Travel is the ultimate joy when it comes to practicing photography. I believe that travel teaches you more about yourself and the world around you than any other experience.
Personal growth
During my last big trip to Hanoi, Vietnam, I found myself thinking a lot more clearly while walking around the tranquil lakes there. Something about being an outsider in a new place with beautiful views and atmosphere helps me to unwind and reset. Walking around the lakes, I was able to think more about my goals in life and what I find to be the purpose of everything. I actually wound up changing my entire photography process when I returned home because I had some deeper thoughts about my work in Hanoi. While I enjoyed my time photographing there, engaging with the people, enjoying the delicious coffee, food, etc. it was also an opportunity for me to shift my worldview and thoughts about photography. Perhaps travel can teach you more about yourself than anything else.
Paradigm shifts
After every trip by paradigm slightly shifts and transforms into something new. I wind up appreciating different cultures and having a better understanding about others. This allows me to become more open to other people and their way of life. Specifically, I remember my time in Zambia, Africa being the most transformative. Living for a year in a remote village really does set things into perspective. You’re quite literally living off of the land. I learned that you don’t need much to be happy. I was dependent upon clean water from a borehole and fish from a lake to sustain myself. I learned how to live amongst a new community, learn a different language, and engage in various new cultural practices. The experience of living somewhere new for an extended period of time will completely shift your worldview and help you appreciate the small things in life.
Photography improvement
Personally, my photography has improved throughout my travels. I find that the nuances of a new place allow for growth. What happens is, you are testing your skills to the maximum. It’s not easy to travel somewhere new and come home with a successful photographic catalog. But, you will find that through practice and repetition in your hometown for an extended period of time helps. When you hit the streets in a new place, you’ll be surprised with how comfortable you become. When you’re open to understanding a new place for what it is without any preconceived notions of what you may find, engage with the people, and remain playful, you will ultimately come home with some successful frames. I think that when you travel somewhere new, there’s actually more of a higher success rate with your photography because everything is overstimulating and new. This engages you more with the place, keeps you on your toes, and ultimately keeps you out there on the streets. When I travel somewhere new, I never want to go to sleep and strive to be out there with my camera all day and night putting the work in. It’s good to push yourself and I believe in order to do that you should travel somewhere new and really test your skills. My practical suggestion is to try and set aside a month of time to spend in a new place. This will give you enough time to get a sense of what it’s like to live in a city and go at your own pace without too much stress. Don’t do any day trips, or go out of your way to travel around. Just stay put and walk around for a month.