Lisbon: A Photography Review
Recently I had the privilege of spending 10 days in the Portuguese cities of Lisbon and Porto, soaking up the sun while taking a few photos along the way. Now the first thought you might have is that for general weekend/city break destinations this was too long of a trip, and you'd be right. Normally however I like to stay in certain locations for a day or two longer than what's usually recommended in order to give me the best chance of having the best possible conditions in which to shoot in, while also having enough time to explore and plan out any precise compositions I may have in mind. Fortunately there was straight up sunshine the whole time, so although there may have been moments where I wasn't up to much, at least I was still getting a tan.
Henceforth I'd recommend three days in each city, which provides the opportunity to both relax and get out there with your camera to capture some memorable moments and stunning scenery. There's no set order to go either, it just so happened to be cheaper for me to travel from South to North via the incredibly efficient and cost-effective train connecting the two locations. On the whole I did actually prefer Porto as a destination (as seen below) due to it being slightly less hectic, but with photography being our focus, there's simply so much more to say regarding the country's capital - so that's where we'll be concentrating on for this post.
Dom Luís I Bridge - Porto
It's safe to say that Lisbon's popularity as a tourist destination has rocketed over the last few years, and it would be a lie for me to say that my trip wasn't inspired by the many photographers both on Instagram and YouTube who have shared their positive experiences from visiting. Even after a few hours of walking around it's easy to see why the city is often described as a street photographer's dream with it's tiled buildings, uniquely narrow lanes, and a constant supply of light that accentuates the many subjects you can find to put in front of the lens.
Naturally the time of year in which I visited (May) did help with the sunshine, but to balance that out were the sizeable crowds which could pose a problem if you are to visit during the peak Summer season and hope to shoot some of the more iconic locations. However personally I try not to chase the known 'Instagram spots', so you'll still be able to capture Lisbon's aesthetic and vibe down many of the tight, less populated side roads. Speaking of which, the nature of the city's design means that, unlike most other places, shooting in the middle of the day still makes for some great shots as the winding roads and tall buildings will cut the light while producing some cool shadows to play with.
As ever the more cinematic light will always be found at either sunrise or sunset, but you can attempt to mimic the golden glow that appears at these times by upping the warmth of the highlights in a quick mask on Lightroom - just don't blame me if things don't turn out quite like you expect. Another issue that can often be found with daytime shooting is the boldness and lack of a gradient in the sky, which is fine if you favour a brighter more natural look to your photos, but is often avoided by many as a bright sky most of the time results in a flatter image elsewhere. Fortunately though in Lisbon, again with its tighter lanes and aesthetic buildings as a backdrop, it's rare that you'll ever fit a significant amount of the sky into your shot or be purposefully looking up anyway. Even when it did make a brief appearance in a few frames, dropping the saturation in post-production did the job while not looking overly manipulated.
The result of this generally means, as aforementioned, that you can find a good balance on your trip between staying creative and authentically enjoying the city and all it has to offer - especially beneficial if you're visiting with non-photographers. Furthermore, given the city's aesthetic you'll be able to capture Lisbon's charm through a simple stroll with different moments and environments appearing in front of you, although I did find that the Alfama district was the most alluring to explore with a camera in hand. Known for its abundance of winding roads and transiting trams, it's natural that this area can get quite busy but luckily only in the main hotspots anyway which, at least to me, don't offer any significant photo opportunities. On the topic of crowds too, as someone who likes to use people to make a scene feel alive, I found it easier to take a whole load of photos in a more lively setting in the hope one or two work out okay, rather than setting up in a typically secluded location praying that someone comes along to provide a golden moment. This isn't my approach all the time though, just what worked best during my time in Lisbon.
Funnily enough then the opposite could be said for the city's main square, Terreiro do Paço. To the eye this looks fantastic during early evening with the setting sun accompanying a bustling atmosphere, yet simultaneously I found it extremely difficult to condense the vibe of everything around me all into one composition. Even when I thought I'd captured a cinematic moment, I know I probably wouldn't like it in the end with so many distractions in the background. Nevertheless it is important to remember that everyone else is there to have a good time rather than be the perfect subject for your photo. The easiest remedy to that may be to head down in the early morning, but even then unless you have someone with you to be your subject, you'll be playing the waiting game for an unsuspecting bystander to walk perfectly in line with one of the vintage lamp posts for example.
Rather than shooting directly in the square then, I'd actually recommend shooting around the arches of the museum just a stone's throw away - literally. Even if you are waiting, it's a great people watching spot and a great location that can help you combine unique moments with a great backdrop and the light cutting through.
Whilst the arches will be on one end of the square, the shore will be on the other, and it too is a cool place to capture some summer vibes with plenty of people gathering for a drink or to unwind while the sun goes down. Personally I rarely shoot anything too hectic unless the environment itself calls for it, which is why my waterfront shots tended to focus on the latter after a brief stroll westwards towards the bridge, but I can see the appeal for those who prefer more of an intimate street and documentary style to their images.
As touched upon, Lisbon is a street photographer's playground and it's always great to have some of your favourite shots be impromptu moments that appear in front of you. That's not to say that there weren't key locations I had in mind to shoot something more composed though, and the first funnily enough was again reached by heading west to and beyond the bridge near to the Belem district. Specifically it was the MAAT (Museum of Art and Architecture) building which really stands out because of its curved roof which can actually be accessed too thanks to a slope connecting it to the ground. After making the trek here though, and believe me it is a trek even on an e-scooter, I was slightly underwhelmed as to the photos I took - although this could have simply been a case of tiredness affecting my effort and energy levels.
As cool as the building is, in my eyes its better to include other elements as well to both liven things up and put your own stamp on what you've created rather than perhaps simply highlighting someone else's work (in this case design/architecture) as good as it may be. I did get a flavour of what could be achieved at this spot with the shots below, but it wasn't something that got me excited or compelled me to return. That's not to say I wouldn't suggest you heading here though.
Conversely a shot I was almost obsessed with getting is the one you'll see at the end of this post centred on the iconic bending road that is Calçada de São Francisco. Although it may not seem like it, a fair deal of planning went into this shot to determine several factors such as where I should place myself, which lens to use, and roughly which time of day to head here - bar early morning of course as my willpower to wake up is very weak even for the best photo opportunities. This was assisted by two reasons I've already discussed; spreading out my time in the city, and Lisbon's relatively compact nature allowing me to revisit this road several times no matter where I had been for the majority of my day.
With a plan in place, you might think this was then a case of pressing the shutter button and voila. Not quite - in fact this was possibly the most frustrating, but ultimately most rewarding, shoots I've been through. Doing a 'behind the scenes' reveal of certain photos can occasionally take away the magic from it, but in this instance I'll detail several of the issues I encountered to highlight why I'm quite proud of the photo and to give you a taste of what to expect if you want to achieve a similar image:
The People - Being one of the most aesthetic places in the city with a central location and a grand design, it will naturally attract plenty of people either here for a snap themselves or simply to reach wherever they're going. This is totally fine too as its important to remember as photographers that we have no ownership of a spot or right to get the best photo possible - although I do wish the average person with their iPhone 5C would do the honourable thing and stand behind the lens rather than in front of it. You'll have to therefore time it right, or photoshop out certain people without damaging the shot like I did. An early morning visit will negate this, but as we've learned that's just not my jam.
The Traffic - There might not be people on the pavement, but there most likely will be cars as they share the road with the trams too. Not only that, but due to their slow pace (at least to accelerate) you'll often find that they can quickly cause a line of cars to pile up behind them even if the lights have turned green. What's worse is that although a shot with other vehicles in could work, say with a motorbike or classic car, instead what you end up 99% of the time is an ugly contrast of vintage tram alongside a 2017 Toyota Prius. Instead just pray that the tram coming towards you is at the front of the queue of traffic, and there's nothing on the opposite side of the road.
The Tram - Imagine this scenario. You see a tram approaching, there's not a person in sight, nor can you hear any engines waiting to tailgate the beautiful machine in front of you. After waiting for what has felt like an eternity, you ready yourself to capture that composition you've had in mind, and then you notice it - the tacky advert plastered across the front that destroys all notion of anything rustic or cinematic. Now I can't remember for certain if I waited to specifically shoot a tram that wasn't emblazoned with some Word Art-esque graphic promoting Super Bock or some kind of liqueur, but I was happy that I captured the timeless Coca Cola logo that worked well with the yellow of the tram.
Have all these factors line up perfectly, and you might just end up with a half decent photo - just make sure you've packed a fair bit of patience into your suitcase when visiting Lisbon.
Alternatively, don't bother at all. I don't mean that sarcastically either, as Portugal's capital throws up so many great scenes to capture that you never NEED to go explicitly looking for them. For sure head back to that one street that's caught your eye if you're a bit of a perfectionist, but most likely you'll come back from your trip really proud of that random shot you took at 11.37am after turning a random corner.
I hope these tips have been useful, or better yet, inspired you to add Lisbon to your travel list.
