to prove you’ve been, right?

We’re always being asked what our best travel photography tips for solo travelers is, especially when you’re too shy to ask a stranger to help you.

I don’t market myself as a professional travel photographer by any means, Instagrammer maybe, but that being said, I do try and improve my photos where I can and I like to have a nice photo of me when I travel.

So, that’s why I’ve written this guide, so you can bring some great shots home with you as a travel souvenir, and not a blurry photo that’s half covered with someone’s thumb!

Solo Travel Photography Tips

1. Offer to take photos for strangers, and ask for one back

Personally, I’ve found that as a social solo female traveler, people find me non-threatening and approachable, which is so awesome and works both ways.

If there are people around, I would usually go up to someone and ask if they wouldn’t mind taking my picture.

I do it in the friendliest, nicest way possible, in that I offer to take someone’s photo for them and then ask if they would do the same for me.

If they are a couple or with someone else, or solo too, it’s a nice gesture to offer take their photo for them before asking for reciprocation as they will probably want a photo together.

And, obviously, I give them the sneaky once-over and mentally weigh out the chances that they will run away with my camera and/or if I can outrun them to get it back.

Teach them how to use your camera

The majority of people might not know how to operate your camera if you have a DSLR, so carefully explain to them how to use it and set up the settings first, so they can just fling the strap over their neck, point and shoot.

I use a big SLR camera, which can be intimidating, so by making sure I have the settings right and the zoom in the right place before handing it over, it means I get a decent shot at the end.

Depending on how friendly and open they are, you might tell them how you would like the shot composed, such as where to aim, how to frame it, different angles, where to focus etc, but I don’t like to push my luck.

2. Use a Tripod and self-timer for epic travel photos

If you’re doing a lot of hiking and trekking out in the mountains alone, you might not encounter people to take a photo for you, so pack a travel tripod when visiting remote areas.

I also like to compose some artful shots, such as shots of me staring off in the distance, or standing on a rock or something, which is just easier to do with a tripod and maybe even a bluetooth remote shutter button.

You can also put your camera in burst mode and pick the best photos.

For point and shoot cameras, or smaller cameras, you definitely don’t need to invest in a big fancy tripod for these, you can use a small, tough Gorilla Pod that you can set anywhere or hang on anything.

Even if you’re into photography, having a smaller tripod that’s lightweight and doesn’t weigh your bag down is super handy to have.

The flexible tentacle tripods are great for travel as they are small and you can wrap the legs around a log or poles, so you don’t have to have all your shots from ground level. I particularly like this one with suction cups, which makes them sturdier.

3. Use a Selfie stick for your solo travel photos

I feel like I risk internet banishment by publicly admitting to owning a selfie stick, but I live by a 100% honesty policy and I would hate to let you down.

Selfie sticks are an excellent investment for solo travelers if you want easy travel pictures of yourself. You can get one that has an attachment for your iphone, which full disclosure, you risk looking ridiculous if you use in front of other people, but are great for when no one else is around.

I use my selfie stick mostly with my GoPro, which is great for any sort of adventure activity, underwater selfies, animal photobombs and cool fisheye selfies while traveling.

4. Join group activities

Even though I mostly travel by myself, it doesn’t mean I am usually alone. I tend to sign up for group day trips and tours, pub crawls, cooking classes and other activities as a way to meet people on the road.

Solo travelers tend to congregate on these kinds of trips and it becomes super easy to ask people to take travel photos for you, or even with you.

In fact, many adventure activities usually have a guide taking travel photos for you as well, which is another great way to get shots you might want.

Guides tend to have a lot of experience taking photos for people and have tips on how to pose. The tour guides in Bali should get a particular shout out for this – check out this guide, he really knows what he’s doing!

5. Choose the right time to shoot

The best time of day for solo photography is when the sky is a bit overcast. When it’s bright sunshine, it can cause a glare on your photos, or make them overexposed.

Try to find a shadey spot to stand in so that your sheltered from the sun when taking photos.

Of course, sunrise and sunset have fantastic lighting and creates amazing photos, but we can’t have every photo in golden hour.

6. Get the right equipment

If you don’t want to use your smartphone and you want to up your photography skills, then you can purchase a DSLR camera.

DSLR cameras are an investment, but they are definitely worth it if you want good photos.

A popular DSLR for travel photographers and travel bloggers is the Sony A7 series, or the Canon EOS 6D. These both have a video function as well.

Choose one with a wireless function so you can bluetooth the photos to your phone for editing on the fly.

Invest in a wide-angle lens, which is the best lens for landscapes, so you can take in more in the shot. If you only have space for one lens on your travel, make it a 24-70mm lens.

7. Learn to use Adobe Lightroom

Personally, I think Adobe Lightroom is better than Photoshop when it comes to travel photography.

You can change the colors, brightness and contrast, and make simple edits to make the colors pop!

Photoshop is more about adding and removing elements, and warping a photo, whereas Lightroom helps bring out the best in what’s already in the photo.

There’s also a Lightroom App so you can edit photos on your phone for Instagram and other social media platforms.

8. Be careful with your travel camera gear

I thought I would go ahead and give a little mention of how I manage to travel around the world with all my camera gear without having problems.

Many people will have more valuable camera equipment than me while many don’t. It varies.

For me, the most important factor is not flaunting the fact that I carry expensive travel gear. One of our biggest safety tips for travel in general is to not show off your valuables.

This means I use camera bags that don’t look like camera bags, just an ordinary backpack, and I don’t generally walk around with my camera slung around my neck unless I am actually shooting at that moment.

Just in case, I have really good property insurance that covers my camera gear.

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