Registered: Aug 11, 2007
Total Posts: 145
Country: United States
The WyoFoto map above is a good place to start. It has most of the major photo hotspots on there. Of those, The beaver ponds at Schwabachers Landing and the barns off the Antelope Flats Road in the early morning, and both Oxbow Bend and Snake River Overlook at sunrise and sunset are not to be missed. They can be absolutely spectacular. a few of my own:
Schwabachers Landing in the morning
Teton Sunrise from Snake River Overlook
Moulton Barn
More of my Teton shots can be seen on my Grand Tetons NP Flickr Set page.
If however you are looking for some shots that are less common and more off the beaten track, there are some great opportunities:
The Old Patriarch is a beautiful old tree in the sage brush flats and makes for a great subject juxtaposed to the mountains. Shots with the Cathedral group and Mount Moran are possible. Unfortunately when I make my treks out there, the weather wasn't very cooperative, so I don't have a very good example shot (see below) but another photographer has a SmugMug gallery with some superb shots from the Patriarch. To get there, park at one of the the turnouts at North Jenny Lake Junction and hike about 1/3 of a mile south on the Park Road, then head due east for 3/4 of a mile through the sage brush flats. You'll go through some groves of trees and down some easy slopes. I'd recommend having a compass to keep your bearings.
Another less common but somewhat more well known spot is an area along Pilgrim Creek up the Pilgrim Creek Road. if the lupines are blooming, this is the spot to photograph them against the mountains. Here are two examples taken from Pilgrim Creek by another photographer: Cathedral Group Sunrise and Mt. Moran Sunrise. The turnoff for the road is between Jackson Lake Lodge and Colter Bay.
If you are looking for a panoramic shot from a perspective not over done like the turnouts along the highway (Blacktail Pond Overlook, Glacier View, Teton Point) then a good spot to do it is at Hedrick Pond Overlook. It lies above the highway off a dirt road accessible just south of the Snake River Overlook turnout. It provides a similar perspective to Snake River Overlook (a angle from which the mountains have a particularly nice shape) without the obstruction of the trees. You get a nice foreground element in the pond. Here are two examples from Douglas Andrews: Hedrick Pond Panoramic and Hedrick Pond.
Remember the light i always best the first hour or so after sunrise and the last hour or so before sunset. You may have to get up at 4 am to get on location for sunrise, but it is often worth it. And finally, here is my own map of various photography hotspots in and around Grand Teton National Park.
