Photo First Aid - Fixing Blurry Travel Photos

Sometimes even the most promising travel photos turn out badly. Some of the most frustrating ones come out blurry, and unless you are experimenting with creative photography techniques, that's probably not what you were hoping for. Unfortunately, you can't just crop out the bad part or work some quick magic to regain your lost clarity. And to make matters worse, it is highly unlikely that you can easily go back and retake them. You may think that these blurred photos are a lost cause, but I've got a few suggestions to help keep those shots out of the trashcan. While salvaging may be what you need right now, I've also got some tips to help you take better, non-blurry, photos on your next trip.

It may seem silly to ask, but what exactly is a blurry photo, and what causes it? Ultimately, blurriness is caused by either the camera or the subject moving while the camera is taking a photo. A shaky photographer's hand. A fidgety subject. A car zooming by. Blur. It's that simple.

Blur From Moving Subject

A lot of the time with travel photos, getting another shot just simply isn't possible (especially if you don't notice the blur in time.) So what's left to do, but try to salvage what you've got? Sadly, there's no one perfect fix for blur. You've got to look at every photo differently, and figure out how "bad" the situation is.

Slight overall blur in photo



Same photo, visible blur reduced with image size reduction.

• Quick fix. For photos that are slightly blurry, one of the simplest and quickest ways to work around the problem is to simply shrink the photo. Reducing the size gives you cheap and easy sharpening, especially if you're using the photo for something mundane, like uploading to Flickr or Facebook.
• Sharpen with care. Sharpness tools are another weapon in the fight against blur, allowing you to add some acuity. However, it's possible to overdo it, leaving you with unwanted jagged edges or noise in your photo. Lightroom has some good sharpness tools; this article on Mansurov's Photography goes into much more detail on adjusting sharpness, if you're interested. Photoshop and GIMP also provide sharpness tools, if you're a user of those applications.
• Play it up. Instead of trying to work around the blur, try a completely different approach and flaunt the blur. Try softening the image to give the photo a surreal, dreamy quality. Or, if you've got a photo with motion blur, increase the contrast to play off the blur lines. The bottom line is that there's no one way to make your blurry photo more artsy, you'll have to play around with it until you're happy with the result.

Blur From Camera Movement

Working around a blurred photo probably isn't your idea of post-trip fun. Luckily, there are quite a few ways you can avoid the situation altogether.

• Hold still. The best way to avoid blur is to keep you, and your camera, as still as possible. The most straightforward method is to prop your phone or camera on any available surface, a table, fence, bench, to keep it from moving around. (A tripod is good, too, but how often do you feel like lugging one of those around?)


Wrap the strap!

• Get strappy. If you've got a camera with a significant strap, like an SLR, then wrap it around your hand and arm several times (see the photo above) until it's tight but not uncomfortable. This technique will allow the strap to do some of the holding for you, keeping your camera from jiggling.
• Prop yourself up. While keeping your camera still is of upmost importance, keeping the rest of your body still is also an effective way of preventing a blurry photo. Prop yourself up against a tree, light pole, wall, or door frame - anything that keeps you from moving.
• Move into the light. Light is your best friend when it comes to getting a nice, crisp shot. If you're having trouble getting a non-blurry shot and can move your subject, try to move them/it into a space with more light. If the sun is out, put it behind you so that it shines directly on your subject while not creating glare. This way, you'll be able to capture as much light as possible and keep the blur at bay.


1/8 of a second is a long time

• Watch the time. (SLR only.) There's a simple rule that can help you take blur-free photos when you are hand-holding your SLR camera. Make sure that your exposure time is less than 1 / focal length of your lens. For example, if you've got a 50mm lens on your camera, you should be shooting at 1/50th of a second or faster. 1/60th of a second is good, 1/40th is not.
• Wide-open lens. (SLR only.) Sometimes better gear CAN help you get better photos. One of the more important features of a lens is the maximum aperture and is typically indicated on the lens itself (ex: 1.4, 1.8, 2.8, etc). This number what determines the absolute most light you can collect in a shot. More light means shorter exposure times, which helps prevent blur.

Do you have another favorite way to fix or prevent blurry photos? Share it in the comments below!