How to Get the Best New York Sightseeing Photographs during Your Bus Tour

When you visit NYC, you will plan to get lots of sightseeing in, and a bus tour is one of the best ways to do this. Instead of having to visit attractions one by one, you can do all your New York sightseeing in a single sitting. Of course, being in a moving vehicle will make it more challenging to snap those perfect pictures to remind you of your trip. Even so, you can get amazing photos on your next bus tour if you follow some simple tips.

Choose an Edge Seat

Starting with the basics, always opt for a seat on the upper level of the double-decker bus and a “window” seat instead of an aisle. This way, there won’t be any annoying glass from the bus windows in your way like there would on the lower levels, you will get a better angle of attractions, and you don’t have to worry about someone’s head getting in the way of your shot.

Know Which Side of the Bus to Sit On

Just choosing a “window” seat on the upper level isn’t enough to ensure your New York sightseeing photos come out perfect. You should also do some planning as to which side of the bus you want to sit on. Ideally, you should be on the same side as the attractions you are most interested in photographing, as this limits the number of people that will get in your way. To figure out which side that is, simply study the route map ahead of time.

Adjust Your Shutter Speed

Getting into the changes you can actually make to your camera to get the best photos with New York sightseeing on a tour bus, remember to adjust your shutter speed. Most of the time, you will be driving fairly slow, but the bus does need to keep up with traffic. Even at 30 mph (which you can expect to be driving at), a shutter speed slower than 1/500 seconds will lead to blurry images. Instead, consider changing it to 1/1,000 so you can snap that image in time.

Use Servo Focus Mode to Your Benefit

Your camera most likely has a servo focus mode that is the perfect tool for flawless pictures of attractions even in a moving bus. This mode will constantly run the camera’s automatic focus. Just remember that your camera won’t know what you want to focus on. Because of this, be sure to adjust the AF point before snapping a shot so the camera doesn’t accidentally blur the subject of your photo.

Opt for Continuous Shooting

A simple way to get the best photos on your tour and make the most of New York sightseeing is to use continuous shooting or photo bursts. Since your camera will take multiple shots at once, you likely will love at least one of them.