Travel Photography: Skylines

This image is available for purchase at iStockphoto

When we think of skyline photography we conjure up panoramic images of urban architecture against a twilight or night time sky. The dramatic and iconic representations of a time, a place and a culture make these images some of the most used photographs in travel publications. The uniqueness of a particular skylines make them easily recognizable. Cities like Athens, Rome, Paris, London, New York, Chicago and San Francisco have distinct shapes and are emblematic of western culture. More recently, as air travel made the world smaller, the images of cities like Dubai, Sidney, Hong Kong, Singapore and Shanghai are now recognizable features in our world view.



Here are two sites that offer galleries of skyline photos. The first, Phototuts+, is simply a list of the author’s favorites with a few tips, while the second, Luigi DiSerio’s Photo Adventures and More provides a discussion of the criteria the author uses to judge which cities have the “best” skylines. Popular opinion makes this one of the top sites on the subject. His top 15 choices include Dubai, Seoul and Frankfurt.


I don’t think there are any modern city skylines that haven’t been photographed. Just search “city skylines of the world” in Google images and you’ll get back more than 9 million results. Competition is stiff for photos of places like New York City, Hong Kong, London, Seattle, and Chicago, so if you’re thinking about offering those images for sale, then try to take them from different points of view.

Seattle from Space Needle. See iStockphoto.

Gaining access to rooftops is one way to to find different view points for your skylines. If you have friends who live in buildings that have rooftop common areas or terraces that offer views of a city, then ask them for access so you can photograph from there. Rooftop restaurants or those that offer a high vantage point is another way to get panoramic images of city skylines. Cities like New York and Chicago have observation decks on several tall buildings from which you can get a grand view of their skylines. If you can afford an hour on a helicopter or small airplane then you can certainly gain a unique perspective.

Chicago skyline from tour boat. See on iStockphoto.

If a city is along a river, lake or marine environment, you can take a tour boat to gain access to some nice skyline imagery. Scheduling is important here so pay attention to the time of sunset for that location and take the tour when there is enough light to handhold the camera. Tripods, if allowed on board, are often useless on decks of boats because of boat movement, and engine vibration so night photography is almost always out of the question. When hand-holding a DSLR in lowlight conditions, try shooting bursts of three to five images of the scene while exhaling. Often one of the shots will be very sharp.

Light adds drama to an otherwise cliche image. See more here.

Dramatic light during spectacular weather events can bring a skyline to life. Storm clouds or lightening that serve as a backdrop, spectacular sunsets or dawns reflecting off buildings or simply rain or snow can offer excellent photography opportunities and add uniqueness to a commonly photographed skyline.

Foreground adds perspective. See iStockphoto.  

You can add foreground elements to gain a different perspective on a cityscape.

NYC skyline from across East River.  See iStockphoto

If you are shooting at twilight into darkness then learn to calibrate exposure and focus manually. You should also learn about the light values of the ambient light so you can set white balance, even though if you shoot Raw, you can make the adjustment later. 

Smaller aperture diffraction. See iStockphoto

If you have specific light sources like street lights or rows of lights on bridges, you risk having them portrayed as star bursts if you stop down too much. For example, try shooting at image like a street lamp at F16 and then at F5.6 and see which one has less diffraction. However, if you want that look, then shoot at the smaller aperture, but you risk losing some sharpness in the rest of the image.

Don't neglect skyline photography when you travel. Even though you may not think of small city skylines as photo-worthy because they don't sport dramatic "skyscraper" architecture, they are distinctive in their own right and offer unique photo opportunities for traveling photographers.