Conde Nast is having a photo contest and they're giving away a "Dream Trip." (Of course I entered.) It's big fun to think about what that dream trip would be, but it's also fun to click through the entries and see what others are posting. Clicking through all those photos made me wonder what makes one photo great and another one just so so.

Road Junky helps answer this question with a series on What Makes a Good Travel Photo.

A very important tip for prospective travel photographers is to de-emphasize the obvious. For example, if you’re in India, shots of the Taj Mahal or even the ghats of Varanasi are not really the way to go – they’ve been overexposed by the global media and drained of their visual power. A gallery of photos showing a local eunuch’s daily plight, however, or the artwork featured on the country’s commercial long-distance trucks, would be a sublime theme that would illuminate a whole hidden side to that country.

Away.com also runs a series on taking good vs. great photos.

A picture is a playground, with places for our eyes to wander and investigate, plus spaces for them to rest and relax. When we first see something, we are defensive. Our eyes instinctually find light, bright areas, and look for people, particularly their eyes and mouth.

The Travel Photographer is devoted to, you guessed it. Wow, the photos are stunning and the blog, well, I added it to my RSS feeds. Photographers and their work, hardware, photo philosophizing, links, good stuff. I don't even know where to start calling out highlights; just go read.

For me, great travel photos aren't about pretty places - there are lots of travel pictures that are pleasing. Great travel photos transport you to that place - you look at the shot and you're there - they stop you in that moment. Now you - what makes a great travel photo for you?

Photo from quiquenamib's photostream. More stunners here.

Pam blogs about travel and other adventures at Nerd's Eye View.