Oregon is one of those States that doesn’t have any one famous must dos - like California has Yosemite, or Arizona has the Grand Canyon - yet each and every place we visited here was stunningly beautiful. You are absolutely spoilt for choice when it comes to photography locations, and despite the fact Oregon is not known for its weather, the moody skies often added something to the feel of the shots.
We know we’ll be back one day (doesn’t everyone who visits Oregon say that?!) but for now here are our 11 favourite Oregon photography spots.
11 Incredible Oregon Photography Locations
These are the 11 best Oregon photography locations:
You can find this map on Google Maps by clicking on this link.
1 - Natural Bridges, Samuel Boardman State Scenic Corridor
One of our favourite photography locations in Oregon actually has three very different viewpoints. They’re not all easy to get to, but your effort will be rewarded with some of the best views on the West Coast of America.
You can do all three with a pretty crazy loop, but we wouldn’t recommend it. It involves insanely steep slopes and scrambling on a cliff edge! Our suggestion would be to visit the first two and turn back and see if you fancy taking on the third!
The first lookout
The first (and main) lookout for Natural Bridges is a stunner and it’s very easy to get to. It takes less than a minute to get from the parking lot to the main viewing platform. It’s particularly photogenic at sunset and even though you probably won’t get it to yourself everyone is considerate and there is room for plenty of tripods!
The view from the first lookout at Natural Bridges
The second lookout
Assuming you don’t do the loop the way to get to this viewpoint is to continue on from the first lookout. The path is flat and easy for the most part. You’ll come across a tree with a pink ribbon on your right hand side. Follow this trail down to the cliff edge and follow the path round. Again it’s a bit slippery but not in any way as bad as the third lookout. Return the way you came or carry on the loop via the bridge which is most definitely hairy!
The view from the second lookout at Natural Bridges
The third view
The third spot - and the one more commonly seen on big Instagrammer’s accounts - is a lot harder to get to. The trail to get to this much closer up view of Natural Bridges is unmarked but it goes from the same parking lot.
You need to take the trail on the right, through the forest. It starts off easy enough but then it begins to get very, very hairy. You will need shoes with good grip - as the trail begins to descend through the forest it gets incredibly slippery.
It’s the kind of trail where I lost my footing many times you will need to grab onto every tree you see and slide on your backside at points. There is often quite a drop too which makes it unnerving. It doesn’t take too long but you have to hold your nerve on the slippery terrain.
The view is simply incredible though. We saw some crazy people climb over the bridge and managed to snap them just at sunset! Walking over the bridge is the only way to make this trail a loop that joins all three viewpoints but we definitely weren’t game and we don’t recommend it.
Getting to Natural Bridges
Natural Bridges is in Samuel Boardman, a park which is on the Oregon coast and very close to the border with California. Natural Bridges is easy to find, just type it into google and you’ll be taken to the parking lot.
Samuel Boardman is quite a long way from any major city in Oregon. It’s nearly a six hour drive to Portland. There are plenty of accommodation options nearby though.
2 - Smith Rock State Park
Smith Rock has some great hiking trails but you don’t have to go far to reach one of our favourite spots. Just head down the track to your left from the car park and you’ll immediately come to this view.
There are quite a few spots to take photos, both at this height and slightly lower down the trail, depending on your preference. It’s a great place to come at sunset as it sets directly in front of you and behind the photogenic jagged rock.
Getting to Smith Rock State Park
Smith Rock State Park is a 30 minute drive outside of Bend and an even shorter drive from Redmond. If you head to the main parking lot, you will find the photography spot down the path that leads to the river.
3 - Lower Proxy Falls
Both Upper and Lower Proxy Falls are a landscape photographer’s delight. Both have a true out in the wilds feeling to them. Our favourite was Lower Proxy which had a powerful flow and lots of atmospheric logs in the foreground.
The walk to get to the falls is less than one mile and it’s an easy trail until you get to the last bit which requires a scramble. Whilst you can view the falls from the end of the trail you can’t really get any good photographs unless you make your way down to the foot of the falls. You’ll have to climb over tree roots and logs to get there but the view is worth it - just watch your step as the area is often wet and slippery.
If you want a person in your shot for scale they can sit up on the log but again it’s a scramble and it was very icy when we visited so that wasn’t happening!
Not too much natural light can get through to the falls so you can shoot in the middle of the day but an overcast day is preferable for even light. There wasn’t anyone at the falls when we visited so you shouldn’t have to worry about crowds.
Getting to Lower Proxy Falls
Lower Proxy Falls is quite a long way from any city in Oregon, but is close to Cougar Hot Springs and Tamolich Blue Falls for a fun day trip. The nearest town is Bend, which is a 1.5 hour drive away. Alternatively, it’s a 3.5 hour drive from Portland.
4 - Trillium Lake
Trillium Lake is a magical spot with the towering Mount Hood as a backdrop. Normally we would have come to this location at sunrise or sunset for the best light (I’ve seen stunning photos from both times of day) but we couldn’t make it work so our photo is shot in the middle of the day.
Luckily the water was really still and we managed to get a great reflection. You can drive right up to Trillium Lake and then walk to the shore within a minute.
Getting to Trillium Lake
Trillium Lake is a 1.5 - 2 hour drive from Portland (depending on traffic). It’s also a great way to break up the journey between Bend and Portland.
5 - Multnomah Falls
I didn’t want Multnomah Falls to be one of my favourite waterfalls in Oregon because it’s so busy and popular, but what can I say? This waterfall is breathtaking. You can get lovely landscape photos just a one minute walk from the car park at the main viewing area. If you want a person in the shot for scale, they’ll need to head up the trail to the bridge, which is moderately steep but only takes around five minutes.
As mentioned this is a busy spot so sunrise would be ideal for lack of crowds, we visited at sunset and managed to get a few seconds without others on the bridge to get this shot. If you’re lucky enough to visit in the fall the colours of the surrounding trees add an extra touch of magic to your pictures.
Getting to Multnomah Falls
Multnomah Falls is easy to get to and is only a very leisurely stroll from the parking lot. It’s a 45 minute drive from Portland and the parking lot is just alongside the road.
6 - Umpqua Hot Springs
Umpqua hot springs are an Instagram sensation and it’s easy to see why as the area is so atmospheric. The hot springs are on various levels of the cliff edge and the water has a milky blue hue to it.
To reach the hot springs you’ll follow a forest trail for 0.6 miles, it has one very steep section which I was grateful to have proper shoes and not flip flops for - this is Oregon and it rains a lot so it gets very squelchy!
The best pool for photos in my opinion is the middle tier which has an edge of the world feeling (the water is warm but not hot so when you’ve finished taking photos you might prefer the pools above).
It’s not as easy as we thought it would be to get great photos here but there are plenty of areas for the photographer to get up higher than the pool (which does require a bit of easy scrambling).
The pools get incredibly busy so we’d highly recommend coming at sunrise and taking any photos you want straight away. If you’re planning on visiting any more hot springs in the area, we have you covered in this detailed guide.
Getting to Umpqua Hot Springs
Umpqua is tucked away in the mountains of Oregon and is a quite a long drive from any town or city! As we wanted to get there really early to avoid the crowds, we stayed overnight in Roseburg which is a 1.5 hour drive from Umpqua.
Otherwise it is 2.5 hours from Bend or 4.5 hours from Portland. Make sure you have a full tank of gas before you go as there are very few gas stations in this part of Oregon.
7 - Tokatee Falls
Tokatee Falls is very close to Umpqua Hot Springs and it’s easy to combine the two in one morning. Tokatee means graceful and we aren’t going to disagree, the whole scene is beautiful with the falls plunging from a series of photogenic basalt columns.
Unfortunately the trail down to the foot of the falls has been closed with a large gate and keep out sign which is a real shame because I’ve seen some show stopping photos from the base.
It’s still worth visiting and seeing Tokatee from above though. To get to the viewing platform above the falls requires a 0.4 mile walk which includes a few staircases but is not too steep. We thought the light was great just after sunrise which fitted in well with visiting Umpqua.
Getting to Tokatee Falls
Tokatee Falls is very close to Umpqua Hot Springs and Crater Lake for a fun day trip. This is 2.5 hours from Bend, 4.5 hours from Portland and 1.5 from Roseburg (the nearest town/city). Tokatee Falls is a 15 minute drive from Umpqua Hot Springs.
8 - Crater Lake
When thinking about Oregon Photography spots you can’t miss Crater Lake, in Oregon’s only national park. Depending on when you go a large part of the park will be closed (this was the case for us in November) but you can always access the main lake viewpoint by the Visitor Centre.
If you can visit for sunrise or sunset you will have the best light, at sunrise people tend to bring blankets to huddle up and enjoy the spectacle. At sunset Wizard Island in the foreground will be silhouetted.
Getting to Crater Lake
Crater Lake is a fair distance from any town/city, and is over a 2 hour drive from Bend and at least 2 hours from anywhere along the I-5. It’s approximately 4.5 hours way from Portland.
9 - Secret Beach, Samuel Boardman
Secret Beach was one of our favourite stops along the Samuel H Boardman State Scenic Corridor. Although it’s not entirely as secret as its name might suggest we still had it to ourselves for the majority of our visit.
Secret Beach is not marked but you’ll find it roughly 1/3 mile south of milepost 345 on U.S. 101 where you’ll come to a small parking area. From there you walk downhill on the trail for approximately 1/4 mile. It’s easy on the way down and a steep but short slog on the way back up.
You’ll then arrive at the view you can see in our photo, you can scramble down onto the beach (at low tide), you’ll want shoes with decent grip because it is slippery. You don’t have too far to drop down onto the beach but it isn’t that straightforward.
We visited late afternoon and the light was good but it would have been even better at sunset. We did notice that as we hiked back up a few people were making their way down with beers and deck chairs so it’s probably a relatively busy sunset spot.
Getting to Secret Beach
Secret Beach is along the Samuel Boardman Scenic Corridor, a park which is on the Oregon coast and very close to the border with California. To start the hike, look for mile marker 345 on US 101 and then keep an eye out for the small parking lot.
Samuel Boardman is quite a long way from any major city in Oregon. It’s nearly a 6 hour drive to Portland. There are plenty of accommodation options nearby though.
10 - Snively Hot Springs
Snively was one of our favourite hot springs in Oregon. The steaming pools are right beside the river with dramatic red cliffs providing the backdrop. It’s an amazing spot and one of the few springs we went to in the middle of the day that we only had to share with one other person.
The red cliffs make these springs unique and the huge amount of steam makes for a really atmospheric shot. As mentioned, we went in the middle of the day but if you went very early morning I can only imagine you would have it all to yourself, not too mention lovely soft light.
Getting to Snively Hot Springs
Snively isn’t near anywhere in Oregon and is a lot closer to Boise in Idaho than any major town or city in Oregon! It’s a great stop on the way from Idaho to Oregon and is about 1.5 hours from Boise. If you’re heading to or from Idaho you can’t miss these Idaho hot springs as well!
11 - Tamolitch Blue Pool
You’d be forgiven for thinking that the water in this pool has been heavily photoshopped but happily that’s not the case. You’ll find the Blue Pool at the end of a two mile walking track through a pretty stretch of forest. It’s an easy walk with little elevation gain and a big pay off at the end.
You’ll come out at the spot you can see in our picture. Many people choose to scramble down the cliff edge on the opposite bank and swim in the pools. It looks like it would be a magical place for a dip but as we visited in winter so that definitely wasn’t happening!
Getting to Tamolich Blue Pool
Tamolich Blue Pool is quite a long way from any city in Oregon, but is close to Cougar Hot Springs and Lower Proxy Falls for a fun day trip. The nearest town is Bend, which is a 1.5 hour drive away. Alternatively, it’s a 3.5 hour drive from Portland.
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