Over the last couple of months, we’ve spoken to a number of professional photographers from all around the world, asking them for some of their personal tips on achieving perfect travel photography. They’ve offered up advice on everything from capturing specific locations, to when and where to take pictures, to their own personal tips for getting the most out of natural and manmade photography opportunities.
On this particular occasion, we’ve spoken to the incredibly talented photographer and cinematographer Tomasz Huczek, whose taken some breath-taking images from around the world, and has agreed to let us in on a few of his secrets to capturing the island of Cyprus at its best.
If you’re looking for a place to take some great holiday photographs, Cyprus – with its wealth of ancient history, endlessly stretching beaches, stunning mountain ranges and famed wine-growing regions – is an excellent choice. No matter where you’re staying, the type of camera you have, or the length of your holiday, armed with Tomasz’s advice, you can be sure that you’ll end up taking some photographs to be proud of.
We started by asking Tomasz what he looks for in an area to photograph.
One of the most important aspects of landscape photography for me is composition. What I usually do is try to compose the frame in a way that there’s some sort of a subject in the foreground, like a rock or a pier. It adds more depth to the picture and leads our eyes to the background. In the picture below, the posts are in the foreground and they lead the eyes towards the centre of the frame, revealing the sea in the background:
Image Credit: Tomasz Huczek flickr
How do you get the best out of ruins like Kourion & Amathus?
In places like that, I prefer to avoid including people in the frame. Often it means I have to visit such places off-season, or at times of day when they’re a little quieter. Another idea is to try to capture the ruins at night with the stars in the sky. It’s quite easy in Cyprus as the sky is clear most of the time.
What about Aphrodite’s rock; any advice for people trying to take great photos?
What I always look for is to try to capture the commonly visited places in an unusual way. This means that I will try to visit the place during ‘golden hour’, when the light is the most beautiful. I will also look for different perspectives, like in the picture below.
Image Credit: Tomasz Huczek flickr
The rocks in the foreground add some depth and create a less common view of Aphrodite’s Rock in the background.
How do you go about photographing the Cypriot coastline?
The coastline in Cyprus is quite diverse and what I like the most is the cliffs that you can find in Cape Greco, or the ones near Pissouri. Captured on a windy day they create a very dramatic effect!
You often take landscape shots at sunrise & sunset; how do you get the most out of these times of day?
Unfortunately, there’s no perfect formula for that. When I want to capture a specific place I keep going there over and over again until the weather cooperates and gives me beautiful light. When this happens, I usually have 15-20 minutes to take the pictures. This means that there’s not that much time to set up the camera, find the desired composition and grab a few long-exposure shots (which can last up to couple of minutes each). Having a composition in mind beforehand helps with this a lot.
What tips would you give to someone trying to capture rolling landscapes like the Troodos Mountains?
The mountains look best when captured with the sun behind our back or from the side. This helps enhance the structure and the texture. Adding the foreground element, as before, adds depth, creates many layers and builds the perspective.
Image Credit: Tomasz Huczec flickr
What’s your approach when taking photos of farmland & rural areas?
The general idea is the same – I try to find some distinctive elements, patterns or textures. The sun plays an important role but its placement has to be different than in the coastline photos. The proper position of the sun can enhance the shape of the land by painting the shadows and highlights. As usual, I would try to find some foreground element to balance the composition and create more depth (my favourite word!).
If you wanted to encapsulate Cyprus in a photo, where would you go?
For a lot of people, Cyprus is thought of primarily as a touristic destination. However, having lived there for a few years, what I appreciate the most are the natural unpopulated areas. The first place that comes to my mind is Akamas. There are so many beautiful spots and endless possibilities to capture, so I think I would go there!
As you’ll have undoubtedly discovered from Tomasz’s photographs, Cyprus is a truly beautiful nation, and one where there really are boundless opportunities to take amazing holiday photographs. So why not book your trip today, bring your camera along, and get exploring for yourself? With these helpful tips in mind, you’ll be sure to take some shots which will bring back happy memories for years to come.
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