Light is undoubtedly instrumental in photography. As photographers, we love to put our participants in the best light during our portrait sessions, and the best time for that happens to be... that's right, early in the morning! While waking up early after a long flight towards your well-planned vacation may not sound very exciting at first, we have to say it is absolutely worth the effort. Here are 4 reasons why you should start your portrait session soon after sunrise...

Fion and Max, a charismatic couple from Hong Kong, met our photographer Hermione McCosh earlier this year in Paris for an elegant engagement session. From Le Marais, where they stopped for some photos in the garden of Hôtel de Sully and in the arcades of Place des Vosges, they continued along the Seine river, popped in the famous Shakespeare and Co. bookstore, and finally ended their session with the classic Parisian view over the Eiffel tower. Congratulations on your engagement, Fion and Max!

Our activities at Better Travel Photos are not only about learning photography, getting more comfortable with your camera, and discovering new locations along the way, but also about people guiding the Photo tours. As photography instructors and guides, we do our best to teach you new photography skills and to make sure you enjoy this experience in our company. So if you are curious to know more about those people with cameras welcoming you in Paris and London, please meet one of our team members,  photographer Brian Jannsen!

The world is small for a loving couple when one comes from Canada, the other - from Switzerland...  and the two first meet in Australia! Now happily married, Kate and Remy like to come to Paris every spring to celebrate Kate's birthday. This year they decided to do something special and asked photographer Nadia Gric to capture memories of them in The City of Light. The session started by Notre Dame cathedral...

Every city has its secrets: hundreds of years of history unfold in front of you as you scout the streets in search of the best images. Knowing the background of a building in front of you may fuel a great deal of inspiration and help you compose a stronger image with a story. One of the ways to get to know the location better is to take a walking tour with an experienced local guide. You may find, however, that during such a guided walking tour there is not enough time for a proper photographic exploration as the group moves quickly from one location to another. Not all is lost though. Here are 9 tips on how to make the most of a guided tour and get some great architecture photos along the way.

Right after getting married, happy newlyweds Kapil and Manali packed their suitcases and headed to Paris for their honeymoon. They asked our photographer Elena Usacheva to capture memories of this very special trip during a portrait session around the Eiffel tower. Kapil and Manali's love and tenderness for each other shine in every photo!

What image comes to your mind first when you think of Paris? Let me guess... I am quite sure it's the Eiffel tower, the Louvre, the cafés, maybe even the white Sacré Coeur Basilica at the top of Montmartre. Paris, however, is a big city with many different corners and some of them are so untypical that you may easily forget you are in the French capital. While you may of course want to photograph all the iconic sights on your first visit, there is more to this city to explore through your lens. So let's get off the beaten path, get a camera and travel within Paris to discover La Mouzaïa, a charming residential area in the North-East of the city.

Getting the correct exposure of a highly contrasted scene can be tricky to handle, especially if you are taking some photos on the go and do not have time to stop and think twice about the camera settings. There are various ways to adjust the exposure, such as using exposure compensation or center weighted metering. In some situations, however, every moment counts, and you may need a quick and easy solution to get your image right. This is where the exposure lock button on your DSLR camera may prove helpful. Let's see how to quickly and easily adjust the exposure on the go without touching any of the camera settings other than the exposure lock.

Carly and Matthew have known each other for many years and have already visited Paris on several occasions. This time, however, this happily married couple decided to have a portrait session around the Eiffel tower to capture the memories of their stay in the French capital. I met them on an early winter morning on the Bir Hakeim bridge, and we had a fun time together walking around, chatting, and of course taking photos!

With the return of sunny days, each major city explodes with outdoor events, attracting not only thousands of participants, but also photographers, professional and amateur alike. After all, isn't it fun to do some event photography? This year, I decided to add more color to my photos and went to photograph The Color Run in Paris. This experience gave me some valuable insights that I would like to share, and hopefully they will inspire you to photograph The Color Run of your own.

Outdoor portrait sessions, whether romantic or family style, are a great opportunity to leave your own camera or smartphone behind, keep beautiful memories of your trip, and to simply enjoy the time with your loved ones and the city around you! Unlike studio portraits, outdoor sessions are subject to various weather conditions. While you may easily pose indoors in a fancy dress or a smart shirt, the same outfit may not be the most suitable one for a windy December day in Paris or a foggy morning in London. The key ingredient for feeling comfortable is therefore dressing according to the temperature, whether it's a hot summer day or a cool autumn afternoon, because feeling good means looking good!

While most of travel photography is usually about documenting the people you meet and the things you see along the way, or the events that happen to you and around you, there is a way to cross the line and to turn your documentary travel photographs into fine art. How to do it? Think abstract! Learning to see shapes, patterns and colours through your camera lens is not only good training for your creative eye, but also lots of fun!