Travelers, if you’re like me, you’re wondering how to take better videos while you travel. Well, Annabelle Needles with Evergreen Lane Productions is here to help us! In her guest blog post below, she explains 5 easy ways to take better videos on your travels. Thank you, Annabelle!

If you’re like me, you love that your smartphone has made taking photos and videos of your travels super easy and accessible. However, on the flip side, this means that often we take hundreds of photos and video clips on our travels but they end up just disappearing into the digital void, never to be seen or enjoyed again. So how can we be sure that we’re taking great videos on our epic vacations (the family reunion where multiple generations are all together, the epic honeymoon you splurged on, the precious girls weekend after you’ve all become mothers)? I’m here to help, with 5 easy ways to take better videos on your travels. Yes, even with your iPhone!

5 Easy Ways to Take Better Videos on Your Travels

1. Choose a camera orientation and stick to it

Smartphones can take video in two modes, landscape (horizontal) or portrait (vertical). Social media videos like Instagram stories are training us to hold our phones vertically to take and watch videos. That being said, I highly recommend that if you’re going to want to watch your videos on a computer or a TV later, shoot your videos in landscape orientation. This is especially the case if you’re wanting to edit them together afterward into a mini-movie of your trip. As a video editor, I often see clients send me videos in both landscape AND portrait, which makes it more difficult to actually integrate those videos together. The most important thing to consider here is consistency – choose one way to hold your camera while recording video and stick to it throughout your whole trip.

2. Capture a variety of types of video clips

We all have a favorite type of photo or video to take on trips. For me, that’s wide shots of scenery or close-ups of flowers. My husband likes to take selfies upon selfies. The important thing to remember while taking video on your travels is to capture a wide variety of types of videos and not get stuck in one “style.” A video full of pretty views is going to be beautiful but won’t tell much of a story. Same with a video with just flower close-ups or just selfies. Think of it like this: to make interesting writing, you need nouns, verbs, and adjectives. Mix it up and your final video will be able to tell a more complete story of your vacation.

3. Get as stable as possible

This strange thing happens when we’re watching back video clips later – we could have sworn our hands were so steady but in reality, we were moving all over the place and the video isn’t very fun to watch! Here are some quick tips to increase the stability of your video footage. Don’t hold your breath – sometimes we do this without thinking when we’re concentrating, but slow, even breaths will help your hands stay steady. Keep your hands close to you; the further you extend your arms away from your body, the shakier they get! If possible, use a prop like a wall or a chair as a makeshift tripod and rest your camera on top while you’re filming. I know not everyone has space or budget to invest in video-taking tools, but if you do, I highly recommend a smartphone gimbal. You can see all my gear recommendations here!

4. Count to ten when filming

It’s true that I often use only 2-3 seconds of a video clip in a final video, but few things are worse than when I want to show something for a little bit longer…and the clip just stops! You can always trim video clips in editing later, but you can’t go back in time and film something again, especially if it’s halfway around the world. I recommend simply counting to ten while you’re recording.

5. Focus on the five senses

When you’re taking video, you’ll be focused primarily on the things you can see. Smell-o-vision doesn’t exist yet, of course. However, the things that will trigger your memories best when watching a video later are elements that engage your other senses too – like the sound of the sea waves, the taste of that delicious street food, or the smell of the flowers outside your hotel window. When I was editing an heirloom travel film of a client’s family reunion in Provence, simply watching the videos she took in the lavender fields took me right back to my own trip there many years ago, and I could almost smell the abundant purple flowers through my computer.

For more video-taking tips, monthly prompts to help you capture your adventures on video, and a free guide to smartphone video, sign up here.

If you’d like to get a custom heirloom travel film edited by Evergreen Lane Productions, message Annabelle today to get started.

Annabelle Needles is a video editor and owner of Evergreen Lane Productions, on a mission to help memory makers get their videos off their phones and into their lives. With more than 10 years of experience in video production, she believes in demystifying the process and making documenting your life as accessible, easy, and meaningful as possible. She also loves to travel, having visited all 7 continents before 30 and spent 13 months living that RV life road-tripping around the US with her husband. They had a destination wedding in Belize. Now, the videos from all these experiences are some of her most valued possessions. Follow her wonder-seeking adventures on Instagram @evergreen_lane.

Travelers, I am so excited to be sharing this guest blog post with you by Rachel-Jean Firchau with Rachel Off Duty! I met Rachel at the Women in Travel Summit in 2018 where we bonded over figuring out how to travel more while having full-time jobs. In this blog, she shares 5 steps to take more trips this year, even if you have a full-time blog. Enjoy!

There’s nothing like the first few months of a new year to dream up some incredible adventures. Your mind is fresh and ready to set resolutions and goals. Your calendar is a blank slate. And – best of all – you probably have a fresh pool of vacation time (or knowledge of the number of days you will have available as you accrue this year) to start using. 

But life happens quickly, especially in steady rhythm of a 9-to-5 work cycle. And it’s easy to let months go by before realizing you haven’t taken a single day for yourself in ages. In fact, over 55% of Americans end up not using all of the paid time off they earn annually (a whopping 768MM days of unused PTO). 

Of course, if you’re reading this article, it’s likely because you don’t want to be a part of that 55%. You want to find ways to make sure you’re getting the most out of your benefits – and your life! – and there’s no better time to start than the present. Read on for some steps towards incorporating more travel into your life, even if you have a desk job. 

5 Steps To Take More Trips This Year (Even If You Have a Desk Job) 

1. Make a Wish List at the Beginning of the Year

First, decide whether you want to travel more frequently, or take longer trips. Do you want to see a bunch of new places? Or do you like slow travel and hope to maximize your time in that dream destination you’ve been dying to visit? It doesn’t matter what kind of traveler you are; the only thing that matters is making sure you plan ahead! Spend some time at the beginning of the year deciding what your travel goals will be for the next 12 months, where you might want (or need) to go, and how you plan to get there. This can include new cities you want to see that are only a couple hours’ drive away, weekend getaways you want to take with your significant other, weddings and birthdays you need to attend, and possibly even some solo time in a place you’ve never been. Wherever you want to find yourself this year, get out a piece of paper (or a note on your phone) and write it all down. 

It may sound like a simple task, but just like making resolutions or vision boards, determining what your destination wish list is at the beginning of the year is a great way to layout your ideal travel schedule and start mapping out the steps you need to take to get there.

2. Decide How Much Time You Want to Spend Where

This step is crucial if you’re working with limited time (i.e. vacation days) or a tight budget. Though vacation time benefits are slowly increasing across the country, on average, US employees are still banking just 10-15 paid days off a year. If you want to do a couple of domestic trips this year, one two-week stint in Greece and still have enough time left over to go home for the holidays, how do you do it?

First, decide how much time you absolutely need to spend in the most important places on your list – the dream destinations and the big events (like weddings, birthdays, and being home for the holidays). Then, work backward from there with what’s left.

3. Divide Up Your Vacation Days & Paid Holidays

The scenario involving Greece, domestic trips, and being home for the holidays may sound a bit far-fetched for a 15-day annual vacation policy, but it is possible with a little strategic timing and flexibility. While you might have only 15 days of time off (for example), you are also working with 104 weekend days and probably somewhere between 7 and 11 paid holidays – that’s 126+ days this year entirely at your disposal! 

Two years ago, I vacationed in Australia (pictured) for just over 3 weeks while working full-time. But once you factored out the weekends and paid holidays I planned my trip around, I ended up only being out 13 days of paid time off. Knowing that Australia was going to be my longest trip of the year, I planned the rest of my year accordingly with shorter trips and remote work wherever possible – 2 days off to take a 4-day trip to Alaska, 1 day off to spend 3 days in Mexico, a half-day off to extend a work trip in Utah, a half-day off to take a weekend trip to Seattle… you get the picture! 

4. Use Free Weekends for Staycations & One-Day Road Trips

Of course, travel does not always have to involve a flight (or even a long-haul distance, for that matter). I personally love using my free weekends for staycations in my home state, or even one-day road trips if I don’t want to pay for a hotel. You can see and experience a surprising amount in a 24-, 48, or 72-hour period. It does not matter if you’re only somewhere new for a short amount of time. All that matters is that you’re getting out and exploring, rather than sitting at home and saying “I wish.” Working Monday through Friday week in and week out is mentally taxing and can feel draining sometimes. We all need a reset and a change of scenery now and then, even if it’s only for a day or two. 

5. Explore Conferences, Sabbatical, and Remote Work Opportunities

While taking your weekends and paid vacation travel is great (and you should 100% use up all the vacation time you earn each year), another fantastic way to squeeze more adventure out of your year is by exploring work-based travel. Are there conferences* you could attend on behalf of your company? Are there remote or sister offices you could visit to train new employees or shadow more senior executives? Do you work at a company that offers a work-from-home or remote work policy? Does your company offer sabbatical leave? While some of these opportunities could result in more work, the trade-off is the potential of exploring a new city or state you may have otherwise not visited, while simultaneously keeping your employer happy. Whenever I take work trips, I always try to take the first flight in and the last flight home (or even extend the entire trip a day or two out of my own pocket) so I can maximize my time there when my work duties are done. 

*If your company doesn’t currently attend any conferences, seminars, or networking events, – that’s okay! Don’t be afraid to pitch one or two that you think will be relevant. If your company has the budget to support your knowledge growth while getting the word out about their product or service, odds are, they will (and who knows, you could pave the way for other employees in your office looking for enrichment opportunities and travel, too!). 

No matter what your specific travel goals are if your prerogative is to take charge of your life and maximize your adventure potential, start small, start here, and most importantly, start now. With some proactive planning, strategic timing, and the willingness to be open to new opportunities (even ones you may have never previously considered), you’ll be jet-setting in no time, desk job and all. 

Rachel-Jean Firchau is the founder behind Rachel Off Duty, a website for career-conscious women dedicated to exploring life’s possibilities outside of the 9-to-5. Employed full-time while hitting the road 2-5x a month, Rachel aims to showcase the possibilities (and challenges!) of a travel-focused lifestyle. Rachel works as a client success manager and travel consultant in the advertising space, and when she’s not behind a desk or catching a flight, she spends her time binge-watching old shows, practicing yoga, and finding new things to do in her current hometown of Long Beach, California.

Are you like me and find it difficult to pick your next travel destination? There are so many wonderful places on this earth and they are all high on my travel bucket list. How do you pick just one?! So I had to come up with some ideas on how to make this decision process easier because I could spend forever trying to pick the next vacation spot. Here is the list for you!

When you can’t decide where to go, here are three ways to easily pick your next travel destination.

1. Follow the Flight Deals

Airlines are always having flight deals. Just this past week Qantas was celebrating their 100th birthday and was giving away $100 flights to Australia. Over Black Friday weekend every year, I have found some of the best flight deals. I got to Paris and back from London on a nonstop flight for under $500. I got two roundtrip tickets to Maui for under $500. Pretty much everyday Frontier is basically giving away free flights to random small towns in the US. If you are flexible on when you fly and where you fly, you can find flight deals year-round, but especially on Black Friday weekend. If you just follow the flight deals, the airlines will easily pick your next travel destination for you!

2. Go Where Your Budget Allows

This may seem like a no-brainer, but it can really help narrow down vacation options. If you are really needing a vacation ASAP, but have a lower budget, you will most likely find options that aren’t more than a half-day flight away. If you have been saving up and have a bigger budget, you can choose a destination farther away. Set a budget and stay intent on keeping to that budget. Then you can easily narrow down your options for your next travel destination.

3. Strategically Pick A Location Based on Your PTO

If you work full time in a corporate setting, that most likely means you have limited paid time off. It’s important to use that time off wisely! When I worked in a corporate setting, I chose to take a lot of long weekend vacations over one big vacation a year. For you, one big vacation may be the perfect fit. For me, I needed to be traveling as much as possible, so multiple long weekend trips were perfect. Depending on your vacationing style, picking a location based on the PTO you have can be helpful. If you need to have a lot of vacations on your calendar each year, choose destinations throughout the US that you can easily visit on a long weekend, like Seattle, Savannah, and Denver. If you like to look forward to a long extended getaway once a year, save up your PTO and find that destination that will get you far, far away from home!

For more ways to help you decide how to pick your next travel destination, head to Waypoint Goods where I listed all ten ways to pick a vacation destination when you don’t know where to go. 

Also when you are there, make sure to check out Waypoint Goods travel scarves and travel journals. They are both lifesavers when traveling!