Magic Moments in Time: How to Take Great and Timeless Photos
Magic moments, like this spectacular sunset, produce timeless photos in Southern Iceland.
I love travel and I love photography, and it's been great to marry these two passions together in my quest to turn magic moments into truly timeless photos.
It’s incredible to be able to experience truly magic moments in our travels. And being able to create timeless photos, that preserve the sublime beauty in our journey through life, is the ultimate reward for the wandering traveller with us all.
The above photo was made during my first trip to Iceland, when I drove all the way around this breathtakingly beautiful country.
I remember this spectacular sunset well.
The warm, sunset light illuminated the clouds and sky, and reflected off the water creating a strong compositional shape that separated the water from the silhouetted landscape surrounding it.
A long exposure enabled me to create a smooth, almost textureless rendering of the water which, I feel, adds an ethereal mood to the photo.
I made the photo on my first night driving along Iceland’s Route 1, the famous 820 mile (1322 km) Ring Road that enabled me to drive and photograph all the way around this incredible island nation.
Weather in Iceland is fickle and it was, by far, the best sunset I experienced during that entire trip.
Magic Moments and Travel Photography
One of the most amazing things travel offers is the opportunity to make photos in truly spectacular locations.
For me, it’s the intimate nature of those truly magic moments that provides the most vivid and potent memories.
I’ve been extremely fortunate to have witnessed and photograph a large and varied range of fascinating subject matter including the following:
Mass concentrations of wildlife and people
Extraordinarily beautiful landscapes
Grand palaces and museums
Charming medieval towns
Historic churches and picturesque farmhouses
Fascinating and beautiful people
About To Travel?
Travel the World and Experience Magic Moments
I was travelling deep into the Highlands region of Iceland when, while crossing a high pass, I was faced with this dramatic, highly textured scene.
A panoramic framing allowed me to use the mountains on the left and right hand side of the scene to frame the rock formation in the centre of the photo. Doing so enhanced its importance as the primary focal point within the composition.
I've photographed under all manner of weather and light, and I'm always looking forward to the next adventure travel photography brings my way.
But that's only half of what I'm about.
The purpose of the Travel Photography Guru website and blog is to share the photos I make, and the lessons learned in making them, with an ever wider audience.
Thank you for the support you provide me, each and every time you visit this site.
It's my hope that some of the magic moments I've experienced in my journeys will find their way into your own life, and inspire you to undertake your own photography projects, whether at home or abroad.
In doing so, you’ll build your own connections and experience your own revelations as you immerse yourself in the sublime beauty of our world and its people.
Magic moments, like this sheep shelter in lush pasture, abound in Iceland.
Magic Moments Lead to timeless Photos
The timeless quality of black and white photos is indisputable.
I made this photo of a sheep shelter, nestled in lush, well watered pasture in rural Iceland.
It's interesting what thoughts pass through ones mind, along with the urgent considerations relating to actually making a photo, when confronted by such spectacular scenery.
At such times I don't feel so much apart from nature, but connected to it.
“I believe it’s in such moments of deep connection that we’re able to link with the ultimate mystery and, in doing so, begin to discover our own true self.”
It’s good to remember that the creative mind is an open mind and that magic moments lead to timeless photos.
Despite the texture and rich tonality throughout the scene, I knew this image was ideally suited to a black and white rendering.
Timeless photo of the Vik Lutheran church in Southern Iceland.
Magic Moments and Past Lives Remembered
It's interesting how, as we get older, loss becomes one of the dominant themes in our lives.
There have been numerous times in my life, when witnessing events such as the sunset at the top of this post, that I've thought of my parents.
My father passed a number of years ago, at 78 years of age, and my mother, more recently, at age 93.
This post is dedicated to my parents, Fred Guy, OAM, and Mary Guy, OAM, who’s dedication to the poor and disadvantaged brought real and lasting changes to the lives of many, many people, both at home and abroad.
