Questions on traveling (taking photos of the sights)

[white camellia]

It's been a few days since I returned from a trip. As I reviewed the great deal of landscape photos taken there, suddenly, I can't seem to comprehend the point of doing this - while the answer goes positive toward the obvious nature and function of the act, an act derived from the desire of possessing the things (sights) which had a mysterious (we have no idea about its exact extent) sensational power over the visitor, probably limited to the time and space (when we beheld the sights and where they existed), it goes negative toward a meaning beyond that. For instance, I recorded a mountain line that shapes like an elephant (in an 'amazing' manner) with my digital camera. What is the point of recognizing the common acknowledgment of the assemblance by chance or whatever, and then the point of making an even pointless copy of it to show others who haven't got a chance to see the 'incredible' sight?

What do you think? I do not think taking photos contributes much to a meaningful trip. What makes a good travel? Stories in and behind the place and the people who make the stories there, perhaps.

[Remarkable]

Taking pictures is part of the vanity.It is to show someone that "I have been there,I have seen it"...It is probably much more pointless than photos with friends and family where however bad your hair model or however ignorant the photographer,you absolutely love them...

[kasie]

If you have been back for only a few days, white camellia, you probably have the memories fresh in your mind and the photos are but a poor representation of the places that seemed so wonderful to you when you saw them. However in a few days/weeks/months/years, those memories will have faded and then all you will have of your trip will be those photos and they will become precious to you.

I think the secret of holiday/tour pictures is to take what interests you, not what might interest/impress your friends and family back home. I took a picture of a water feature in a street in Sydney last year - no one can work out what it is (though it makes an interesting talking point! :D ) but the point of the picture is that it recreates for me the delight I felt when I first saw it.

Also, make notes about your pictures - you won't be able to remember where that elephant mountain was in a few weeks (somewhere on the Li River?)

Edit your photos too - print off a selection to show friends - the rest are just for you. Keep the best, get rid of the blurred ones.

And practise with your camera - get to know its capabilities. Perhaps it is not capable of general landscapes - you really need a wide-angle lens to do landscapes justice: buy postcards if you want to remember those. Take pictures of things you can't find postcards of, market stalls, flower displays, people strolling in parks, coils of rope on a quayside, ducks squabbling over bread, things that catch your eye, that will make you look at them one dark winter evening and remember how glad you felt when you first saw them.

[InspireMe]

i think taking photos is very important on a trip! like kasie said, it can be something to look back on years later when you don't really remember much of the place you visited. for me personally, sometimes bringing my camera is too much of a distraction because i'm always thinking, "oh, this will be an awesome shot." or, "i HAVE to take a picture of that!"
i'm so caught up in trying to capture the moments that i don't even take the time to appreciate everything around me with my own eyes.