Tips & Ideas: Travel Vlogging For Beginners

As an emerging form of self-expression, travel videos on YouTube have exploded with popularity. With a camera, you can capture the moments and memories that make up your trip in extraordinary ways that photos simply cannot emulate.

These videos are increasingly popular among the younger generation of vloggers. However, making one is still an art form in its own right — one that takes a lot of planning, video editing, creativity, and the right gear.

Travel Vlogging Tips

We’ve put together a set of tips, along with some pointers, to help you make your very first vlog. Here’s our list of travel vlogging tips for shooting your own videos on your next trip!

1. Always Start With a Plan!

Figuring out where you want to go is the most important thing when starting on a trip — this way, you know what destinations and activities to bring your camera along for.

So, before you go on that trip, take a few minutes to sketch out some ideas for local attractions and activities that you’d like to capture. This will help you plan for what camera gear you’ll need, as well as your budget.

Once you have your itinerary set (ideally, this will include at least one day of travel), make sure that you have a list of all of the gear that you’re taking along with you — whether it be extra lenses or accessories, tripods, extra batteries… even clothing can affect shot quality!

2. Determine Your Shot Goals!

What qualities do you ultimately want to be able to capture in your video, and what kind of equipment will accomplish this?

For example, if you’re looking to capture landscapes regularly, it might be wise to go with a micro 4/3’s handheld counterpart. Or, if you’ll be shooting images and videos meant for Instagram or Facebook stories, it might be better suited for the iPhone.

3. Research Camera Gear!

Research is important when learning how to make a video, whether buying new gear (which can often be more expensive) or researching other vloggers with similar styles and equipment.

If you’re strapped for cash, it may be better to invest in gear compatible across multiple cameras rather than gear that works only with specific models.

If there’s a specific type of camera gear you’re dying to get your hands on, it might be more prudent to look into how much you need for your trip — and save up before the trip!

4. Set up a Tripod!

Tripods might seem like the least important piece of travel gear, but they’re one of the single most important tools for producing great travel videos.

No matter what kind of camera you have, tripods are a necessary tool to help stabilize your shot when everything is moving around you. And unless you’re recording footage on a tripod, it’ll likely be shaky — so learn how to use one to its potential!

5. Keep an Eye on Your Gear!

If you’ve already got your gear figured out, the chances are that it’s worth some money. That’s why proper camera gear protection is key when traveling with expensive equipment.

If you’re going to be carrying your gear in your bag, consider a padded camera insert — this will help protect the most valuable and heaviest pieces of equipment that you obviously don’t want moving around in a backpack.

If you’re going to be hiking or spending time outdoors, it might be better suited to use protective cases specifically designed for rugged terrain. If you can, look into carrying expensive gear around on your person as opposed to in your bag! Your back will thank you for it.

6. Test Your Gear!

Now that you’ve got the big stuff figured out (i.e., buying your gear), it’s time to actually use it before you go.

This may seem like an obvious step, but testing your gear is not just a good idea — it’s necessary. Your camera won’t just magically know how to use the correct settings if you haven’t put them in before; in addition, your memory cards might need formatting or cleaning before they’re ready for action!

7. Practice Shooting With Video!

If you’re planning on shooting stills, such as street photography, or using DSLRs or mirrorless cameras… this tip might not apply to you. But if you’re planning on shooting video with your DSLR, mirrorless camera, or another handheld device, practice is the most important thing to remember.

There’s a reason why people who have been shooting films for decades can create such fluid videos. When you’re used to shooting video, it flows so much better than when shooting stills.

So, practice before your trip and make sure that you know how to use your camera’s manual settings, and make the adjustments that are best for the type of recording that you’ll be doing.

8. Shoot Raw!

Most smartphone cameras these days shoot in JPEG format. But if you’re looking for the highest quality shots and footage, RAW is the way to go — unless, of course, your smartphone can shoot in RAW format!

It might seem like an extra step to get into shooting in RAW, but using it will give your videos a much cleaner look — one which doesn’t require a heavy post-production workflow. And with the latest smartphones and cameras, it’s certainly something worth using!

9. Video Editing Tips!

So, you’ve been shooting all day, and now you’re back at your hotel or wherever you’re staying. It’s time to edit! Even if your vlogs are meant to be fairly short and casual (such as on Facebook), the editing will make or break the quality of the footage.

The good news is that there are plenty of different video editor applications out there for free; most smartphones even have built-in video editing software! There are a plethora of options out there to help you edit your videos.

To Sum it Up

Travel vlogging doesn’t have to be complicated — but it’s best to know what you’re doing before you go! If you’re going on a trip with the intent of capturing lots of stills and videos, then choosing the right packing list is essential. From planning cameras and accessories to researching local attractions and activities, there are many more factors that will affect the type of content that you can capture when traveling.

Hopefully, these tips will help build up a solid foundation for some great travel videos that bring back fond memories from your trip.