Tips to how to get VACATION STYLE PICTURES, in your own city!

I did have the fortune to take a vacation last year to Hawaii, but most of my time is spent locally where I live!  

Do you see beautiful Instagram profiles and Facebook posts of people who constantly visit these beautiful locations and have beautiful pictures to share from their experiences?

Yea, me too!  As we are all too aware, not everyone can afford the time or $ to be jetting off to Iceland, Hawaii or Bali all year, but rest assured, you have beauty surrounding you right in your back yard, or somewhat close by! We just have to retrain our eye and get creative!

Today's blog will focus on how to find those cool places and get "vacation-esque" photos when you can't go on vacation!


1)  If you like to get out to hike (flat lands or mountain ranges), the All Trails App provides a ton of beautiful trails and will give you great information  about what you may see AND reference pictures are usually provided by other people like you and I  See if you can find a view that is what you would love to see and photograph!

2) Using our mutual friend "google", search for larger parks and unique areas of interest, such as the Botanic Gardens,  in your city or town! If you live in a tiny town, check out the next city that offers some cool attractions!  It's usually worth a little drive to check out something new and won't cost more than a tank of gas!  When I was growing up, I clearly remember driving 2+ hours to get to the larger city to see things I couldn't see back at home!

Based on a basic search "Denver Attractions" I found a list of amazing places to not only visit, but to get some stunning photographs!!

3) Body's of water, be it a lake, pond or river/creek, make a perfect setting for pictures and beauty!  I remember taking a picture in a little spot I found on a local creek, that totally looked like it was taken in a tropical location, but was in Colorado!

Another google search of "Denver Lakes (in my area) pulled up a nice selection, some of which are totally new to me, even after living here for 20 years!

4) Do you live in the flat lands?  Fields full of beautiful blowing grasses area FANTASTIC to visit for the vast expanse of golden (or green) grasses that be create some really kick ass pictures!  Flower fields, corn fields even!  Get creative!

Grasses are one of my FAVORITE places to shoot pictures!  Especially if there is a little breeze!  You can create stunning, dynamic images and get creative with angles and mood!

5) Live near mountains?  Easy peasy! There should be access to forests, trails, views, waterfalls, water etc....you can find it ALL and be able to have some vacation-esque images within a short drive!

Just like if you live by a beach, mountains can offer endlessly incredible places to photograph and the variety of landscapes is expansive!

6) Live by the coast? Total no brainer lol.  It doesn't even matter if you have someone to photograph that you know!  Head down to your local beach and capture surfers, beach walkers, beach blankets and umbrellas, the flora and fauna! 

Ok I know I was actually ON vacation when I took these "example pics" but if I lived by the coast, I would do the same thing!! 😜

7) City Scapes can be really cool!  Whether it's a big city like Denver that offers cool trendy architecture, with lots of glass and steel, or a smaller town that has quaint older building with character or in between! Explore what you have access to, and look for fun things out of the ordinary that can be something you haven't tried to photograph before!

Beauty can be found just about anywhere, you just have to look!

Being I can't always travel, I want to keep creating and find really cool things similar to stuff that may stand out if I were on a trip! Since we are so used to our normal surroundings, sometimes we don't "see" what someone visiting our homeland would see!!  

Pull out that camera, grab a kid or a friend, and head off exploring, picking a different type of look each week!  You may be amazed at what you find!  People will start to wonder how on earth you can get to so many fascinating spots when really you just found that you had a little piece of beauty right in your back yard!

I would love to connect so message me if you have questions, concerns, comments... 😛!!  I appreciate you for being here and, until next week....