Y! Travel Flickr Group member captured this winning image of tourists taking photos and video in Tuscany, Ital …Editor's note: Welcome to Yahoo! Travel Photo of the Week, chosen from the Flickr group created by our readers - you! Each week a professional photographer will select a photo that stands out from the crowd, and explain why they chose it. To have your own photo considered, join our Flickr group and start submitting your own photos!
July 27, 2012
Now that seemingly everyone in the entire world owns at least a couple of digital cameras, photography has never been more popular with the masses, as this week’s Y! Travel Photo of the Week illustrates. Cignale’s image entitled “Souvenir d’ Italie,” taken in Florence, Italy, captures an enormous number of tourist-photographers using digital devices to make photos and video at Piazza Signoria.
Cignale’s choice of black and white works well in removing the distraction of color, which tends to equalize and elevate the curiosity we feel for each face. I love color yet in this photograph, human faces are the most interesting elements, especially with the potentially distracting color removed.
This photograph illustrates the voyeuristic nature of photography, as well. Although it’s impolite to stare at people in everyday life, it is perfectly fine to stare at and closely examine a photograph of people captured on the street, where it’s not polite to stare.
The easy, affordable nature of digital photography has enabled each of us to practice and develop our photographic skills without the necessity or cost of buying and processing film. Now on any weekend we can shoot as many digital photographs as our digital cards and hard drives will hold, seemingly for no cost other than that of your time and energy!
The entire point of photography is to create visual images interesting enough that viewers will stare – at length! A well-made photograph allows viewers to closely examine human beings by scrutinizing a visual image captured, an acceptable way to stare at people, in a sense, without being rude.
Bringing photography to the masses in a more affordable manner than when required to spend $20-$25 on each roll of film has literally changed the world of photography and expanded the legions who can now make affordable photographs (although digital photography does create computer, software and storage expenses).
We enjoyed Cignale’s photograph as a bit of a different spin on the expected travel photograph. Within travel photography there are no limits. Shoot whatever moves you!
Tip of the Week:
No discussion of digital photography should end without mention of the continually necessity to properly download and store the images. It’s a fact many casual (and some professional) photographers fail to properly backup and archive all those terrific photographs.
- Don’t dawdle in downloading your digital files! Make a rule: download your digital photos as soon as you return from traveling! I suggest backing up all images – even the lousy ones – to save time.
- Be redundant about your photography! Backup your photos to TWO or hard drives or storage devices. OR backup your photos to one hard drive then also burn them to CD or DVD. Hard drives eventually fail, like any mechanical device, so it’s important to store your images on more than one drive or on removable media.
- Once downloaded, label the folders containing your images clearly, i.e. “Italy vacation 2012,” etc. I prefer labeling by name rather than date though whatever works is best for you!
Gary Parker is an advertising, corporate and editorial photographer based in the heart of Silicon Valley in San Jose, CA. Gary was a staff travel photographer for Southern Living Magazine, as well as a frequent travel photographer for Sunset Magazine. Gary was twice named a National Newspaper Photographer of the Year, Southern Photographer of the Year and has won international advertising and editorial awards. Gary’s work may be seen on either of his websites: garyparker.com and CatDogPhotography.com
