Digital Travel Photography Digital Field Guide

Chapter 2. Prepping Your Digital Camera for a Smooth Trip

In This chapter

• Your pretrip checkout

• Packing your gear

• Features and settings check

Digital photographers need to be prepared. Even if your trip is an impromptu visit with no set itinerary, you find that you come home with better photographs if you prepare ahead of time. And if your travels are tightly scripted with each stop planned in advance, a little work before you leave lets you get the most from the time you have available for taking pictures.

Try all the key features on your camera to make sure it's operating properly, work through a check list to ensure that you're toting along everything you need, and then finish with a pre-trip familiarization (or re-familiarization) tour of your camera's key features so, on arrival, you can literally hit the ground running.

Your Pretrip Checkout

Check out your camera and other equipment before you leave to make sure everything is working as it should. You may snap more pictures in the week or two after departure than you take the rest of the year, so make sure that your digital camera is up to the task. This next section lists some things to consider.

Cleaning house

The first thing to do is clean and adjust your camera inside and out. A clean camera operates smoothly and produces the best picture quality.

Lenses

The front surfaces of both fixed lenses and interchangeable lenses are cleaned in exactly the same way. Inspect the lens and make sure no smudges, fingerprints, or grit has adhered ...