With social media platforms like Instagram and Facebook, apicture is worth a thousand words. If you're looking for a place for someawesome Insta-worthy photos, you won't be disappointed with what the OuterBanks has to offer! Even if you never post them, it's nice to have an albumchock full of beautiful sights and memories to cherish in years to come. Ifyou're looking for tips on how to take your vacation photos like a pro, justkeep on reading!
#1. Rule of Thirds
This is a classic "rule" in photography. This is all aboutthe photo's composition, not so much what you're taking a picture of. The ideais that an image is most visually appealing when the subject is on a thirdinstead of right in the middle. To figure out what your thirds are, imagineyour screen being divided with two vertical and two horizontal lines as aguide; each line at 1/3 of the image. If you're using a professional camera oreven some digital cameras, these guidelines will already be there for you.Here's a great example taken by one of our past guests, Valery Gaugle, whobrought her dog with her on vacation to one of our pet friendlyproperties.
#2. Use a Familiar Camera
There's nothing more disappointing than taking a bunch ofawesome pictures just to go back through them and find out the lighting andsettings are way off. Pictures end up overexposed, blurry, or too dark. If youjust got a brand-new DSLR camera and aren't familiar with it yet, your vacationmay not be the best time to try it out for the very first time. When you'retrying to get the perfect shot of pelicans flying overhead, dolphins in thewaves, or even your kids playing on the beach, every second counts. If you gettime to take it out and do some test shots to learn the settings beforehand,that would be ideal! I recommend using your smartphone's built-in camera sinceit is likely the one you used the most and you have the quickest access to itfor those unexpected photo opportunities.
#3. Take More Than You Think
If you're familiar with the burst setting on your phone'scamera, take advantage of it! All you have to do is hold down the camera buttonfor a few seconds and you'll get tons of pictures to choose the best frominstead of one at a time.
When it comes to family and vacation photos, you really cannever have too many, so don't be afraid to take pictures of even the thingsthat seem mundane like riding bikes down the street, walking up the beachaccess, or an ice-cream outing with the kids. You can always delete photoslater, but you'll never have that same moment twice!
#4. Be Creative
You don't have to be a professional photographer to get anawesome picture in the Outer Banks. With just a little creativity, any locationcan become insta-worthy! Whether you're playing with filters or even laying inthe sand to get just the right angle shot, a little creativity goes a long way!
#5. Sunrises and Sunsets Always Impress
Some of the most beautiful pictures are the ones wherenature does the work for you. It's hard to resist double-tapping a picture asbeautiful as a sunrise or sunset over the ocean! The Outer Banks is known forsome amazing sunsets, but if you're looking for an Instagram worthy locationand a gorgeous sky to match, hereare a few places for an iconic photo. I'll let these photos speak forthemselves.
#6. Find the Right Subject
Luise Yacono and his dogs, Haley, Laci, and Comet knowexactly what makes the perfect vacation photo. This shot of the lighthouse isawesome by itself...but throw three furry bestfriends and you've struck Instagramgold! There are endless places and things in the OBX to make your vacationpictures awesome. For some ideas of places to go and things to photograph,check out our blog, "GreatPlaces to Take Outer Banks Photos".
#7. Keep it Candid
When you're taking pictures of your family on vacation,remember not everything needs to be posed. A good example of this is anotherphoto submitted by one of our guests of these kids walking to the beach. Whilethe typical photo would be to have all the kids face front and give their best"cheese," this candid shot is memorable and captures what that moment wasreally like. Sometimes the best pose is the one when we think nobody islooking.
At the end of the day, even with all these awesome photos,it doesn't matter how many "likes" you get but the memories made. An OuterBanks vacation is one you won't soon forget and we're here to make sure eachyear is better than the last!
