The Photographic 100: One Hundred Places You Must Shoot Before You Die

They say that imitation is the sincerest form of flattery. And that is true of our subject today, a list to end all lists, and what I like to call the Photographic 100. WestCoasting 

Admittedly, I’m a bit of a foodie, and regularly read a few coffee and food blogs to get my fill of the subject.

Recently, a post by the British food blog Very Good Taste introduced a post called “The Omnivore’s 100”, a sort of bucket list for food lovers. The post went viral and was reblogged and retweeted, with each new blogger indicating what items on the list they had tried themselves. A smash hit, in the virtual world. It occurred to me that I’ve had a similar list in my head (but never on paper, digital or otherwise) for quite some time; a list of locations and landmarks that I’d love to shoot, if given the opportunity. It’s highly unlikely that I, or any other photographers I know for that matter, would ever actually complete the list, but that’s beside the point. It’s always more interesting when you have something to shoot for! So, in no particular order, I have outlined my photography bucket list below. Some things on this list are locations; others are landmarks, and still others are general ideas or techniques. I realize that like the Omnivore’s 100, the list is subjective, and some items on my list might have never made it on yours; after reading it, let us know how many YOU’VE completed, and what items would you have added.

The List

    1. The Mayan pyramids in Yucatán, Mexico
    2. The Colorado River in Arizona
    3. The animals of the Galápagos Islands
    4. A polar bear
    5. The Himalayan mountains in Nepal
    6. Animals on a safari in Kenya, Africa
    7. Penguins in Antarctica
    8. The Northern Lights in Tromsø, Norway
    9. A thunderstorm or tornado in the Great Plains
    10. Walt Disney World in Orlando, Florida
    11. Street performers at Carnival, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil
    12. Beach photos at the Outer Banks, North Carolina
    13. The Bellagio fountains in Las Vegas, Nevada
    14. Sunset shot in Red Rock Canyon, Las Vegas, Nevada
    15. The Cliff Palace at Mesa Verde National Park, Colorado
    16. Hvitserkur, a 15 meter high rock formation off the coast of Iceland
    17. The hills and coastlines of Isle of Man, in the British Isles
    18. The streets of Florence, Italy
    19. Night shots of Prague, in the Czech Republic
    20. The Machu Picchu ruins in Peru
    21. A low-perspective shot of Big Ben in London, England
    22. The Stonehenge ruins in Wiltshire, England
    23. The dark city streets and markets of Casablanca, Morocco
    24. Moose and elk in Grand Teton Park, Wyoming
    25. The Great Wall of China
    26. The seaside cliffs and buildings at Santorini, Greece
    27. The open fields in Tuscany, Italy
    28. Shots of (and from) the skyscrapers in Dubai, United Arab Emirates
    29. Hot springs and the Old Faithful geyser of Yellowstone National Park, Wyoming
    30. The walls of the Grand Canyon in Arizona
    31. Horseshoe Falls in Ontario, Canada
    32. The waterfalls at Yosemite National Park, California
    33. Moonrise over Death Valley National Park, California
    34. Lechuguilla Cave at Carlsbad Caverns, New Mexico
    35. Aerial night shot of the strip in Las Vegas, Nevada
    36. Wide-angle shots of the canyons at Zion National Park in Utah
    37. Huge rock formations at Monument Valley, Utah
    38. The Statue of Liberty and Ellis Island in New York City, New York
    39. Giant trees in Sequoia National Park, California
    40. An all-inclusive shot of the Golden Gate Bridge span in San Francisco, California
    41. Grizzly bears in Danali National Park, Alaska
    42. Alligators in Everglades National Park, Florida
    43. U.S.S. Arizona Memorial at Pearl Harbor, Hawaii
    44. Mardi Gras celebrations in the French Quarter, New Orleans, Louisiana
    45. The Portland Head Lighthouse at Cape Elizabeth, Maine
    46. The streets of the Beacon Hill Historic District, in Boston, Massachusetts
    47. The Gateway Arch in St. Louis, Missouri
    48. Cape Hatteras Lighthouse, Hatteras Island, North Carolina
    49. Photos of cannon at the Gettysburg National Military Park in Gettysburg, Pennsylvania
    50. The entryway at Graceland, in Memphis, Tennessee
    51. Mount Rushmore in the Black Hills, South Dakota
    52. Terlingua Ghost Town in the Big Bend National Park, Texas
    53. Arches and formations at Valley of Fire State Park outside of Las Vegas, Nevada
    54. Deep Valley of the Mills in Sorrento, Italy
    55. Well-exposed image of a fireworks finale
    56. Long exposed shot of multiple lightning bolts
    57. The Boot Hill graveyard in Tombstone, Arizona
    58. A battleship or aircraft carrier in port
    59. The Alamo in San Antonio, Texas
    60. An epic rainbow shot over a vast field
    61. Lava flow from an active volcano in Hawaii, at night
    62. Street shots in Key West, Florida
    63. The Liberty Bell in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
    64. Indoor shot of a pub in Dublin, Ireland
    65. A recreation/reshoot of an Ansel Adams photograph
    66. Any castle in Scotland
    67. An authentic Hawaiian Luau in Maui, Hawaii
    68. A wide-angle, all-encompassing shot of the New York City skyline at night
    69. The National Memorials in the National Mall, Washington D.C.
    70. An ancient Shaolin temple anywhere in China
    71. The iconic “Welcome to Vegas” sign in Las Vegas, Nevada
    72. Photograph a complete stranger on the street
    73. A picture of a picture
    74. A shot of Times Square in New York City, NY
    75. The ruins of the Colosseum in Rome, Italy
    76. A famous (or infamous) haunted house in the United States
    77. Devil’s Tower in Crook County, Wyoming
    78. The Eiffel Tower in Paris, France
    79. Cliffs of the Almalfi Coast, Italy
    80. A long exposure shot of the
    81. Milky WayA complicated light painting
    82. Independence Hall in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
    83. Wide shot of Arlington National Cemetery in Arlington, Virginia
    84. A themed vintage pinup girl shoot
    85. An iceberg
    86. Farmhouses and fields in Tuscany, Italy
    87. Wildflower fields in the Hill Country region near Austin, Texas
    88. The Trevi Fountain in Roma, Italy at night
    89. Long exposure shot of an active meteor storm
    90. The Moai statues on Easter Island in the South Pacific
    91. The holy sites in Jerusalem
    92. A great shot of another photographer working
    93. The Moss Bridges in Ireland
    94. The Taj Mahal monument in Agra, India
    95. An abandoned farmhouse or barn on the Texas backroads
    96. St. Peter’s Basilica in Rome, Italy
    97. A well-exposed shot of your favorite band playing on stage
    98. A hot air balloon taking off from a field
    99. The canals in Venice, Italy
    100. The pyramids at Giza, Egypt

So what does your list look like? Discuss what items are on YOUR list below! Need more lists? Take a moment to check out Nancy Young’s 50 Striking Examples Of Professional Photos In Twitter Background Design and one of my earlier articles, 5 Quick Ways to Improve your Beach Photography.

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By Tim Gilbreath

In addition to being a regular contributor at Photodoto, Tim is a web developer, photographer, and musician. He's also a gamer and retro/pop culture aficionado, and spends his days on the sunny West Florida coast. He maintains his website at TimGilbreath.com. You can also follow him on Twitter, . @SarasotaTim

0 comments

  1. I’ve gotten 14 of your top 100. I would have to think a while one what constitutes my own top 100.

    1. Robert, not bad at all! I was in Vegas last year, and even though I brought my DSLR, I didn’t pull it out once the whole trip 🙁 Grand plans of visiting Valley of Fire National Park and shots walking up and down the Strip…just ended up gambling and taking in the sights. Going back next year, definitely taking advantage then!

  2. Tim-
    Great list. I can only cross about 5 of those off and some of those were with a point and shoot or are ones that I will shoot and re-shoot for the rest of my life and always find something I could do better on them. 🙂

    Some of the ones above are definitely on my want to do list. A lot of mine though are the generic ones – like a really good long exposure of a dock with fog coming in. That’s one I have a few shots of and will continue to take over and over. 🙂

    1. Thanks Patrick!

      Yes, as much as I’d like to cross this whole list out, I know that’s never going to happen; but I’m planning on getting as much as I can!

  3. I have photographed in 29 of the above locations. Some visited before I was serious about photography. I would love to go back to shoot them all over again. I included one that I will complete this month, a photo safari in South Africa. Another reshoot would be Burano, Italy.

    1. Wow 29? Awesome!
      I’ve got my eye on a few international ones that I might be visiting in a couple of years (with any luck), seems like a long wait!

  4. I have 35 of your list. Not bad. Wish I had paid more attention when shooting things as many of these were before I really got interested in photography and had a decent camera. GREAT list!!

  5. Don,t you know Spain? There are several places that deserve being in this list. Alhambra of Granada, Holy Family Basilic in Barcelona, ….

    1. I’ve never been to Spain, unfortunately, no.
      This is a list of what I’d like to shoot within my lifetime, which means only places I’m familiar with 🙂

    1. I’d say it would be up to the individual Daniel…I know there are thousands of pictures of the Taj Mahal….but I’m not shooting it for everyone else; if I’m in India, and I have the chance, I’m gonna shoot it 🙂

  6. i could take douzen of pic of the same place, but every time am taking a picture of one place, it is like the first time, am taking a picture… it always look différend for me…..

  7. haven’t you heard of New Zealand? it’s where Lord of the Rings and Narnia was made. a very lush country and the biggest range of variety of landscapes in the world. i also think that a picture of a big kauri tree would definitely be in this list

  8. I didn’t count how many I have, some; but you missed in the list the Iguazu Falls. That’s a place not to miss.

  9. from Kenya we have very many sites and photographers have very lovely shots visit.and assure you that i will be great

  10. Sorry, but about the place 3 you should put the name of the country, it’s Ecuador, usually people thinks that the Galapagos Islands are a country on itself but that’s not true. If you could correct the information will be awesome, Ecuador has many places to see and potograph that worth to be on this list.

  11. Two places come to mind that are not on your list: Torres del Paine in the Chilean Patagonia (my favorite) and Mount Fuji in Japan. In place 81 you mention “a complicated light painting” but you don’t have one; I can provide some examples.

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