We feature some of the brightest Instagram storytellers in the Passion Passport community through our Instagram Spotlight series. This week, explore Australia with Peter Yan (@yantastic).

I’m extremely lucky to have lived in Melbourne, Australia, for 12 years now.

Most towns are surrounded by numerous landscapes on all sides — forests, mountains, bushlands, desert, and beautiful coasts where the land meets to the sea. Australia has everything you need for great photography: beautiful beaches and coastlines, strange rock formations, curious and sometimes dangerous animals … you name it.

Maybe that’s why some cultures call Australia, the lucky country.

I’ve always been interested in photography, but only started taking it seriously last summer. My full-time job is at a tech company, but I try to get out and take pictures whenever I have time.

My father loved photography when I was growing up, and often used me as his model, so I suppose you could say he was my early influence.

Photography gives me an excuse to get out and see the world. I love traveling and have been to 30 countries so far. One more country and I’ll have visited one country for every year of my life.  Life is too short and I want to be able to explore as much of this world as I can.

My photography is all about the feelings I experience in the moment. When I go on a road trip I usually capture whatever I’m feeling right then, but it’s not an exact science. Sometimes I shoot 100 images but only end up using one.

 

The most important things I’ve learned about photography are that you don’t need a fancy or expensive camera and you don’t have to wait until it’s sunny outside to shoot.

Learn to use your camera in manual mode, always take RAW photos, learn to use Lightroom or other professional editing software, and just keep practicing and getting better at the art of photography. Know your style and stick to it, but never be afraid to change it.