Top 10 Destinations for Landscape Photography

Landscape Photography  •  Photography Tips

If you want great landscape shots, you must choose the best locations and make the most of the natural lighting. And while you may get some good scenes wherever you happen to be, the best photos happen when you go in search of the perfect location. If you’re hoping to click some breathtaking landscape photographs, here are the top ten destinations, in my opinion, that will help you achieve your goal.

1. Peru

Think of Peru and you’re immediately reminded of the Incas and that great ancient city of Machu Picchu. This country is a photographer’s delight with its great sand dunes, tall, snow-capped mountains, and plateaus that showcase a bygone civilization’s legacy. While getting to some of the remote locations may take a few days of air and road travel, the result is worth the effort.

2. New Zealand

This tiny nation is chock full of rivers, glaciers, fiords, mountains, geysers, beaches, and islands that are a feast for the camera. Most of the country is uninhabited and free of pollution and interference from mankind. Not for nothing has New Zealand been called as a landscape photographer’s dream come true. It’s at the other end of the world if you live in the USA, but once you get there, this beautiful country will win you over with its natural beauty.

3. Chile

This narrow strip of a country nestled between the Andes and the Pacific Ocean is home to some of the greatest landscapes in the world. From the dry and arid Atacama Desert in the north to the glacier regions in the extreme south, Chile is a potpourri of climates and scenery. It is rich in forests, volcanoes, glaciers, lakes, fiords, inlets, islands, and canals which are perfect settings for any photographer. It also controls Easter Island which has many archaeological sites that form great landscapes.

4. Nepal

This tiny Himalayan nation is famed not just for its brave and adventurous Sherpas but also for the huge mountains that are a photographer’s paradise. Add to this its lakes, rivers, and snow-covered land, and you can spend days here with your camera and still not have enough time to capture it all on film. However, it is prone to political unrest, so ensure that it’s safe to travel there before you make plans to do so.

5. Australia

It’s a large country, but one which is sparsely populated. Around 60 percent of the population is concentrated in and around its six major cities, and this makes the rest of Australia a landscape photographer’s ultimate destination. Sandy white beaches that are unspoiled by man, rainforests that house a variety of wildlife, rugged mountains, the vast outback, and dry deserts make for great photographs.

6. The Netherlands

Much of this small European nation is land reclaimed from the sea; it is a country rich in dykes, canals, national parks, lakes, woods, dunes, and heaths. Amsterdam is a sight for sore eyes with its picturesque canals that wind around the city, often replacing roads and bordering houses. A photographer could wander about on a boat or a bicycle snapping great pictures of the surrounding landscape.

7. Greece

This mountainous country is home to some of the best natural landscapes in the world. It is surrounded by the sea on three sides which gives rise to pristine beaches along the tenth longest coastline in the world. Add to this beautiful mountain peaks and solitary islands, lovely lakes, and vast wetlands, and you can see why Greece is a sought after destination for landscape photography.

8. Utah

This desolate state in the US is famed for its geographical tourism. With the Rocky Mountains, the Colorado Plateau, and the Great Basin as its prime attractions, Utah is filled with vast areas of desert and mountainous ranges. Almost 80 percent of its population is concentrated in and around Salt Lake City, so the rest of its area lends itself to some of the best landscape photography in the world.

9. Iceland

Known colorfully as the land of fire and ice, Iceland is famous for its dramatic landscape dotted with volcanoes, glaciers, and sheep pastures. The 24-hour sunlight in the summer makes for some great lighting, and with more than half the population in and around the capital city of Reykjavik, the rest of the country is far from regular tourist attractions and hence a photographer’s ideal shooting location for landscape pictures.

10. Tanzania

Situated in the heartland of Africa, this country boasts mountains, plains, large plateaus, national parks, and wildlife, waterfalls, and sprawling lakes. It is home to the highest mountain peak in Africa, Mt. Kilimanjaro, and its deepest lake, Lake Tanganyika. It is ideal for landscape photography with its large open spaces and teeming wildlife.

About the Author
This guest post is contributed by Becky Patterson, who writes on the topic of becoming a photographer (becomeaphotographer dot org) . She can be reached at beckypatterson89[@]gmail[.]com.