PLAN YOUR SHOOT
Be ready with an idea of which images you want to capture and where you need to be
When travelling to any unfamiliar location, planning is key to ensuring an efficient and productive shoot, which is also safe and enjoyable. Today there are a plethora of tools we can use to plan a city-based shoot down to the finest detail. Using online resources we can work out where to stay to gain access to the most landmarks with ease, how long we should spend at any spot, and can even previsualise our composition before we even leave the house. This level of organisational ability enables us to arrive on-location with a clear goal for each frame and a sense of purpose. It reminds us that our job as a photographer is to capture the essence of a city – the culture, architecture and atmosphere which make it unique from other places. This approach is just as important if you’re shooting a familiar city, as it will enable you to look at it from a tourist’s perspective.
The first stage in planning any shoot is to look online for similar shots to the ones you hope to take. A quick Google search of the city will reveal the most popular views of the location and where you should set up your camera to take them. This helps in two ways. Firstly it tells you which shots are the ‘musthaves’ – the frames which people will expect you to capture and be disappointed if you don’t – and secondly it gives you insight into the less-shot views, allowing you to plan to shoot something a bit different. This aspect is an even more important consideration if you are shooting commercially. ‘Different’ doesn’t always sell well, so knowing what people want to see in images of a place is critical.
The next stage is to use a resource like Google Maps to examine the relative distances between places and ways to get around. This is especially important if you are carrying heavy camera gear – you need to minimise unnecessary movement as much as possible, in this case. Meanwhile Street View will allow you to actually see the buildings and street layout, making it possible to pick out potential subject matter ahead of your shoot.