Just for fun: Where is the best place in the world for a photographer to live?

<p>In terms of photographic opportunities, I think I'm pretty lucky to live near Brighton (on the South Coast of England). I live on the edge of a vibrant city; have the sea on my doorstep; easy access to the beautiful gentle hills of the South Downs; and better weather than the rest of the country. On the minus side, the wildlife here is generally small, brown and hard to find; and really dramatic weather is rare. I've been waiting for months for a decent thunderstorm!</p>

<p>It set me thinking. If I won the lottery, where would I move to get the most opportunities for great photos?</p>

<p>I'd rate my home as follows. </p>

<p>Landscapes: 7/10 (beautiful rolling hills/white cliffs, but nothing really dramatic like the Grand Canyon)<br>

Portraits: 9/10 (great variety of settings in a relatively small area; UK weather means lots of clouds & soft light)<br>

Nature: 3/10 (not much of it and it tends to be small brown and timid)<br>

Astrophotography: 1/10 (way too much light pollution. Would need to travel some distance to avoid it)<br>

Weather: 4/10 (often get nice early evening/morning light, but it can't be guaranteed, and really dramatic weather is rare) <br>

Street: 8/10 (Brighton is full of characters, and generally tolerant of photographers)</p>

<p>What about where you live?</p>

<p>Chris</p>

<p> </p>

<p>Well, I can tell you that it's not New Jersey, though being close to New York City has its advantages.</p>

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<p>If I won the lottery, where would I move to get the most opportunities for great photos?</p>

</blockquote>

<p>If I won the lottery, I'd <em>travel</em>, and not have to choose!<br /><br />Our area? The Washington, DC region has you an hour's drive to the estuaries and shores of the Chesapeake Bay (wildlife, people, scenery, history, industry, big weather variety) and a bit farther to the Atlantic coastline. Or, drive an hour the other way, and be in the (old, weathered-down) mountains that are the Allegheny area... the Blue Ridge, with some good 3D terrain, farms, rivers, forest, falls, more critters. Or head into DC, for a city that's completely unique in the world, visually, and where millions of people use cameras every year, and they're used to it. Or go north a bit and explore that funky place that is Baltimore. Or head into the Virginia Hunt Country, for a real change of scenery and culture.<br /><br />Within 20 miles of where I'm sitting, there's the nation's political power hub, chicken farms, wildlife preserves, incredible parks, museums, concert venues ... and people from pretty much every culture on earth doing their various fun-to-photograph cultural things. And we still even have a few actual camera shops you can walk into (this week, so far).</p>

<p>Hanoi, if I could.</p>

<p>"Hanoi, if I could."<br>

Interesting choice Jeff-that's exactly where I'm thinking of going to do some photography!</p>

<p>cb</p>

<p>REP, BKK, HKG, JFK, maybe SIN...</p>

<p>Northern California doesn't suck either. We've got the Mendocino coast, the city by the bay, the Sacramento/San Joaquin river delta, Monterey, Big Sur and the central coast area (Cambria/San Simeon) on the left coast, and inland we have wine country, the Sierra Nevada range, Yosemite, Kings Canyon/Sequoia national parks and several volcanoes. Not too bad all things considered...and the weather doesn't suck most of the time. Having grown up in rural NW Pennsylvania, I try to keep my contact with deep snow, ice and sleet at a distance. Drive to see it, say ooohhh, aahhhh and then head back to the 75 degree locations.<br>

When the traffic gets to me I head out across Nevada and into Utah to Canyonlands and Monument Valley areas. I could cope with waking up to a view of Monument Valley, and that really, really doesn't suck.</p>

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<p>If I won the lottery, I'd <em>travel</em>, and not have to choose!</p>

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<p>Me too.</p>

<p>I'd rate central New Jersey 10/10 for food and still life. (Sorry Bob)</p>

<p>Workspace in inexpensive, props and subject matter are easy to find, and the nearby cities of New York and Philadelphia have a large and high-end client base. No, our coasts are pathetic compared to the South of England and our mountains are a sorry substitute for Vermont or Colorado, but who says that all photography has to be in scenic places?</p>

<p>The world within ten miles of your home, including in New Jersey (my home state), is richer than you may have thought. The best place for photography is wherever I am. It's not <em>what</em> you photograph or <em>where</em> you photograph it, but <em>how</em> you photograph it that matters. </p>

<p>Behind the camera!</p>

<p>I live in the "triangle" area of Southern Coastal Virginia (US), on the Chesapeake Bay. It's a historic area, between Jamestown, Yorktown, and Colonial Williamsburg. It's also heavy in military, and Washington, DC is only a few hours away. There's lots of drama that goes on here. All things considered, I'd rate my area (not including DC) as follows:<br /> Landscapes/Seascapes: 7/10 -- nothing truly dramatic, but it's generally picturesque here. We have a lot of "big sky" and coastal scenery.<br /> <br /><strong>Street/Portraits</strong>: 9/10 -- We get people here from all over the world, and the people we have here "live" in all periods of history. I'm particularly fascinated by the world of historical reenactment as a counterculture unto itself. The artisans of Colonial Williamsburg are probably the most interesting subjects I've ever photographed, at least to me.<br /> <br /><strong>Nature:</strong> 8/10 -- I was contemplating our various sea birds the other day, living in the air, on the land, on the water, and beneath the water. Even the water environments are so varied, including salty ocean water, brackish bay water, tidal pools, and fresh streams. Three of these can be seen from my own back yard. Wow! I realized I was fortunate to live in an area with such a multitude of ecological boundaries and the fascinating species that live on those boundaries. We have herons, egrets, ospreys, pelicans, bald eagles, brown eagles, and a few amphibian species, in addition to the usual complement of fishes, crustaceans, mammals, etc. I don't often photograph these creatures (not my thing), but if I did, I'd be ideally situated.<br /> <strong>Astrophotography:</strong> 3/10 -- considerable light pollution, but some of the more rural areas do have some pretty night skies. <br /> <strong>Weather:</strong> 7/10 -- We get a pretty good variety of conditions to support almost any photographic needs. Winters are mild, and yet we often get some good snowfall that sticks around long enough for pictures and has the common decency to melt away after that. Summers aren't too oppressive. Fall is beautiful. Springtime is simply stunning. <br /> <strong>Documentary</strong> 9/10 -- Lots of drama here! This area is very important historically (early settlement, British colonization, Revolutionary War, Civil War) and militarily (important deep-water port). We have a strong scientific presence (Langley, Wallops Island, Jefferson Labs). We have some dramatic big-industry in our shipyards. We have the fishing industry, with everything from small crabbing skiffs, to larger deadrise boats, to the large, ocean-going fishing boats. We have a slew of recreational boaters, some of whom dock here temporarily during their travels around the globe.<br /> <strong>Scenic Drives</strong> 9/10. What we have doesn't quite compare to the Pacific Coast Highway (what does?), but the Colonial Parkway is a beautiful drive along the York River, connecting all points of the historic triangle. Not far away are our various bridges and tunnels, connecting our various land masses. There are a lot of great water views from those bridges, and the Chesapeake Bay Bridge-Tunnel is a 23 mile drive across the water (almost all bridge, not tunnel). I confess my interest in these drives often has more to do with old sports cars than photography.</p>

<p>Perhaps I rate our area higher than some people might, but I'm very happy where I'm settled. I've seen more dramatic landscapes and skies out west, but most of what truly interests me is right in my own back yard.</p>

<p>I think for a wide range of subject matter California would be hard to beat. If you were to sell at art shows anything European is popular for sales. </p>

Bonneville Salt Flats, Utah, USA.

 

You can take all the photos you ever need to take in a morning, and then spend the rest of your

days on photo.net.

<p>As it is said:</p>

<p ><strong>The grass is always greener on the other side of the fence.</strong></p>

<p ><strong><br /></strong>I would therefor choose to go to the other side of the fence - and you can go and shoot on my side... and we will all be happy !</p>

<h1>Where is the best place in the world for a photographer to live?</h1>

<p>After visiting and photographing the area, I would suggest Jackson Hole Wyoming. Very expensive there I understand.</p>

<p>I saw at least three photo galleries there as well.</p>

Although I have to agree with Matt and others that the DC area is a wonderful and varied location where we have been

fortunate to live for the past decade, our "other " home of Vancouver BC provides amazing landscape, urban, seahore

and wildlife opportunities. And it is fairly camera-friendly and safe to walk around. There are few places in the world

where you can go from an urban center with all of that interest and excitement, to complete wilderness in about 30

minutes. Anf there are some large and occasionally dangerous critters in that wilderness space.

 

And of course as long as there is hockey there is the opportunity for truly dramatic post-game documentary and news

photography. Thats where the real dangerous creatures are found, apparently.

<p>I'm with Louis and Anders on this subject.</p>

For sheer variety I think Wales is hard to beat. Small towns, small cities, sea, hills, valleys, mountains, ruins, very dramatic weather.. yes, I'd say if you don't want to shoot in perfect sunshine, it is the place to be.

<p>That all sounds good, but I bet most (male) photographers would rather be where pretty girls congregate. </p>

<p>No one but you have mentioned pretty girls so far, Michael. I am having a good laugh here. Are you still having the stripping scene in mind? :-)</p>

<p>I agree with Starvy, Wales is photographer's paradise. Especially the Northern part with slate mountains and green lakes. </p>

<p>No place like NYC.</p><div></div>

<p>I can't argue with John that the best place for a photographer to live is . . . "behind the camera!"</p>

<p>But, . . .</p>

<p>I like it here in Kansas, the northeastern part as home anyway. I'm in a central location to travel in any direction if desired. However, I find plenty of opportunities within just a few hours or less, as long as I don't travel in a westerly direction very far.</p>

<p>Here, I'm not far from the places that Mark Twain wrote about, as well as the Pioneer trails that departed from the "Western Frontier" and headed west. I can also roam and see some of what Lewis & Clark wrote about and frequent some of the Pony Express stops or it's origin point.</p>

<p>I can walk on one of the major borders that separated this country and played a significant role in eventually causing the American Civil War, and visit the western reaches of that war and visit it's Battlefields.</p>

<p>From here, I can travel for a weekend trip to Indian Territory and the end of the Trail of Tears, or Custer's Last Stand.</p>

<p>Wildlife is still abundant from the Cottontail to the Buffalo, the Humming Bird, Sparrow, and the Bald and Golden Eagle.</p>

<p>We are fortunate most years to have the full impact of the four season's from Spring, Summer, Fall & Winter and all the photographic opportunities those times of a year can present.</p>

<p>About the only thing I can think of that we're missing is an Ocean, but we do have many waterfronts that can be found.</p>

<p>We have a generous mixture of People from all over the world, and from all walks of life!</p>

<p>So if I could win that lottery, . . . that's where I'd be, . . . living behind the camera!</p>

 

<p>Britain, Ireland, and just about anywhere along the Mediterranean. </p>