Practical Tips for Travel Photos: Dealing with Bad Weather
When the weather is gorgeous and the skies are blue it really isn't so hard to take some beautiful vacation photos. 
If the weather isn't cooperating with your travel plans, however, it can be a little more challenging to capture great photos on a dreary day. Here are a few practical photography tips to make the best of the weather and get some lovely shots on your trip.
Adjust your white balance
Gloomy or cloudy weather can give a cold feeling to your photos if you don't have the white balance set properly on your camera. Find out how you can adjust it on your camera and either manually set it or put it in cloudy mode. Personally, I always shoot in raw with my camera because I love the flexibility of being able to tweak the white balance on my photos after the fact. Having the right white balance can really affect the quality of your picture.
Limit the amount of blank sky
Capturing a large expanse of sky that is filled with a vibrant sunset or interesting clouds set against a backdrop of blue can make a lovely photo. A picture that is predominately blank, white sky, however, is not so interesting. There is no rule that says the horizon line needs to be in the middle of your photo so try tilting your camera down a bit to minimize the empty space. Another trick is to like up tall things, like trees or buildings, in the foreground your picture to fill up the expanse. You can also try tilting the frame a bit to play around with the composition to find a way to minimize blank sky.
Creatively add color
Grey days can result in photos that seem to have no color in them. Avoid drab photos by actively trying to add color in. Look around for a patch of flowers, a brightly colored door, colorful umbrellas or a tree with bright foliage and then move around until you can find a composition of your subject that can include it. For me this often means a lot of crouching or standing on tip toes so I can line things up, but it is worth it.
Focus on details
One nice thing about overcast weather is that you don't have harsh shadows caused by bright sunlight. The diffuse light makes it a perfect time to take photos of details of things, especially items like carvings which have a lot of depth and could get swallowed up in shadows.
Embrace the weather
Don't fight the weather. It is part of your experience on your trip so embrace it. Take pictures of people with brightly colored umbrellas and raindrops on leaves. Using puddle reflections can also provide fun pictures. Dark, angry, stormy skies make a lovely backdrop for great photos. Also, be on the look out for rainbows after the rain subsides.
Best of luck for wonderful weather on your next trip! Happy travels!
Thursday, May 3, 2012 at 6:23AM | Posted by Lisa | 5 Comments | Share Article | Email Article | Print Article 
Reader Comments (5)
Thanks for the photo tips! I especially like the one about creatively adding color on overcast days. You're photos are gorgeous.
Thanks for the photo tips - my goal is to return to my photo training and move the dSLR off Auto. White balance - lots to learn and try on that one.
Learning more each day with your tips and your photos. I appreciate you sharing your experiences. Do you display a lot of your photographs in your home? If so, what size do you feel is optimal?
Veronique, Antioch, CA
My favorite days to shoot are those with overcast skies. The diffuse light is so pleasing without all the harsh shadows. Your tips are wonderful, and I really enjoyed reading them. My favorite was about looking for reflections. I never seem to think about that, but the effect is so pleasing. Thanks for the great reminder!
Theresa- Thank you so much! I'm glad that you like the tips.
Mary-Lou- Thank you! White balance can be tough and I'm not the best at getting it right. That's precisely why I like to shoot in raw. It lets me fix things later if I need to.
Veronique- Thank you! I have a number of my pictures around my house. Mostly I have them printed in black and white at 12"x16". It's a nice large size, but with Costco prices, not so tough on the budget. By the way, that's neat that you live in Antioch. I was an East Bay girl for six years.
Sandy- Thank you! Overcast skies can give really nice light, can't they? Reflections are definitely fun to play around with.