Travel
You Need a Neutral Density Filter
As those that have gone on my tours know, I consider a neutral density filter (ND filter for short) mandatory equipment. In fact, besides the camera, lens, and tripod, it is the only piece of mandatory equipment I have. I am always preaching about using ND filters when there is
Organizing Your Photos
New photographers often struggle with creating a system for organizing their photos. This is all about folder structure. Most people innately recognize some utility in organizing by date, but doing so tells you nothing about what’s actually in the folders. Many people want to organize their photos by subject matter
How to Move Your Lightroom Catalog from Your Laptop to Your Desktop
Saving the Organization and Edits You Made While Traveling In a prior article, I showed you a system for backing up your photos while on the road. That system boils down to making 3 copies of your photos, one of which is on an external drive that you can easily
Getting Some Sleep on Your Flight to Europe
Being able to sleep on your flight to Europe adds an extra day to your trip. Assuming your trip is for a week, then you just added 17% to your trip for $0. Your Trip: With and Without Sleeping on the Plane Flights from North America to Europe are almost
Do You Need an International Data Plan for Your Trip to Europe?
Yes, you will need a data plan for your cell phone while in Europe. This is true if you are coming on a tour (such as one of mine to Ireland or France), but it is especially true if you will be traveling around on your own. While you may
How to Save Your Photos While Traveling
Protecting Your Photos Simply and Cheaply You will be taking a lot of photos on your travels. Many of these photos will be really nice and some of them are likely to be spectacular. Losing your data would be a damn shame at best, and catastrophic at worst. Let’s talk
Ireland
Photography Gear for Your Ireland Trip
Let’s get you set up with the right photography gear for your trip to the Wild Atlantic Way. Before we talk about that though, let me caution you against rushing out and buying a bunch of new gear for your trip. I wouldn’t do that. It is very likely that
Rainfall in Ireland: What to Expect
Here is a question you probably have about the weather in Ireland: “Is it going to rain all the time?” Everyone asks that. And, to be sure, Ireland is known for being rainy. It couldn’t be the Emerald Isle without a healthy amount of rain. But no, it isn’t going
Spotlight on Kylemore Abbey
In the remote western side of Ireland, in a wild region called Connemara, sits an abbey called Kylemore. There is a photogenic castle, and it is an easy place to get a great picture. Today I want to tell you a little bit about it so when we visit
Spotlight on Skellig Michael
Skellig Michael is a small island, often referred to as a sea crag, off the coast of the Iveragh peninsula in southwestern Ireland. You reach it by boat – usually from Portmagee – at the tip of the Ring of Kerry. It is famous for its remoteness, its scenery, and
Iconic Photos on Ireland’s West Coast
It is said that you can capture a great photo anywhere. While that may be true, there are certain places in Ireland that sure make it a lot easier to do. In this post, I want to share with you a few of the places to do that along
Things to Do in Dublin
Your Trip to Ireland Likely Starts and Ends in Dublin, So Make it Worthwhile Most Ireland trips begin and end in Dublin, if for no other reason than it is where Ireland’s main airport is. Dublin also happens to be the capital of the Republic of Ireland and its largest
France
Visiting the Louvre
Done incorrectly, visiting the Louvre can be a serious drag. You will have to endure insanely long lines and hassles only to see a few famous pieces of art you’ve seen a thousand pictures of, just to check a box on your itinerary. Your day will be long, frustrating, and
How the Louvre Became the Louvre
If you are like me, once you get to the Louvre you will be as interested in the building itself as what’s in it. The building is so impressive that even if there were no artifacts or artwork in the building, visiting it would still be an amazing experience. As
The Best Views of the Eiffel Tower
No matter who you are, when you go to Paris you want pictures of the Eiffel Tower. It might be pictures of you with the Eiffel Tower in the background, or it might be just pictures of the Eiffel Tower. While you can see the Eiffel Tower from all over
Getting Around Paris
What is the best way to get around Paris? There is no best way. It just depends where you are going. But here we will go through your options. We will use all of them on our tour, partially because we will always strive for the best use of our
Enjoying the French Cafe
With the right attitude and expectations, the French café is one of the best experiences you can ever have. I’d go so far as to say a trip to Paris without spending a considerable amount of time in a café is not a good trip to Paris. But without an
Photography Equipment for Your Trip to France
Perhaps the most important thing to understand about photographing Paris is that you will be the same photographer in Paris as you are at home. That is to say, if you are a wide-angle landscape photographer at home, you are probably going to end up taking wide-angle shots of scenes
Photo Stories
A Walk on Ireland's Wild Atlantic Way
A Drive in the Pyrenees
