How My Wanderlust Spirit is Finally Satisfied

It’s very unlikely for us to perfectly remember the smell of the ocean, the thrill of the scuba diving experience, the awe of the most beautiful panoramic San Francisco view, so that’s when photography steps in and brings all of these sensations back to trigger our memories. Each place we visit has its own particularity, its own culture and its own ambience and we really want these special feelings towards “the new and the unknown” to be stored in our memories. Travelling is offering us a chance to discover ourselves over and over again, but most of all, it shows us that our world is a flawless place to live, create, dream, laugh and cry. So when we, the professional travel photographers, are doing our job, we think and we feel as much as we look in order to make photographs that will give a glimpse of our feelings, our view of the world and our state of mind.

Every travel destination is wonderful, only some are more adventurous than others. Every corner of the world has something to offer to a photographer, whether it’s a landscape, a historic place or a tradition, but not everyone can create candid images that have the power to blow people’s minds. There’s no trick in making real photography, there’s no magic nor there’s a strict definition. You can’t be a photographer if you don’t listen to your heart, if you’re not curious and finally if you’re not authentic. Anyone can buy a digital camera and pretend to be a photographer, but only the ones who go deeper than just capturing a scene or a portrait will be the ones that will experience the real thrill of photography. Just like authors and poets tell stories through words, photographers tell stories through photography and that’s actually its main purpose: narrating powerful, unique stories from our world.

If you think you’re brave and curious enough to make a living traveling around the globe while making photography, the most important lesson (beside doing a deep research on the destination) is how to protect your equipment. I’ve had many equipment misadventures throughout all these years working as a professional photographer on the road. Sometimes I was losing sometimes I was damaging my thousands and thousands of dollars worth equipment and that hurt both my heart and my wallet. Keeping your camera equipment safe and secured should be your top priority once you decide starting the adventure of your lifetime. For that I would deeply recommend a camera insurance and a hard pelican case that will keep all your devices unharmed. There is a variety of quality pelican products Australia wide that will definitely cost you less than a new pair of lenses or a new camera. Look for the ones that are waterproof, although most of them are and make sure they have insurance.

Mine features foam on the inside to keep the devices even more safe and it weighs around 5 kilos. You can find many pelican products Australia specialized online shops that will send you their products to your home in just a few days. Honestly, I don’t know how my trips would go on if I kept losing valuable equipment, so besides your passport and your wallet, the pelican case should be your “must” traveling item. Also, register all your new gear with the manufacturer. Write down the serial numbers and definitely save your purchase receipts to help you with the insurance. If you have your name and your serial number on the image EXIF data, you can easily track down your camera if it gets stolen.

Last but not least, make the most out of the day. Wake up early, because you know what they say, the early bird gets the worm. Plus the light of the first hours of the day is probably the most suitable natural photography light. You can make astonishing sunrise photography and in addition you won’t have to deal with big crowds of people. Waking up early should be your daily ritual that will help you discover the rhythm of life in the place. All over the world mornings are the most beautiful part of the day. It’s when the cities and the villages wake up to grasp the next 24 hours ahead of them and that’s always so compelling to observe. In the end, never ever be in a hurry to get somewhere else. Enjoy the moment and the place and get the best out of the situation you’re in.