6 Places Every Photographer Should Visit At Least Once In Their Lifetime

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Photography and travel seem like they go hand in hand. There are so many gorgeous locations in the world, it's hard not to want to photograph them all. Unfortunately, for most of us, our schedules and budget won't allow us to jetset around the world in search of the perfect photograph. That's why we have to make bucket lists. Of course, we'll all be drawn to different types of environments—some like tropical, some like snow, some of us prefer the forest to the beach—but, here's a quick list of some of the most traveled to locations by photographers.

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Photo by -syauqee-

Iceland

Iceland has become a major destination for photographers, which comes as no surprise given all the natural wonders to be found there. Iceland is famous for it's prime Northern Lights viewing and its 130 volcanic cones. Only a handful are active, but the inactive volcanoes still make beautiful mountains. Iceland really seems like a no-brainer if you're into landscapes and/ or night sky photography.


Photo by anieto2k

Mongolia

Mongolia is a bit off the beaten path, but for many, that's part of the charm. Just hire a guide with a good reputation and set off on to an adventure. There's a little something for all sorts of photographers ranging from landscapes, documentary, culture, and wildlife. Popular attractions are the horse races and camel trekking. The Mongolian people are a beautiful community and even portrait photographers will find opportunities to create breathtaking images. Below, we see a Mongolian girl posing with one of the regions famous golden eagles.


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Photo by www.davidbaxendale.com

Antarctica

This continents vastness and sheer scale can be an overwhelming adventure in the best kind of way. And who doesn't love penguins? Although, there's a lot more to Antarctica than just it's penguins–there's actually 46 species of birds to be found in the Antarctica. There's also whales, seals, and other aquatic wildlife in addition to all kinds of fungi, moss, and insects in case you want to get your macro on while visiting the area. Landscape photographers will be at no shortage of horizons to aim their cameras at with all the incredible glaciers and ice formations.


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Photo by 23am.com

New Zealand

This wouldn't be a very good list of places to photograph if New Zealand didn't make the list. Anyone familiar with Trey Ratcliff's work will know just how jaw dropping New Zealand is. It's a landscape photographers paradise and an absolute playground for bird photographers. You'll find a glorious mountains, serene beaches, and even a vibrant city and nightlife.

Venice, Italy

Okay, not just Venice, all of Italy is beautiful and has culture, city life, farmland, and coastal regions to please every photography. But, there's an unparalleled beauty about Venice that is hard to replicate. Plan a visit around the month of February to experience the annual Venice Carnival where festival goers dress in traditional Venetian masks and costume before taking to the streets. Be sure to have your camera on you around the golden and blue hours, when the sky is often vibrant colors which vividly reflect on the canal water. In fact, just be sure to have your camera all the time.


Photo by Stefano Montagner – The life around me

Thailand

A tropical paradise with a twist. There are lots of pristine beaches to photograph, along with lush rain forest, wildlife, and Thai culture as a whole. Get a little street photography in at the Floating Market, grab some architectural  shots of the many temples, and visit a reputable elephant sanctuary, and satisfy your craving for some food (photography) at any of Thailand's bustling rows of street food vendors.


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Photo by Earth-Bound Misfit, I

Of course, this list barely scrapes the surface of places I think we should all be able to photograph at some point in careers, but I'm not sure anyone has the time to read an unabridged version of the list. Your time will be much better spent touring one of these locations with a camera in tow. Be sure to tell us where it is you want to photograph the most in the comments section below and share your stories/photos of some epic adventures you've gone on in the past.

About Author

Tiffany Mueller is an adventurer and photographer based in Hawaii. When she's not climbing volcanoes or swimming with sharks, you can find her writing articles and running the official blog at PhotoBlog.

Of these, Iceland tops my list – fortunately Reykjavik has direct flights from my city. Travel photography will have to wait until life and funds allow, but I am very blessed to live 3 hours from Jasper National Park and not much further from Banff.

It’s easy to get the travel itch without appreciating what’s in your own backyard, so to speak.

New Zealand tops my list because it’s my birth country. But I’ve lived in Australia for 50 years and having travelled this island continent from east to west, and from west to east inside the last 12 months via different roads in the main, I can vouch that it too has enormous diversity and uniqueness. And that is the point surely. Topography and culture are one thing, even bird and animal life, but if the beauty of light, its colour, strength, direction and play command our attention and fuel our passion for photography, then venue matters not. Still, the Tui bird on the NZ Flax bush by SidPix is a great photo!

Since I live in Thailand, I would choose Iceland and New Zealand as my top 2 priorities, and I plan to visit them both as soon as I get the chance! To read and see many stories and images about Thailand, check out my blog!

A very good list Tiffany. I’d add India and Namibia. By next year I’ll have been in 3 of your list, Iceland, New Zealand and Venice. Antarctica is a very distant dream, unless I find a cheap way to get there… If you know one please let me know 🙂

Indeed it is nice to visit this places, but thinking about our environnement, it is a stupid idea to encourage people to take a plane and visit als those places. It would be better to encourage to take photo’s of what is next to us en enjoy the photo’s of people who live in al those stunning places en than everybody will sea stunning photo’s of stunning places and out planet will keep a bit longer such a stunning place to take photo’s!

You are right. It’s completely selfish to want to travel and visit new places. It would be even better if we all killed ourselves then we would have no more damage to the environment at all.

Way to encourage other people’s points of view, Negative Agenda. Some of what lievedenys said is perfectly valid: great photos can be found anywhere. And regardless of your (or my) love of travel, it is an environmental issue.

There always seems to be “one” who feels the need to leave negative feedback. Thousands of people fly everyday to every part of the world. To visit different countries and different cultures enriches our understanding of the world’s people.

These location sound very beautiful but hardly within every photographers travel budget. I for one would appreciate a story on more affordrdable places to visit, perhaps within the United States. That would be much more useful

What about Wales, the Lake District, the Peak District, Cornwall, London, Canterbury? I personally love those places.

Have a go at Flamborough in East Yorkshire, or the Yorkshire dales, Northumbria, The Lake District, Cornwall, Scotland, Wales, Ireland. All in easy reach and all good seascape or landscape locations.

Well I live in NZ and have taken a large number of amazing landscape images. But I would add Alaska to the list. I visited there this year and was stunned at the beauty and variety of landscapes.

Petra (in southern Jordan) is an amazing place to photograph, in addition to its history … I could list at least six more, but this one is good enough for now!

I would love to go to all these places. So far, in my own experience, India and Burma have the most photogenic countries I have ever had the pleasure of visiting

Perhaps the most constructive and beneficial approach would be for you to request that people submit their personal lists of 6 must-visit locations. Drawing on such a vast pool of experience would offer some less well-known locations. For instance I might suggest the colonial town of Cuenca or the Chimborazo Forest in Ecuador; Mazamitla in the state of Jalisco in Mexico; Acadia National Park on the coast of Maine; the Butchart Gardens in Victoria, British Columbia; Tenerife during Carnival. For a native of Seville, Spain, the North End of Boston might be a treat. Fascinating photographic opportunities are not dependent on where you’re standing, but how you perceive your surroundings.

4 out of six… not a bad score…………..
but, some were in the analogue time, so I would’t mind visiting them again !
We live in a beautiful world, and we, photographers are a priviledged kind….. often seeing thing others do not notice. And that can be at home as well as far away.

I would love to visit all these places, they are on my ever extending bucket list….but I agree with a previous contributor about places we’ve been to….
My real first photographic experience was when I travelled to Peru and Bolivia, at 40 I travelled down through Mexico to Guatemala and then into Belize, for those in Europe a really great place to go is Coburg, Germany great at any time of the year, but I stumbled into the Samba festival there many years ago and it’s amazing, upto 80/90 samba bands, so if you can’t quite afford Brazil this is the very next best place for the samba experience…Scotland also has amazing landscape opportunities…I live just outside of brighton, England, and here you get loads of photographic opportunties be it the sea or the hustle and bustle on the prom or through the lanes….or just head 10 minutes outside and your in the beautiful rolling hills of the South Downs…

So far I have visited Venice and New Zealand. My one regret is that I didn’t buy my ‘fancy camera’ until after I came back from NZ… Now I have to go back! 🙂 But first…. I booked my tickets to Iceland! Can hardly wait to capture the volcanoes, starry skies and (fingers crossed) aurora!

Nature and landscape photogrqpher can do well in south america. Some places come to mind like Venezuela’s Canamia National Park, Argentina-Brazil Iguazú falls, Chile’s Atacaam Desert, Ecuador’s Galapagos Islands just to mention a few. And they’re affordable as well.

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