Taking off Travel blog

Looking for some ideas for Christmas photos? Need some tips on how to take photos that will make your cousin jealous?  I have a few for you to try out.

First, make sure before your photo shoot that your battery is fully charged, or you have plenty of extra in case the low battery light comes on.  Invest in a big memory card, or have plenty of smaller ones handy so that you are always ready and don’t have to utter those words, “My card is full!”

You don’t want to be haunted by photos of Christmas Past, right?  You know what I mean.  Pictures of your kids holding up their newly opened gifts right next to their cheek and giving you that cheesy smile?  We all have those.  Let’s exorcise that ghost of an idea right out the window.  Instead, for a few of the photos, take a photo of your daughter right as she is discovering the gift she’s been wanting.  Try to get that special moment of excitement, because those cannot be recreated!

Take photos of the decorations before they are hung on the tree.  Take a photo of the lights burning.  Take pictures as you wrap your pretty presents.  Let your mind go  and take photos of anything and everything.

Some great photos may come from the kitchen with Mom and the kids baking the Christmas cookies.  And, don’t stand so far away from your subjects. Move or zoom in closer to fill up your frame.  Focus on your subjects faces, the cookies, their hands making the cookies, or anything you find interesting.  You will get some great, memorable shots.

For outside shots, I often take a tripod, turn the flash off and set the camera to auto.  For more experimental shots, I play with the settings. After all, with digital you can see what they look like on the camera and either keep or delete it.  After all, you’ve taken enough of those amateurish photos, play with some shots.

Step out of your comfort zone and just go for it.  Take a few photos from a different perspective.  Get down on the floor or on the ground and shoot up at your kids.  Take a shot from your dog’s eye view. (You’ll understand why he is always stealing your food with it right at his nose.) Don’t always make the middle of your photo the focal point.  Making it off center will add some interesting perspectives to your shots.

There are some great free, or inexpensive, photo editing tools, like an online version of Photoshop.  It’s a very limited for the free version, but I’ve used it before when away from my photo editor.  Play with filters and you can make a mediocre photo look like a work of art.

Let your imagination go wild and just let your inner Ansel Adams go wild.  Christmas memories are some of the most precious moments so grab that camera, tripod, and extra batteries and get to snapping!  And, send us some of your favorite photos.  We’d love to see them here at ParkRideFlyUSA.com!

Today is Patriot Day, when we remember those killed on September 11, 2001. The day has been observed since 2002, making today the 10th anniversary of its observance. Here’s a collection of Patriot Day photos to mark the occasion.

To celebrate National Golf Month, we’ve found some photos of golf courses with some interesting features.

Golf on an Island

To start off, here’s a photo of a golf green that is on its own island.

Next, here’s a different type of island. There’s a great view on this course on Grand Cayman.

Old Tees

Could these tees be as old as the game itself?

Obstacle Course

There’s just no way you can play through this obstacle – the elk wins this round!

Snow and Ice

Finally, here’s what the Buffalo Thunder Resort course looks like in winter.

I don’t know about you but I always take tons of photos every summer. I might upload a few of them but many just languish on my hard drive, never to be seen again. If the same thing happens to you, then consider entering some of your best photos into a summer photography contest instead. Here are a few to get you started.

1. CheapAir SPF 31 – 31 Days to Show Us Your Summer Photos

CheapAir is holding its SPF31 summer photo contest. Here’s what the company says:

“One of the best things about summer is the memories that come with it. From barbeques, beach days and family vacations to the Fourth of July, pool parties and road trips—summertime presents endless opportunities for epic fun. To celebrate the magic of summer, CheapAir is hosting a photo contest and giving away fantastic prizes to five winners, including a free flight, beach gear and more! “

Deadline: July 31 Entry details and full T&Cs are on CheapAir.com’s blog.

2. Viator’s Summer Photo Contest

Viator’s Summer Photo Contest has a whopping $5,000 grand prize, with chances to win $200 every two weeks. Here’s what Viator says about the contest:

“Every 2 weeks, we’ll post a video of one of our Dream Travel Job finalists announcing a new photo contest topic and prize. You’ll then have 14 days to submit a photo related to that week’s topic. We’ll select one winning photo for each topic (6 winners in total), all leading up to the end-of-summer grand prize of a $5,000 Dream Vacation!”

Full contest details available here.

3. Aperture Colors of Summer Photography Contest

This contest is already open, but it runs till the end of August. After that there will be a month of public voting before the announcement of the winners. The prize package is worth $245 and includes a Zenfolio website. See the details and some of the current entries on the Aperture site.

4. Klehm Summer Photography Contest

Klehm’s first ever digital photo contest started on June 25 and runs till September 21. If you enjoy taking photos of nature and are planning on visiting Klehm Arboretum, then this could be a good bet. Check out the contest details here.

5. Other Summer Photo Contests

Of course, these aren’t the only photo contests out there. There are several more with due dates ranging from July to September. The Photography Competitions site has a list of photo contests that are free to enter, so why not try your luck there?

Traveling this summer? Enjoy summer savings with Park Ride Fly USA’s discount airport parking coupon. (Image courtesy of CheapAir.)

April is National Garden Month – a time to celebrate gardens and gardening. The National Gardening Association provides a list of ways to celebrate the occasion. We’re celebrating on the Taking Off Travel Blog with images of beautiful gardens from around the world.

A Mediterranean Garden

Busch Gardens, Tampa

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