You just spent two weeks in Greece. The sea sparkled, the sunsets burned, the vistas took your breath away. And somehow, you didn’t get a single great photo.

Next time, things can be different. You don’t need an expensive camera to take really good travel photos—with these tips, you’ll get better results even if you’re using a smartphone.

1. Change your perspective.

Most travel photos are shot from eye level, about 5 to 6 feet off the ground. Sometimes, getting a memorable shot can be as simple as raising or lowering your phone or camera. Say you’re watching the sun rise over the ocean on the Outer Banks. Rest your phone on the beach and select near-depth focus, and you’ll capture the sun’s red light glinting on grains of sand.

If you’re photographing a person or a landscape, try raising your camera above your head and taking a few shots that way. A higher camera angle can sometimes create a better flow in your composition, emphasizing the space between subjects in the foreground and middle ground.

2. Turn around.

Here’s one of our favorite travel photography tips: If you’re at a spectacle or an event, don’t just take photos of what’s happening. Capture the reaction.

For example, photos of fireworks, parades, and holiday lights are pretty dull. But if you turn around and focus on your children’s joyful faces, you’ll get travel photos you can treasure forever.

3. Use the Rule of Thirds for travel photography.

Do your travel photos feel flat? That might be because you’re centering the subject every time. Instead, try varying your composition: arranging the elements in the picture in a way that pleases the eye and gives a sense of depth, movement, or story.

The most famous is the Rule of Thirds, or the 3:1 rule in photography. Imagine your photo is divided by four lines into a 3x3 grid. Place important elements—whether a mountain peak, a country church, or a giraffe—at the intersection points in the grid. Lines, such as the horizon or a highway, can be aligned with the lines in the grid. Some photography apps overlay this grid onto your phone screen, making it easy to visualize the Rule of Thirds.

4. Include foreground interest.

Sweeping landscapes can take your breath away, but they’re hard to photograph well. Include a point of interest in the foreground to give your photo a greater sense of depth and scale. It could be a person, a sign, or a single gnarled tree.

Also look for leading lines: elements that draw the viewer’s eyes deeper into the photo, such as a winding path, a meandering creek, or a line of fenceposts.

5. Get there really, really early (or be the last to leave).

How do you get a photo of a beautiful place without tons of people ruining your shot? You have to be there when the tourists aren’t. Pro photographers know that if you want a magical photo of the Charles Bridge in Prague, you have to get there at sunrise. For an otherworldly shot of the ruins at Tikal in Guatemala, linger until sunset. Learn how to avoid the crowds: How to Skip Long Lines on Your Next Trip.

6. Invest in a high-quality phone camera app.

Wondering how to take good travel photos with your phone? Start by getting an app that gives you more control over your camera. Halide is one of the best apps for serious photographers. It includes manual focus options as well as focus assist; the ability to take raw-format photos with minimal processing; histograms and a built-in Image Lab; and more.

For editing your travel photos, Adobe Lightroom is a favorite app—and it’s free. Enhance photo quality, remove elements you don’t want, apply filters, and more.

7. Consider buying some basic travel photography gear.

There’s no need to spend thousands of dollars on lenses and accessories if you’re not a serious photographer. You can, however, take better travel photos by investing in a few key pieces. These can include:

• A gimbal for your phone or camera. A must-have for travel vloggers and influencers, an electronic gimbal is a handheld stabilizer that allows you to capture smooth videos and track fast-moving subjects. A photography gimbal is a mechanical accessory for a tripod that holds your camera at a specific angle.
• A travel tripod that allows you to take long-exposure shots, shoot in low light conditions, shoot from different angles, and take self-portraits.
• A waterproof phone case for taking underwater photos (and protecting your phone in case it gets submerged). These vary a lot in price and quality, from a $10 pouch to a high-tech case like the ones from Divevolk, which have a wide-angle lens and red filter for underwater color correction.
• A macro lens that clips onto your phone allows you to take magical photos of small things close up: flowers, insects, interesting textures. Telephoto lenses for phones, on the other hand, get mixed reviews.¹

8. Get travel insurance that includes baggage protection.

You can’t take great vacation photos if your camera gets stolen or broken. Are cameras covered by travel insurance? Yes—but there are some limits.

Travel insurance with baggage loss/damage benefits can reimburse you for items that are stolen, lost, or damaged while you’re on your trip. Cameras, camera equipment, phones, and other electronics are considered high-value items, which means they’re covered up to the maximum benefit for high-value items shown in your plan documents.

Travel insurance will pay you, less available refunds, the lesser of the following, up to the maximum benefit listed in your plan documents:

• The cost to repair the damaged baggage; or
• The cost to replace the lost, damaged, or stolen baggage with the same or similar item, reduced by 10% for each full year since the original purchase date, up to the maximum of 50% reduction.

Read the baggage benefits section of your plan documents before you go, so you understand what’s covered. Need travel insurance for your upcoming trip? Get a quote right now.

9. Don’t risk your life for a good travel photo.

Did you know that selfies kill more people than shark bites? In a study of selfie deaths in a 13-year period, researchers determined the most common causes: falls from heights (including waterfalls), transportation accidents, drowning, and injury (by weapons, electricity, and animals).²

Please don’t add your name to the list! Never put yourself in danger just to get a photo. Don’t chase wildlife, climb over barriers, or ignore warning signs. And don’t hang out of a train door, even if everyone else is doing it.

10. Remember, your travel photos are your travel photos.

Your photos don’t have to catalog all the popular sights at your destination. They should reflect your one-of-a-kind travel experience. What strikes you as beautiful? What views do you most want to remember?  What are your favorite moments? Capturing those memories is all that really matters.

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