A family camping trip or just a day in the great outdoors invariably offers some compelling photo opportunities. Follow these tips and your slide-show audience will be yelling for “s’more.”

1.  BE PREPARED
Your pocket-size point-and-shoot is perfect if you’re doing much hiking or backpacking. Just remember to keep it handy. A camera tucked in the bottom of your backpack won’t be accessible when you need it for that fleeting moment. Instead, stash it in a small belt pouch or your pack’s outer pocket.

Unless you’ve got a hardy, water-resistant digital compact like the ones made by Pentax and Olympus, you’ll probably need some protection from rain, fog and moisture. You don’t need anything fancy; just seal your camera in a zippered freezer bag. Most compacts fit perfectly in the pint-sized ones. 

2.  SORRY, NO SLEEPING IN
To capture spectacular scenery while you hike, pay special attention to the quality of the light. Avoid shooting when the sun is high. Go out early in the morning or wait till late afternoon to get the long shadows and crisp colors that translate so well in photographs. On cloudy or overcast days, minimize the sky in your composition—it will likely be featureless and bright.

3.  THE BIG PICTURE
For those National Geographic–style vistas, you’ll want to zoom out to your widest-angle lens coverage. And be sure to include your fellow hikers to help show the scale of the landscape. Scramble out ahead so you can shoot them coming toward you, not walking away—and don’t be afraid to ask them to walk past you more than once.

For strong photos, avoid the tendency to place your subjects smack in the middle of the frame (the old “bulls-eye” approach). Instead, try to position them to one side and remember to have them walking into the frame rather than out of it.

4.  AND THE SMALL ONE
To round out your shoot, make a point of capturing little details by the side of the trail. For a good shot of a cluster of flowers, for example, come in close for a narrow field of focus (also called the depth of field) and frame them with a neutral background that won’t distract. Some shooters use a dark jacket or sweater as a backdrop, because the muted color really makes the blossoms pop. The shallow depth of field renders the jacket soft; it will just look like a dark shadowed area.

5.  THAT KUMBAYA MOMENT
You can get some beautifully atmospheric shots after the sun sets. But remember—nothing ruins the mood of a blazing campfire faster than the harsh light of a camera flash. Instead, turn the camera’s flash off (“no flash” is usually indicated by a lightning-bolt symbol with a diagonal line through it) and raise your ISO to its highest setting, such as 800. (Don’t know what I’m talking about? Here’s where your instruction manual comes in handy. Be sure to have it with you.)

For the best results, try to take your campfire shots at twilight when there’s still some detail in the sky. Find something to brace the camera on: a backpack, perhaps, or a convenient rock. Frame up your shot and ask everyone around the fire to stay still (it will be a long exposure, and anyone moving will be blurry). Then gently squeeze the shutter, trying not to jar the camera. It’s even better to use the camera’s self-timer; not only will the shutter release be smoother, but you’ll also be able to get into the shot yourself. Now where’s that marshmallow stick?

FOLLOW THE SUN
If you’ll be out on the trail for a while, bring plenty of extra batteries—or consider a lightweight solar recharger. The 19-ounce Brunton SolarPort 4.4, for example, lets you harness the sun to power up your cell phone, GPS and digital camera (brunton.com; $187). It’s the green way to document your next trip to the great outdoors.