Traveling? Share your photo memories with the L.A. Times

Times readers surely have been busy this summer, as their photos show.

In June, we asked you to give us your best shot--of vacation photography, that is. And you’ve responded with great shots that could be used in our Sept. 21 print issue or online.

So far, you have gone to the Black Sea in Romania and to the beaches of Norway. You’ve taken roadtrips to the Grand Tetons in Wyoming and Mt. Rushmore in South Dakota.

Some of you are vacationing closer to home, too, capturing stunning Southland experiences.

Here are a few of our favorites.

Surf and sea in Nicaragua

Pasadena resident Matt Hoffman was on a surfing trip in Nicaragua with some friends when he managed to capture a shot of one of his buddies, Hunter Martinez, bodysurfing.

He knew the day he took this picture was going to be a good one. “I woke up to a sunny morning, good waves, offshore winds and the bluest water I’ve ever seen,” he said.

Luckily, Hoffman had come equipped to take advantage of his picturesque destination. Along with his Canon 5D, he had brought SPL Waterhousing gear so he could bring the camera in the ocean.

Hoffman managed to line up a shot of Martinez just as a wave was coming in. He said he loves the shot because of the simplicity of it: just a man and the ocean.

“The feeling that you get is indescribable,” Hoffman said of bodysurfing. “It’s a rush and only lasts a moment.”

Rusted ship in Point Reyes, California

Gene Cheltenham was on a road trip on Highway 1 north of San Francisco when he and his companions decided to stop at Point Reyes National Seashore in Marin Country for a few days.

While passing through the small town of Inverness, just north of Point Reyes, he noticed, by the side of the road, an old rusted ship, appropriately named “Point Reyes” but knew it wasn’t the right time to take a photo on his Panasonic Lumix FZ40.

“I made a point to come back early in the morning the next day to catch the boat as the sun was coming up over the hills at Tomales Bay,” Cheltenham said. “Whether the morning was going to be foggy or clear, the early morning light was going to give me the opportunity for a successful shot.”

Cheltenham’s secret to taking the perfect picture? “It’s all about the light.”

A kudu in the headlights in Botswana

In June, Seal Beach resident Don Drissel and his wife, Kathy, were on a three-week safari that spanned four countries when they received an up-close-and-personal encounter with a kudu, a species of antelope found in Africa.

Most of the animals on the Drissels’ game drives were “positioned well off the dirt roads”; this one, at the Chobe National Park in Botswana, wasn’t.

“Unlike a lot of animals we saw, this kudu wasn’t vehicle shy,” Drissel said. “He stood his ground and eventually turned to face us head on.”

His proximity to the animal gave Drissel the opportunity to snap a picture of it with his Sony Cyber-Shot HX-300.

“Luckily for me he turned and stood still,” Drissel said.

This isn’t the case with most wild animals. “I found a lot of animals will turn their posterior towards you ... that is known as the ‘African salute.’”

How you can submit a photo

If you’re an amateur photographer (no professionals, please) interested in submitting a photo for our summer vacation issue--those taken between June 4 and Sept. 4 of this year--the deadline for submissions. Please include your name and city of residence, along with when and where the photo was shot.

Also, tell us a little bit about what led up to the photo and what you like about it.

The photo must be high resolution, at least 1,300 megapixels wide and at least 1 MB but not larger than 12MB.

By submitting them, you agree that The Times may reproduce your photos in any format. Send them via email, with “Vacation Photo Issue” in the subject line to travel@latimes.com, upload them to Flickr or submit them using the hashtag #LATimesVacationPhoto on Twitter or Instagram.

Please limit submissions to 10 photos.