Of all the posts shared on Facebook by brands, 75% are photos.
About 70 million photos are shared on Instagram every day.
It’s long been known that sharing photos on Twitter increases engagement.
It’s safe to say that people like online photos. The trends seem to point toward even more photo sharing in the future. Smartphone cameras are improving and faster connections allow for faster uploading and viewing on websites and in apps.
For you, a travel business owner, you want to get the attention of travelers online. In order to do that you have to share photos that your potential visitors will find unique and interesting.
You probably have a lot of great opportunities for photos. The scenery around most travel businesses is amazing, but you can’t just take any photo. There are a few tricks for taking better photos that will stand out more online.
Use these tips to get more engagement.
Tip #1. Take Photos With Real People
Beautiful landscape photos are wonderful in the right context. If you’re talking about the beauty of the city or the beauty of a scene you’re looking at then use a big beautiful landscape shot.
But studies show that people online like photos that include people. And you can’t get away with stock photos with people or with generic items. People, for whatever reason, want to see other real people when they’re looking at photos.
So when you’re taking photos include your business partner in the frame. Take turns taking photos of scenes around your travel business of each other.
You can try to take photos with your visitors and guests. You’ll probably be okay, but make sure you have their permission. You can get into some potential trouble.
But take photos with you and your staff. People will pay attention.
Tip #2. Look For Unique Colors
Color is an obvious item to look for in photos, but it’s not as easy to find as you might think. There are a lot of dull photos online and people don’t really care for them.
But if you get a photo with some really unique color elements you’re going to have something special that people will love.
Have patience to find color. It could be something that stands out in a cityscape or it could be the nature light of a sunset.
Tip #3. Avoid Unsightly Photo Bomb Items
As you can see in the photo above, I didn’t do a very good job with this photo. You can see the stop sign, a car mirror and a few other unsightly items that bomb a pretty good photo.
You can take the best photos in the world in amazing locations, but take an extra moment to look for photo bomb items. It could be anything from rope to a puddle or even something flying in the air in the background.
And if you get a good photo make sure to crop out photo bomb items before posting and sharing.
Tip #4. Leave Something To The Imagination
Yes, I talked about including people in your photos, but you don’t want to do that all the time. It’s also good to leave people to fill in the blanks on their own.
In the photo above you see the tip of the kayak. You know the photographer is sitting in the kayak taking the photo, but you can’t see them.
That’s something intriguing that pulls people in. Leave a little to the imagination. Show your cup of coffee sitting on a table next to chair with you out of the frame. Or take a landscape photo and explain what was just out of frame.
Tip #5. Have Some Fun
It’s okay to have fun while you’re taking photos. I’m guilty of this. I smile for photos, but don’t let myself have some fun.
People like to see silly and unplanned things happen. If you slip and step in a puddle or if you drop your delicious dessert. Those things can make for some amazing photos that people will love.
Also a bonus tip here to finish things up: horizontal photos work best online.
Vertical photos can work, but stick to horizontal photos for the best results online.
Conclusion
Hopefully these tips are helpful. The final tip I’ll share is to get in the habit now of taking photos on a regular schedule. Set aside even 20 minutes each day to take even one photo. Give yourself the goal to take one photo each day for a year.
Think of all the great photos you can take in a year. That’s 365 photos to share on social media this year and in the coming years.
You could even do it one day a week where you take 30 minutes or an hour to take a dozen photos of your area and your business.
Get it on your calendar and commit. You’ll be sharing great photos online in no time!
