North Wales landscape photography (including Snowdonia)
North Wales is a stunning destination for travel photographers. From the rugged peaks of Snowdonia National Park to the picturesque coastline of Anglesey, this region offers endless opportunities to capture beautiful images. In this article, we’ll explore some of the top landscape photography spots in North Wales and share tips for capturing great photos. We’ll showcase the region’s natural beauty and charm, encouraging readers to pack their cameras and explore this stunning corner of the UK. Whether you’re a seasoned pro or a beginner, North Wales is sure to inspire your creativity and leave you with unforgettable images.
Tips for capturing great photos in North Wales
The sections below include some of my favourite places in North Wales together with top tips in terms of gear, composition and techniques to take great photographs.
Top landscape photography spots in North Wales
There are many incredible locations for landscape photos in North Wales. Some of my favourites are listed below, photos are included for each of these locations within this post. See the image captions for the locations of these beautiful places. Over the last 11 years of living in North Wales, I still think these still offer some of the best views!
- Ogwen Valley, Snowdonia National Park
- Llyn Idwal
- South Stack Lighthouse, Anglesey
- Llynnau Mymbyr lakes in Snowdonia.
- The “Lonely Tree” shores of Llyn Padarn, Snowdonia
- Fairy Glen, Betws-y-Coed
- Nant Mill, Coedpoeth
- Moel Famau, Clwydian Range
- Llangollen
- Panorama Walk
- Dinas Bran
- Great Orme, Llandudno
- Worlds End, Minera
Gear recommendations
Landscape photography is a diverse genre, generally allowing all camera bodies and lenses to be used. As you’re often walking or hiking to a location, keeping your gear weight down is important. I tend to prefer a highly flexible superzoom lens which allows wide-angle and telephoto shots with a single lightweight lens, I use the Tamron 16-300mm. Heavy lenses with wide apertures are rarely needed for landscape photography, as the majority of images are taken with a small aperture.
A weather-sealed camera body and lens combination can certainly come in handy for wet environments, if not ensure you’re protecting your gear adequately.
Although not a requirement a tripod can be used to stabilise your camera to enable slower shutter speeds and lower ISO in low light or overcast conditions.
See Best lenses for Nikon D7200 for travel photography for further details on lens choice considerations.
Weather in North Wales
The weather conditions in North Wales can be highly unpredictable. Therefore it’s essential to carry the correct clothing and adequate protection for your gear. Undoubtedly, this can be the most important consideration, which allows you to stay comfortable without worrying about your gear, enabling focus on your photography.
“There’s no such thing as bad weather, only unsuitable clothing.”
Alfred Wainwright
The unpredictable weather assists with adding variety to your images, as the scene can change very quickly. The most challenging conditions are typically the two extremes, very wet and windy or a blue sky sunny day. Blue skies, although pleasant, can make for a very boring sky and harsh light in comparison to a cloudy day!
This is a helpful general guide for temperatures and precipitation in North Wales throughout the year, but of course, always check a forecast before heading out.
Fog can really bring out something special for your shots around the North Wales coast, in particular. However, misty conditions can be hit-and-miss, it’s often worth persevering by either waiting it out or moving uphill until the mist or fog clears. Misty or foggy conditions can often lead to once-in-a-lifetime shots as mountains, lighthouses or hills start to protrude out through the fog.
For further tips on photography along the coastline, see our comprehensive guide to seascape photography.
Reflections
A calm day with light winds can offer impressive reflections on the lakes around North Wales. Framing and perspective are two important aspects to consider.
Framing: To make the most of the reflections, ensure you frame the shot to keep the reflection as the focal point. A zoom lens provides flexibility for composition and framing adjustment in comparison to prime lenses with a fixed focal length. Wide-angle lenses often leave the reflections as a small insignificant part of the image, unless the subject creating the reflection is close by. Personally, I prefer longer focal lengths to maximise lens compression. This gives the impression of the mountains being closer to their own reflection, especially for mountains which are further away.
Perspective: Depending on the scene you may need to adjust the height of your camera position to optimise the location of the reflection. This could be done by simply bending down low, but it could also involve walking up a nearby hill to get higher. Both photos below were taken up on a hill to allow me to frame Pen yr Ole Wen in the reflections within Llyn Idwal.
As you can probably tell, the lakes around Ogwen Valley are my favourite spot for photography in the Snowdonia National Park, especially with the surrounding mountain ranges. For me, it’s the mountain tops combined with the lakes which make it one of the most photogenic spots.
Popular locations
Popular places such as the “Lonely Tree” on the shores of Llyn Padarn near Llanberis are photographed by many. This provides a challenge to get your own unique shot, this often comes with a need for planning. At popular locations like this, sunrise can be a good opportunity to be present during unique conditions. For example, mist, colours of sunrise, or calm waters with reflections. Although the light can be just as good at sunset, expect many more people to be after the same shot at these fantastic places!
If you’re unsuccessful in aligning your arrival on location with the perfect conditions, do not worry! These spots are popular for a reason, it’s often hard to take a bad shot! It’s the honesty of the memories captured for your own individual photos which often means the most.
Hidden gems
Many places in Snowdonia have become very popular, and it’s not difficult to see why! This can often lead to limited parking spaces. Arriving early at “Fairy Glen” in Betws-y-coed allowed me to get this stunning shot of this small rocky gorge. Soon after many people arrived which made getting a shot like this challenging.
I would recommend an early start for most locations, an added bonus is the soft light creates more pleasing images when compared to the harsh mid-day sun. At the end of the day, although the light can also be good, it’s busier.
Using a tripod and ND filter allowed for a 30-second shutter speed capturing the flowing water through the narrow gorge surrounded by moss-covered rocks.
Nant Mill in Coedpoeth has a hidden treasure in the form of a small waterfall. Getting down low for a long exposure shot using the flowing water downstream as a leading line in the foreground which leads the eye to the falls. Using a very small aperture of f/ 22 allowed a slow 1-second shutter speed to capture the movement of the water.
For more things to see in and around Wrexham visit Top photography locations in Wrexham, North Wales.
Providing a sense of scale
The sense of scale is often difficult to capture within a photo. One of the best ways to give a clear sense of scale is to include a subject of a known size, for example, people or animals. Colourful coats (or trousers!) can also help your subject to stand out from the surroundings.
Leading lines
Roads or paths can be the perfect leading lines. The best place for leading lines within your image is usually directing them towards an area of interest and ideally not out of the side of the frame. The example below include the road leading out towards the two walkers and clouds in the distance.
The rule of thirds or rule of odds can also come in handy for mountain landscape photography.
Long exposure photography
An advantage of all the wet weather in North Wales is the abundance of water! It’s always fairly easy to find flowing water, which is the perfect time to use long-exposure photography.
This is where a tripod is essential, also remember to turn off any in-camera or in-lens image stabilisation or vibration control features when on a tripod. For low-light conditions, a small aperture (low f/ stop) can be sufficient to slow down the shutter speed adequately. For brighter conditions, an ND filter may be required to block light and further slow down shutter speeds.
Add a two-second timer or a remote shutter release and you’re ready to shoot long exposures of waterfalls or flowing water! Experiment with different shutter speeds to get the desired amount of water movement. If the shutter speed is too long you will lose all texture in the water.
Conclusion
North Wales is a stunning destination for travel photographers. From the rugged peaks of Snowdonia National Park to the picturesque coastline of Anglesey, this region offers endless opportunities to capture beautiful images. In this article, we’ll explore some of the top landscape photography spots in North Wales and share tips for capturing great photos. We’ll showcase the region’s natural beauty and charm, encouraging readers to pack their cameras and explore this stunning corner of the UK. Whether you’re a seasoned pro or a beginner, North Wales is sure to inspire your creativity and leave you with unforgettable images.
