I placed my 16-kilogram camera bag on the floor and settled into the lounge of a small airport on the remote Indonesian island of Sumba, waiting for my seventh flight of this international journey. While scrolling through Instagram, I came across a clip of a podcast featuring Daniel Norton, who said, “This is our life. When you are a photographer, your job is not being a photographer; you are a photographer. This is what you do. It’s just in you, and you are always a photographer.” His words resonated deeply with me, encapsulating my mindset for this photography expedition. This trip marked one year since I left the corporate world behind, transforming my long-standing passion for landscape, street, and portrait photography, along with filmmaking, into a profession. Let’s discuss how to prepare for an international trip and what to achieve from it, while maintaining your passion as a professional photographer.
While I have planned many photography adventures in the past, this one was the most loaded. I viewed it as an investment in time and money, hopeful for a return that would at least cover my costs and generate new revenue streams. By adopting a structured approach, you can maximise the opportunities that arise during your travels and enhance your creative endeavours.
Define your goals
International planning is more than just creating a list of preferred locations, arranging logistics, studying weather conditions, and creating content.
Define the following:
- What are your products?
- What do you want to achieve at a given destination?
Business is about cost versus benefit; for the money spent on transportation, accommodation, visas, travel guides, and food, among other expenses, there needs to be an assessed return on investment.
With two decades of experience in landscape photography, street photography, and portraiture, I am also passionate about sharing my knowledge through online courses and my YouTube channel. The following table highlights a few examples of categories I created for my trip to Indonesia and provides a broad outline of my objectives.
| # | Category | Product | Target Area |
| 1 | Photography instructor | Existing and new online courses | Beginner and amateur photographers |
| 2 | Professional writer | Articles | International and local online blogs and photography magazines |
| 3 | YouTube and Instagram | Photography and travel videos | Social media presence, business exposure |
| 4 | Photography portfolio | High-quality images | Social media, personal website, and new clients/partners. |
| 5 | Existing partnerships | Long and short form content on social media | Sales and commission |
A goal-directed intensive research was needed to align my itinerary with these purposes in mind. I made constant revisions on my Excel sheets, found local guides and photographers, calculated costs, and determined the required content for each business category. Let’s explore it further.
Your Role and Mindset: Photography vs. Video
Based on your objectives, you consciously need to decide what takes priority: photography or video. For my trip, I realised that I am pitching myself to my customers as a photographer, not a filmmaker. While video was important, taking photos became my priority, and I planned around that. It doesn’t mean that you completely ignore one or the other. For example, during a few shoots I did with the locals, I would first take photos and then make videos, while my POV-style DJI Osmo action camera, which I was carrying, would be recording at all times.
Tight Gear Selection – Be on Point!
Select cameras, lenses, and other equipment that support the mission. Make a list. You cannot take all your equipment. Select items based on your goals. The following are some of my gear choices planned for business. Note that this is not a comprehensive list; I also carried additional items, including essential tech.
| # | Gear | Purpose |
| 1 | Sigma Prime Lenses for Sony e-Mount: 50mm f1.4 DG Art, 85mm f1.4 DG Art | Street photography and portraitsPaid gear reviewOnline course |
| 2 | Tamron 17-28 f2.8 for Sony e-Mount | Landscape photographyPaid gear review |
| Sony 70-200mm f2.8 OSS lens | Street and landscape photographyOnline course | |
| 3 | NiSi ND filters | Long exposure photography course |
| 4 | Sony a7R IV and Sony a7S III | For photo and videoA7R IV online review |
| 5 | DJI Osmo Action | Behind the scenes |
| 6 | DJI Drone Mavic Air 2s | Video and behind the scenes |
As mentioned earlier, the bag weighed 16 kg and felt heavier as the trip unfolded, and with every slope I climbed. Planning highlighted that I needed to justify every piece of equipment I packed.
Planning Outcome and Actions
Familiarise yourself with the target locations. I did that for over a week, prioritising what I wanted to shoot, and planned based on the distances between the locations, weather conditions, and most importantly, risks involved. For example, I abandoned the idea of visiting the famous volcano, Mount Bromo, for its sunrise shot due to unpredictable weather, high costs, and the long hours of driving. I cannot emphasise enough how travel consumes more than you think, in terms of time, energy, and money. Don’t plan too much for a single day, and factor flexibility into your schedule. By engaging in a planning process, you may achieve the following outcomes:
| Planning Outcome | Actions |
| Costs | Accept costs or cut expenses by dropping a location or travel guide, finding cheaper accommodation, or adjusting logistics. Assess if you can recover costs by creating content for both existing and new customers. |
| Shot List | The shots you choose will guide your gear selection, enabling you to create content tailored to your clients. |
| Logistics | Book accommodation and transport – know what must be done ahead of time and what can be arranged ad hoc. Local flights are often easier to book right there. Be aware of local options, such as taxis, scooters, or public transportation. |
| Hiring Guides | Can you do it alone, or do you need help? Some shoots required hiring guides to arrange local talent, drivers, and accommodations, as well as to translate during the sessions. While hiring guides can be expensive, their convenience in unfamiliar places is valuable and can personalise your experience. Some guides connected me with other photographers, allowing us to share costs. |
| Networking | Contact local photographers and talents, exchange numbers, follow them on social media, and learn from their business models. |
Additional Steps for Planning an International Trip
- Language Barriers: Learn the local way of greetings, such as saying hello and thank you – the smallest attempt warms interactions. Consider hiring guides or installing the Google Translate app and downloading the local language for offline use.
- Negotiating Rates: Everything is negotiable; travel guides don’t have fixed rates as they charge different rates to foreigners than locals. Don’t be shy and ask for discounts if you think the rate needs to be negotiated.
- Backups: Invest in multiple external hard drives to store your data in different locations, and consider uploading to the cloud whenever possible. Do this regularly, as there is nothing more tragic than losing your data.
- Local laws: Familiarise yourself with local laws, such as restrictions on the use of drones and other photography regulations. Be aware of medication and drug laws – what is considered prescription medication in your country may be considered illegal when travelling. Certain foods, such as meat products, are not permitted to be carried across borders. Do your research.
- Sponsors and Partnerships: Brand sponsorships and partnerships can effectively reduce trip costs. In the pre-planning stage, approaching brands for high-quality content in exchange for payment creates a mutually beneficial arrangement.
Maintaining Your Passion
Having an agenda helps you push through exhaustion on your trip, motivating you to wake up early for that breathtaking sunrise. When you encounter a stunning waterfall, listen to the birds, or watch a dedicated Balinese dancer, you realise that being a creator is about transformative experiences, not just money. With or without the camera, you experience the world as a creator. Remember that and savour the images in your memory bank.
While this article is largely about advice on how to travel for a professional photography trip, remember that not every experience is about what you measurably get back. Some of what you see and what you create is just for you and for your own satisfaction.
Feature Image by Muji – Dancing Trees of Sumba, Indonesia
