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Sri Lanka Photography Tips: 10 Expert Secrets for Better Pictures

On May 10, 2019 / Photography Tips, Sri Lanka

tips to take better pictures in Sri Lanka by Laurent Dambies

Sri Lanka offers an impressive number of photo locations for photography enthusiasts and travelers, both on and off the beaten path.In the morning, you can take photos of the sun rising behind a fog-shrouded mountain, and in the evening witness capture a vibrant red sunset at the beach. We hope these 10 photography tips will help you in taking better pictures on your trip in Sri Lanka.

1. CHECK THE WEATHER

Sri Lanka’s diverse climate and location make it an ideal destination for photographers all year round. With two monsoons each year – southwestern monsoon from May to September, and northeastern monsoon from October to February – the country’s weather can be unpredictable, particularly in the highlands. For up-to-date weather forecasts, visit the website of the Sri Lanka Department of Meteorology.

2. TAKE THE TRAIN

No trip to Sri Lanka is complete without taking at least one train ride. This adventure is highly recommended as it provides numerous opportunities for photographers. Additionally, it is the most economical mode of transportation for reaching various locations throughout the island. It’s also a favorite among locals, making it an excellent choice for people photography.

The Kandy-Ella train journey, in particular, is incredibly scenic as it passes through mountains and tea plantations. We suggest traveling in second or third class to get access the exit doors and windows. Similarly, the coastal train ride offers breathtaking views, especially a few kilometers south of Colombo, where the train runs just a few feet away from the crashing waves.

So, don’t miss the chance to embark on an unforgettable train journey in Sri Lanka and capture some stunning photographs along the way.

3. BEAT THE CROWD

While Sri Lanka has some locations with relatively less tourists, some popular destinations like Kandy, Ella, and Fort Galle often attract large numbers of visitors. To make the most of your experience in these places, we suggest waking up early to capture stunning photographs of these hotspots before the crowds arrive.

4. HIKE THOSE TRAILS

Sri Lanka offers numerous hiking trails suitable for individuals with varying fitness levels. Some of the most renowned trails include Adam’s Peak, Ella’s Peak, and the Knuckles mountain range. These locations offer breathtaking views of the landscape, particularly during sunrise when the mist is still present, providing a unique opportunity for capturing stunning photographs.

Top of Little Adam’s Peak in Ella

Shadow of Adam’s peak (Sri Pada) at sunrise

Golden light at sunrise with mist in Sigiriya

5. TRAVEL LIGHT

As you will likely be walking and hiking frequently during your stay, we would highly recommend bringing a small bag to carry your photo gear. It doesn’t necessarily need to be a photo backpack, but it should be padded enough to protect your equipment while you’re on the move. Given that some hikes can last several hours, it’s also important to be selective with the gear you bring along.

Tea estate workers in the highlands

6. TAKE A LONG LENS

Because of the many photography opportunities available in Sri Lanka, a wide lens or a standard zoom lens might not enough. A long lens (300 mm or more) is recommended for wildlife photography but also for landscape photography to isolate details.

Sigiriya rock fortress at sunrise

Bahirawakanda Vihara Buddha Statue in Kandy at sunset

7. PREPARE YOUR SHOTS

For landscape photography, we recommend to use TPE (The Photographer’s Ephemeris), available as paid app for Android and IOS and free on a web browser. For train shots, have a look at the timetable as even if the trains do not run fast, you have only few seconds to be on the right spot. Be aware than they can run up to 30 minutes late.

Passenger train on the Demodara nine arch bridge in Ella

8. CHECK THE CALENDAR OF FESTIVITIES AND NATIONAL HOLIDAYS

Many people in Sri Lanka are following Buddhism so the Sihanese New Year celebrated during the month of April is a major holiday. This can disrupt your travel plans but also give some unique photo opportunities. For photography there are some festivals like the famous Esala Perahera festival taking place in Kandy during the month of August.

Dutch Reformed Church in Galle Fort

9. GET CREATIVE WITH ND FILTERS

ND (neutral density) filters block a fraction of the light coming into the camera sensor and thus allow you to have longer exposure times during the day. It is particular suitable for waterfalls and seascapes, and Sri Lanka has plenty of those!

Unless you a shooting in low light conditions (sunrise or sunset) where a ND8 filter could be enough (3-stops reduction), be prepare to use a very dark filter during the day. In the pictures below, a 10-stops reduction filter was used (also called ND1000).

10. TAKE A SMALL TRIPOD

If you do not carry a fiber carbon tripod, I recommended to take with you a steady and small tripod for long exposure shots. It is even better if you add a fluid head.

Huawei P9 lite review for photographers

On February 9, 2017 / blog

I recently upgraded my smartphone to a Huawei P9 lite and took it with me in the temples of Angkor during my photography tours along with a 5D Mark II.

The P9 lite, released in April 2016, packs a 13M-Pixel (4160X3120pixels) CMOS Image Sensor (Sony IMX 214, 1.12µm pixels) with a f:2.0 front camera. It lacks the dual Leica lens system and raw capture from his counterpart the Huawei P9 plus. Focal length has a 35 mm equivalent focal length of a 27 mm.

Camera operation

The camera has a quick access and when in standby it is very quick to start. By sweeping left one can access the menu to switch to pro photo. In this mode, shutter speed, ISO and white balance can be changed. When shutter speed is determined by the camera, exposure can be adjusted with the exposure compensation slide (-4 to +4 eV). Three focus mode are available: AF-S (spot), AF-C (continuous) and MF (manual focus). White balance can be changed to the usual values from tungsten to cloudy. Like in many DSLR, 3 metering modes are available: spot, center-weighted and evaluative. ISO can be set between 100 and 1600 ISO. In auto, the camera can set it as low as 50 ISO.

HDR mode

HDR can be useful to get more details in the shadow. The HDR mode of the P9 quite good , however there is no option to chose the strengh of the processing. It works particularly well with textures like on this 9th century temple strangled by a tree in the lost city of Koh Ker in Cambodia.

Macro

The P9 do not have a dedicated function for macro but the focusing distance of about 3 cm make up for it. The amount of details picked up by the camera is quite impressive. This macro shot of a praying mantis was shot in a very bright light and the details are in the same levels than a DSLR (the DSLR shot being slightly out of focus). For comparison you can see below a cropped version of the P9 and a Canon 750D side by side:

Panorama mode

Panorama mode is accessed from the camera by sweeping up the screen from the left. From there is an option to do either horizontal or vertical panorama.

Generally the stitching is quite good although errors can happen at low ambient light. One of the main drawback I have found is that it is not possible to lock the exposure before taking a panorama so it high contrasted scenes are difficult to capture.

Night Photography

Light painting on a pagoda. Pro photo mode 8 s pose, ISO 100

Swiping up the screen from the left let you choose two modes: night shot and light painting. In night shot mode, ISO can be set up between 100 and 1600 ISO and shutter speed up to 32 seconds. Using the 2-second timer (by swiping up screen from the right) helps to avoid blurry pictures.

The second mode available is Light painting and has 3 presets: Tail lights, Light graffiti, Silky water and Star track. They differentiate themselves by the ISO settings: Tail lights, Light graffiti: 64 ISO / Silky water: auto ISO / Star track: 800 ISO. All presets allow very long exposure time, the camera stays open until the shutter button is pressed again. Pro mode can be used for night photography but exposure time is limited to 8 seconds.

The Light graffiti preset was designed to write letters or paint shapes in the dark with a LED light but it can be used in more creative ways to create abstract backgrounds like this backlit laptop keyboard below.

Laptop keyboard backlit. Graffiti mode 7.2 seconds, ISO 64

Slow Motion

The Huawei P9 can record slow motion at 120 fps but be aware that the resolution is quite low at only 640X480 pixels (VGA). You can see on the video below of a lotus flower opening, both normal and slow motion sequences (4 times slower).

Conclusion

The Huawei P9 lite is the ideal companion for any travel photographer and has a good image quality. Of course it cannot be compared to a DSLR but in some situations it can the best camera as it can fit in your pocket. The different modes available allow you to produce some really creative images.

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The atmospheric temple jungle of Beng Mealea

Angkor Temples Under the Stars

On February 1, 2017 / blog

From time to time, we have requests about capturing the Milky Way or star trails in the temples of Angkor. Unfortunately due to the archaeological park’s opening hours (most temples are only open between 7.30 am and 5.30 pm), night photography in the temples is quite difficult.
January and February are the most favorable months to take pictures of the temples under the stars. Angkor Wat temple opens at 5 am therefore it is possible to capture long exposure of the night sky. Of course you will not be able to do very long star trails and only several minutes long exposures. Like for any astrophotography, you have to be aware of the phase of the moon as a full moon will disrupt your plan to get a starry sky. Here are few night pictures below we capture in the temples of Angkor, we will update this gallery from time to time with new shots.

Phnom Bakheng temple under a full moon

Phnom Bakheng temple is a 10th century hilltop temple, very popular as it drawn thousands of visitors everyday for sunset. Going there at sunrise is a unique photography experience even with a full moon.

phnom bakheng temple stars angkor travel photography

Phnom Bakheng tower under the stars illuminated by a full moon

phnom bakheng temple full moon night angkor travel photography

Phnom Bakheng shrines under the full moon

Angkor Wat under the stars

Angkor Wat under the stars is a challenging capture as your camera will facing east. Also, because the temple opens at 5 am, it is, for many months of the year, already too late to capture the stars. Another challenge is coming for the light pollution from the numerous LED torch used by the earliest visitor to navigate in the park at night. In the two pictures below you can see three of the five towers of Angkor Wat illuminated by those LED’s. Despite all that, it is still possible to see stars above Angkor Wat temple just before the astronomical sunrise.

Angkor Wat under thousand of stars

Angkor Wat temple before sunrise under starry sky

Angkor Wat library under the stars

Bakong temple after sunset

In the picture below, the beautiful three-tiered Bakong temple mountain, built during the 10th century is in the company of Jupiter and Venus in this rare planetary conjunction taken in October 2015.

Bakong temple after sunset with Venus and Jupiter

Bayon temple under the moon full

Bayon temple lit up by full moon

If you are looking for a photographic challenge and want to capture Angkor under the stars we will be happy to assist you, please have a look at the many photography tours we have at www.angkorphotographytours.com.

Best Time to Visit Siem Reap and Take Photographs in Angkor Cambodia

On March 17, 2016 / Cambodia

Cambodia sits just about the equatorial zone where the weather is mostly warm to hot all year round. Just like all countries with tropical climates, there are only two seasons – the wet and the dry.

One of the recurring question among visitors and photographers is what is the best time to visit Siem Reap and Cambodia in general?

The dry season starts in October and ends in April and it usually lasts longer than the wet season. This is the time when scorching heat brought about by the northeast monsoon dries up the land turning the Cambodian countryside into spectacles of golden paddy fields and creating fine powdery white to tawny colored dusty dirt roads. There are cool months though, from November to January, which is also considered high season by many tour operators particularly in Siem Reap. Tourists flock the temples of Angkor at this time of the year as they make the most out of the cool weather without having to worry of being soaked in the rain. Around the months of January and March, hazy skies can be observed giving the sun a fiery red ball effect, perfect for capturing stunning sunset at the Angkor Thom moat as shown in the picture below.

Red ball sun over Angkor Thom moat in March

On the other hand, wet season runs from May to September caused by the southwest monsoon. It tends to rain most days of the week, generally heavy downpours that usually last for a few hours. There are days when the rain is quite light but it continues all day long. Wet season in Cambodia means low season for tourism in Siem Reap and Angkor Wat. For tourists and photography enthusiasts, visiting during the wet season has its lovely perks. Aside from being less crowded, spectacular cloud formations and charming colors can be seen in the morning. The countryside looks more alive with lush foliage. The green scenery is quite striking amidst the drenched surroundings. The dusty dirt roads are now soggy mud pits and the meadows are flourishing with vegetation. The moats surrounding the temples are filled with water and there are pools of water everywhere ideal for taking reflection photos.

angkor wat temple causeway photography tours

Angkor Wat temple seen from the west causeway in September

Banteay Kdei with green pond in October

Bayon temple reflection photography tours

Bayon temple at dusk with water reflection

Some temples are putting up their green moss robe during the monsoon season as in Preah Khan and Ta Prohm temples. You can see more pictures of the temples of Angkor during the green season on our blog Cambodia Green Season.

Buddha carving moss preah khan angkor photography tours

Buddha carving covered in moss in Preah Khan temple in October

Sandstone moss Ta Prohm photography tours

Numbered sandstone block covered with moss in Ta Prohm temple in September

Sunrise and sunset intervals also change during the seasons. In January, sun rises the latest at around 6:30am while in June, sun rises the earliest at around 5:30am. While the sun sets earliest in January normally around 5:30pm and not later than 6:00pm, it sets relatively late in June at around 6:30pm. Sun path also varies with the seasons. Angkor Wat in particular is exposed to a very different light in the months of June and December: standing on the central causeway you will see the sun rising on the right side or left side of the temple respectively. You can see below the dramatic change in light at the northern corridor.

Devata carvings in Angkor Wat corridor in December

Devata carvings in Angkor Wat corridor lit up by the sun in June

Angkor Wat sunrise with temple reflection on the pond in October

Apart from the temples, the Cambodian countryside is changing drastically between the dry and the wet season with lotus and paddy fields appearing and disappearing from the landscape.

Farmer working on a paddy field in the Cambodian countryside in November

Lotus flowers pond in August

Each season has its advantages and disadvantages, nevertheless, if you are a photography aficionado, any season is a good season to visit Siem Reap and capture the beauty of Angkor.

Countryside landscape near Siem Reap Cambodia in September

To conclude, especially if you are a photographer, all year around is good to take pictures in Cambodia.

If you are heading to Cambodia soon and you are wondering about the weather in Siem Reap, you can have look at the live siem reap weather map below.

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