Here’s a great travel photography tip; get off the beaten path.
I’m still in Istanbul. I just love that place. OK, we know we love the Blue Mosque and Hagia Sofia. Big, beautiful, just made for your lens. No matter where you travel, everybody goes for all the ‘expected’ landmarks and icons.
But hold on. Some of the coolest, move evocative destinations are on the roads less traveled.We stayed in a beautiful little hotel. Lovely staff. Incredible continental breakfast the way only the Turks can do. If we walked ‘up’ the street, we ended up at Sultanahmet Square, right in the heart of some of the most exquisite street scenes and architecture known to the world.
Did I say how much I love Istanbul?
But in the early morning, I would walk ‘down’ the street. Here is where the real people lived, worked and raised their families. And no, it was not a pristine neighborhood of manicured lawns or stately brownstones. But the streets and houses were abuzz with the life within and outside of them.
I loved this little curve in the road. It oozed with a, let’s call it, rustic urban charm.
I love this shot. It makes me ‘feel’ the way I remember it.
So OK, go shoot the Louvre, Empire State Building or the La Sangrada Familia when you’re there. But get off the beaten path and get some of your best shots.
But don’t tell anybody where you were. The road less traveled should stay that way.
And as always, please help me keep this site alive by browsing through my ebooks or photo galleries of beautiful New York City black and white photography. There you can select a gorgeous high-resolution print file that you can download for only $20 and print it anywhere yourself. And I’ll donate 20% of the purchase price to one of the global humanitarian charities that you can select on checkout.
Until next time, happy shooting.
Bob