Being a local guide who takes pictures in megacities, countrysides, lakes and oceans is exciting. But what if we can take it to a step higher? Maybe not one but a few thousand steps. That’s right! After an year or two of using the local guide contribution I went for training to become a pilot in New Zealand. This exposure made me realise how I can contribute a lot of aerial photography of different cities across New Zealand and the islands that surround the country.
I took advantage of my cross country flights and started taking breathtaking pictures from the aircraft. I also occasionally went as a passenger with other friends to be able to obtain more pictures for Google Maps. This helped me get birdviews from places even drones aren’t legally allowed to fly like airports. I always wanted to contribute but at the same time believed that I need to do something different. I felt that composing my travels in a unique and exquisite way will not only help daily users but also motivate other local guides to start exploring because the sky is the limit. However, I feel that other people should also be excited about views from the skies. This means that one doesn’t necessarily have to be a pilot to take advantage of this system. Everytime you are taking a flight take a few good pictures on takeoff and landing. My most viewed image as a local guide was a picture from the skies in Sao Paulo overlooking the city when I was just a passenger.
As I started showing people my pictures from the skies they started getting more keen into photography. I personally believe this is one of the best platforms a budding photographer can grow because even though his photos might violate rules of photography people won’t mind as it still helps them a lot practically. This can help the person try out different things and can still help himself as well as other users.