Best classic places spots hotspots sites sights views photo locations to photograph for photography with maps tips ideas composition postcard photos cool beautiful pictures
Grand Prize in the National Self-Published Book Awards
Benjamin Franklin Award for Best First Book
Best Travel Guide, Benjamin Franklin Awards finalist
“Impressive in its presentation and abundance of material.”
— National Geographic Traveler
“PhotoSecrets books are an invaluable resource for photographers.”
— Nikon School of Photography
“One of the best travel photography books we’ve ever seen.”
— Minolta
“Guides you to the most visually distinctive places to explore with your camera.”
— Outdoor Photographer
“This could be one of the most needed travel books ever published!”
— San Francisco Bay Guardian
“The most useful travel guides for anyone with a camera.”
— Shutterbug’s Outdoor and Nature Photography
“Takes the guesswork out of shooting.”
— American Way (American Airlines magazine)
PhotoSecrets Big Ben, first published May 3, 2016. This version output April 21, 2018.
Curated, coded and designed by Andrew Hudson. Copyright © Andrew Hudson for PhotoSecrets (Photo Tour Books, Inc.). Photos, text and maps copyrights are listed in the credits section.
“‘And what is the use of a book,’ thought Alice ‘without pictures or conversations?’”
— Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland, Lewis Carroll
Thank you to the many talented photographers that generously made their photos available. Photos distributed by the following:
Text copyright of Wikipedia editors and contributors. Licensed under Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike (CC BY-SA).
Map data from OpenStreetMap and its contributors. Open data licensed under the Open Data Commons Open Database License (ODbL).
Cover image by Prasad Kholkute/Flickr.
Back cover image by .
All rights reserved. Without limiting the rights under copyright reserved above, no part of this publication may be reproduced, stored, or transmitted in any way without the prior written permission of both the copyright owner(s) and the publisher of this book.
The information provided within this book is for general informational purposes only. Some information may be inadvertently incorrect, or may be incorrect in the source material, or may have changed since publication, this includes GPS coordinates, addresses, location titles, descriptions, Web links, and photo credits. Use with caution; do not photograph from roads or other dangerous places or when trespassing, even if GPS coordinates and/or maps indicate so; beware of moving vehicles; obey laws. The publisher and author cannot accept responsibility for any consequences arising from the use of this book. There are no representations or warranties, express or implied, about the completeness, accuracy, reliability, suitability or availability with respect to the information, products, services, images, or graphics contained in this book for any purpose. Any use of this information is at your own risk.
For corrections, please send an email.
A great travel photograph, like a great news photograph, requires you to be in the right place at the right time to capture that special moment. Professional photographers have a short-hand phrase for this: “F8 and be there.”
There are countless books that can help you with photographic technique, the “F8” portion of that equation. But until now, there’s been little help for the other, more critical portion of that equation, the “be there” part. To find the right spot, you had to expend lots of time and shoe leather to wander around, track down every potential viewpoint, and essentially re-invent the wheel.
In my career as a professional travel photographer, well over half my time on location is spent seeking out the good angles. Andrew Hudson’s PhotoSecrets does all that legwork for you, so you can spend your time photographing instead of wandering about. It’s like having a professional location scout in your camera bag. I wish I had one of these books for every city I photograph on assignment.
PhotoSecrets can help you capture the most beautiful sights with a minimum of hassle and a maximum of enjoyment. So grab your camera, find your favorite PhotoSecrets spots, and “be there!”
Bob Krist has photographed assignments for National Geographic, National Geographic Traveler, Travel/Holiday, Smithsonian, and Islands. He won “Travel photographer of the Year” from the Society of American Travel Writers in 1994, 2007, and 2008.
For National Geographic, Bob has led round-the-world tours and a traveling lecture series. His book In Tuscany with Frances Mayes spent a month on The New York Times’ bestseller list and his how-to book Spirit of Place was hailed by American Photographer magazine as “the best book about travel photography we’ve ever read.”
The parents of three sons, Bob and his wife live in New Hope, Pennsylvania.
Thank you for reading PhotoSecrets. As a fellow fan of travel and photography, I hope this guide will help you quickly find the most visually stunning places, and come home with equally stunning photographs.
PhotoSecrets is designed to show you all the best sights. Flick through, see the classic shots, and use them as a departure point for your own creations. Get ideas for composition and interesting viewpoints. See what piques your interest. Know what to shoot, where to stand, when to go, and why it’s interesting. Now you can spend less time researching and more time photographing.
The idea for PhotoSecrets came during a trip to Thailand, when I tried to find the exotic beach used in the James Bond movie The Man with the Golden Gun. None of the guidebooks I had showed a picture, so I thought a guidebook of postcard photos would be useful for us photographers. Twenty-plus years later, you have this guide. Thanks!
Now, start exploring — and take lots of photos!
Originally an engineer, Andrew Hudson started PhotoSecrets in 1995. His first book won the Benjamin Franklin Award for Best First Book and his second won the Grand Prize in the National Self-Published Book Awards.
Andrew has published 38 nationally-distributed photography books. He has photographed assignments for Macy’s, Martha Stewart Living Omnimedia, Men’s Health and Seventeen, and been a location scout for Nikon. His photos and articles have appeared in Alaska Airlines, National Geographic Traveler, Shutterbug Outdoor and Nature photography, Where, and Woman’s World.
Andrew has a degree in Computer Engineering from Manchester University and a certificate in copyright law from Harvard Law School. Born in Redditch, England, he lives with his wife, two kids, and two chocolate Labs, in San Diego, California.
At a Glance | |
|---|---|
| Name: | Big Ben (nickname for the “Great Bell” in Elizabeth Tower) |
| GPS: | 51.5007556, -0.1246611 |
| Fame: | Icon of London World’s second-largest four-faced chiming clock |
| Far: | 18 km (11 miles) from the center of London |
| Web: | visitlondon.com |
| Opened: | 1859 |
| Height: | 96 m (316 feet) |
| Style: | Gothic Revival |
| Architects: | Augustus Pugin |
| Function: | Clock tower |
| Address: | Westminster, London SW1A 0AA, United Kingdom |
| City: | City of Westminster |
| Notes: | North tower of Palace of Westminster, home of UK Parliament. |
Big Ben is the nickname for the Great Bell of the clock at the north end of the Palace of Westminster in London, and often extended to refer to the clock and the clock tower.
Photographer: Pres Panayotov
Source: Shutterstock
License: Shutterstock standard license.
| Addr: | Westminster, London, UK | Where: | 51.501039 -0.1246319 |
| When: | Anytime |
Photographer: Peter Nadolski
Source: Shutterstock
License: Shutterstock standard license.
Photographer: Pisaphotography
Source: Shutterstock
License: Shutterstock standard license.
| Addr: | Westminster, London, UK | Where: | 51.501039 -0.1246317 |
| When: | Anytime |
Photographer: Colin
Year: 2014.
Source: Wikipedia
License: CC-BY-SA 4.
Big Ben is the nickname for the Great Bell of the clock at the north end of the Palace of Westminster in London, and often extended to refer to the clock and the clock tower.
| Addr: | Big Ben, Westminster, London SW1A 0AA, UK | Where: | 51.499891666667 -0.12994666666667 |
| What: | Clock dials | When: | Anytime |
| Wik: |
Photographer: Diego Delso
Year: 2014.
Source: Wikipedia
License: CC-BY-SA 4.
Big Ben from West end Westminster Bridge.
| Addr: | Bridge St, London SW1A 2PW, UK | Where: | 51.500809 -0.1246845 |
| When: | Anytime |
Photographer: Stefano Marras
Source: Flickr
License: CC-BY 2.
| Addr: | Parliament Square, Westminster, London, UK | Where: | 51.5010278 -0.1241715 |
| When: | Anytime |
Photographer: Ds Pugh
Year: 2001.
Source: Wikipedia
License: CC-BY-SA 2.
Big Ben is the nickname for the Great Bell of the clock at the north end of the Palace of Westminster in London, and often extended to refer to the clock and the clock tower.
| Addr: | Big Ben, Westminster, London SW1A 0AA, UK | Where: | 51.5007325 -0.1268194 |
| What: | Bell | When: | Anytime |
| Wik: |
Photographer: Paulobrad
Year: 2012.
Source: Wikipedia
License: CC-BY-SA 4.
Big Ben is the nickname for the Great Bell of the clock at the north end of the Palace of Westminster in London, and often extended to refer to the clock and the clock tower.
| Addr: | Where: | 51.5007248 -0.1250605 | |
| What: | Clock movement | When: | Anytime |
| Wik: |
Photographer: Ds Pugh
Year: 2001.
Source: Wikipedia
License: CC-BY-SA 2.
Thank you to the many wonderful people and companies that made their work available to use in this guide.
Photo key: Tap the camera icon to see the photo. The two letters reference the distributor and license. Key for distributors: f:Flickr; s:Shutterstock; w:Wikipedia. Key for license: a:CC-BY-SA; b:CC-BY; h:Shutterstock standard.
Cover image by .Colin ( wa); Diego Delso ( fb); Stefano Marras ( sh); Peter Nadolski ( sh); Pres Panayotov ( wa); Paulobrad ( sh); Pisaphotography ( wa); Ds Pugh ( wa). Some text adapted from Wikipedia and its contributors where noted by the URL path in the “Wik” table field, used and modified under Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike (CC-BY-SA) license. Map data from OpenStreetMap and its contributors, used under the Open Data Commons Open Database License (ODbL).