Everyone’s a travel blogger these days. However, very few travel bloggers make lasting impressions and are able to reach out to an audience of millions. Whether you make videos for your professional growth or just personal entertainment, it’s never too late to update your skills and make the most of available knowledge in the market. It’s easy to learn the skills associated with making travel videos through mediums like YouTube, lessons by experts, or even blogs. 

Here are 9 amazing techniques to help you become a travel vlogger in no time! 

1. Always plan well in advance.

Great travel videos don’t come out of spontaneity. Plan everything from locations to timings, outfits, shots and subjects before stepping out. Of course, you can be spontaneous at that moment and get unexpected shots. But the bottom line is to plan.

• Create a Pinterest board for the place you are visiting and plan your shots. 
• Plan the timings when you will be getting those shots and checkout for the weather. 
• Get a rough idea of shots you would be getting. For instance, a time-lapse during sunrise can be exceptional, but the same for food shots won’t do good. By planning, you can ensure that all kinds of shots are covered, and have enough footage to take back home. 

Planning is the crucial component of making a travel video.

2. Travel light and invest well.

You must invest in travel gear because that will directly affect the quality of your video. How much you want to spend depends on your interest and capabilities. There are people out there making money from travel videos captured using a phone. And there are individuals out there who have DSLR and Video equipment but creating content for personal use. The bottom line is to invest in gears that aid in making seamless travel videos. Here are a few essentials for you to consider:

• Tripod
• Gimbal
• Lighting Kit
• SD cards
• Lenses
• Microphone
• Extra batteries

Ensure that you travel light. It is practically not a feasible idea to carry a luggage load of heavy equipment while traveling. 

3. Shoot wise and sharp.

• Capture your subjects from different angles. This will give you multiple data to play around with while editing. 
• Don’t capture unnecessary footage. It will prolong the editing process and will tire you out. 
• Stick to your mood board and let spontaneity flow in. 
• Make optimum use of natural lighting during early mornings and sunsets. You will get prominent nature footage during this time. 
• Make use of a tripod to capture crisp, sharp moments. 
• Capture videos instead of pictures. Edit the raw footage as you like using a video maker while on the move. 

Lastly, sit back and enjoy. You need to enjoy the place and not spend all the time capturing videos for your content. 

4. Always have a storyline

No one wants to see you diving in the ocean for 40 straight minutes or hogging on local food! Therefore, your travel video needs a story to flow along with. Have a narrative in mind while capturing the videos. Your travel video could either be immersive, narrative, Vlog, a short video or an informational guide. However, you need to pick the purpose from the beginning to capture the storyline beautifully. Make the video more about the place and less about you. Even VLogs need to be centralized around places and not your face. 

5. Experiment with shots

Don’t limit yourself to one theme. Capture the content in different shots and viewpoints. Make extensive use of Slow-motion, Timelapses, wide angles, action shots, detailed shots and narration in your video. Also, always shoot horizontally if you plan to use video for YouTube. 

Here are a few tips to keep in mind while shooting your video. 

• Always press focus before you start recording. 
• Use an extra lens to get wide and macro footage. 
• Don’t zoom out in the video. It will degrade the quality of your footage. 
• From the settings, turn on the grid. It will maintain the balance in your clips. 
• Switch between shoot modes to shift the focus on different subjects. 

The idea of a travel video is to bring life to your video. The enthusiasm and the energy you felt need to be portrayed through video. Capture emotions, make dramatic use of lighting and don’t be afraid to try something new. 

6. Start editing on the trip.

As much as you enjoy the shooting process, enjoy editing. The magic happens behind the doors when you are on-screen. Invest in a video editor that suits your purpose. While you are traveling from one place to another, start editing the clips on the phone itself. This will give you a more enhanced idea about how to move ahead with a storyline and what to capture next. Reviewing your footage while you are still traveling helps you to capture it more proactively. 

7. Choose music

Music can either break or make your travel video. Finding the right track to get along with your travel movie is quite a task. And also, finding the royalty-free track is a task. Vimeo and Soundcloud have comprehensive libraries, and you are sure to find the perfect track for your video. Ensure that the music is free of copyright. You can get in legal trouble otherwise. 

8. Stay consistent. 

Whether it is in terms of shooting new content or publishing new content, keep your feed updated with regular travel videos. Even if you aren’t traveling regularly, use earlier footage to keep your audience engaged. Now, even if you are not a travel blogger who does this for bread, you need to consistently shoot travel videos. Doing so will improve your skills and end results. 

9. Watch a lot of travel content.  

Lastly, continue to seek inspiration. Watch plenty of travel content from your favorite bloggers and channels. It would offer a new perspective for your next travel video. Conclusively, making a travel video is an art. No amount of theoretical knowledge can help you become proficient until you actually step out, and start recording, editing and publishing your content!