Work Travel Volunteer

Not that we are biased but the time you spend on a gap year or career break will probably be one of the highlights of your life. There are now hundreds of travel weblog sites that you can sign up to, to create your own travel diary and upload your pictures to make your friends back at home jealous.

Here are a few of our favourites;

• http://www.planetranger.com/
• http://www.mytripjournal.com/
• http://www.travellersconnected.com/
• http://www.getjealous.com/
• http://www.travelblog.org/

You can use any site to create a blog. Whilst we were away we used Wordpress

Here is our blog if anyone is interested in rantings of two now bitter and twisted that we are back at work travellers!

Tips to make your blog interesting

• Give your opinion on somewhere or something.
• Just be yourself. Most people end up writing in a particular style whether it be cynical, funny, quoting endless facts or being classically descriptive.
• Add in photographs next to text.
• Photos in general are always interesting so upload them all!
• If you're really smart, you can upload video footage for extra smugness
• Don't worry so much about your spilling and gremmer.
• Keep entries reasonably short. No one (not even your mother) will want to read a 10 page essay on walking the great wall no matter how great it is.
• Keep it up. Try and add to it every fortnight or so if you can.
• Keep a written diary as you go along so you remember all those interesting things that come into your brain on a ten hour bus journey like "does my brain use calories up?" "how full could my bladder become before it bursts?" and "What is the square root of 0?" You may not necessarily want to write all this into your blog though. Editing is crucial here.

Top 10 tips for taking good travel photographs

Now we're no substitute for advanced photography manuals and courses but a few tips to remember should improve even the worst photographer's pictures.

• Remember the rule of thirds - try and frame your image so it lies along a third of the frame rather than the centre, either horizontally or vertically.
• Don't be shy - ask people if you can take their photograph. They can only say no.
• If you are far enough away or have a good zoom lens, you may be able to get away with a candid shot. It's always a bit tricky knowing whether or not you should ask someone's permission before you take a picture so use your instinct. Sometimes the best shots are of people who aren't so self conscious.
• Use light to your advantage. By far and away the best times for photography are early morning and just before dusk when the sun is low in the sky.
• If you are taking pictures in broad daylight, remember to think about where shadows are falling.
• If you are going on safari, try and obtain a zoom lens. Other pictures just won't make the grade. Relatives will be looking at a distant spot in the distance whilst you saying "It is a lion honest!" 300mm plus is a good range. Don't forget a beanbag either to rest the camera on. Using a zoom lens will blur images easier than standard lenses.
• Try some black and white shots, particularly if you visit World Heritage Sites or are into portrait photography. They can look amazing.
• Try taking pictures from different viewpoints. Crouch down on the ground to take pictures of children or stand on a rock to get a different perspective on a landscape.
• Remember what your background will look like. If you are taking pictures of people try to avoid distracting backgrounds, or blur them using a large aperture.
• Get close up to objects and take macro shots.