Top 5 Utah Photoshoot Locations

Utah is full of amazing locations to take pictures at. I’ve narrowed it down to my favorite 5 locations throughout all of Utah! From high up in the mountains to the red rocks of the south. Some of these locations are easy to find, and some are not. I personally love to shoot at more remote locations with less people around. Sometimes it’s impossible to avoid other photographers and couples, but when you can, it makes for a fun adventure.

1. Moab (Arches National Park)

I’m from Utah Valley so shooting at red rock is one of my favorite places to shoot because it’s a whole new world. From Salt Lake it’s about a 4 hour drive which is so close! I’ve driven there and back in one day with my husband for a shoot. Driving there and back in one day is tiring, but doable. I’d suggest spending the night there the same night that you shoot. Shooting at sunset is my favorite, so after the shoot we’ll go pitch our tent and spend the night, drive home in the morning. I’m not a huge fan of driving at night, so it’s a win win situation (:

If you want to save money, camp that night! There are a million campsites around. Here’s a link to a site that has all the site listings.

https://www.moabadventurecenter.com/moab-camping

There are so many great places to shoot in Moab. You can go to Arches National Park, Dead Horse Point State Park, and Canyonlands National Park. It costs $30 a car to get into the National Parks. My husband and I buy a year pass to the National Parks because it’s only $80 to get you into all of the National Parks in the USA! It’s the best deal ever. Because we have a pass, when shooting at Arches I’ll meet my clients in the Marriott hotel parking lot right by the gate and we’ll hop into my car so we can all get in together.

This view is in Arches, the first stop once you enter the gate. It’s called Park Avenue. There’s a little parking lot on your left that you can just hop out and walk a few feet and you’re there. One of the best things I love about shooting at Arches is that you get this view with no hiking required! I hate making my clients hike in case they’re uncomfortable hiking, especially when you have a family like this.

The next spot we hit on this shoot was Balanced Rock. It’s about 10 minutes farther up the main road. It has a main trail and looks really rad in pics. I just realized that I didn’t take any pictures with the actual balanced rock in the background. You can see that it doesn’t matter where you go in Arches, everything looks amazing.

To see more photos from this shoot, click here.

2. Antelope Island State Park

At the beginning of each of these locations I just want to say, “This is my favorite place to shoot!” because literally, all of these places are my favorites. Narrowing it down to 5 was not easy my friends.

Antelope Island is located north of Salt Lake. I live in Provo and I plan for it to take 2 hours. I plan for 2 hours because there’s traffic, and like I said before, with shooting at sunset, depending on what time of year you’re shooting, you’ll be in the traffic. There is a $10 fee to get in because it’s a state park.

Tip for when you’re putting Antelope Island into your maps. It always takes me straight to the center of the island, which is not where I want to meet my clients. If you zoom out on the map, you’ll see a road out of Syracuse that connects to the island (every time I type in “the island” I think of Lost, the TV show). There’s a parking lot right before the gate to the island where I meet my clients and we’ll hop into one car!

WARNING: There are bugs at Antelope Island. The couple of times that I’ve been there it’s been windy so there weren’t any bugs. Tip: go when it’s windy. You can check the weather on google. I’ve been there another time when it wasn’t windy, and there weren’t bugs. It was some kind of miracle. Bring bug spray just in case for you and your clients!

If you’ve never been to the island, it’s seriously amazing. It’s HUGE! You would never think that this would be in Utah. It’s totally random and amazing. Zack and I had our bridals shot here. All of the places at Antelope Island are also super easy to get to! The picture below was taken just below Buffalo Point Trailhead. Just drive to the trailhead and these fields are East.

Our bridals were taken by the amazing Ashley Rae. I’ve added her link below!

(photo by http://zibettiphotofilm.com)

This photo was taken if you just walk up the trailhead a little ways. Super pretty as well.

Another place on Antelope Island you can shoot is the beach area. I always go to Bridger Bay. It’s on your way to Buffalo Point Trailhead. Just drive towards the water and you’ll see more parking lots. The sand at the beginning of the beach is hard to walk through, but once you get past it, it gets flatter.

To see more photos from this shoot, click here.

There’s one more place I want to add! Ladyfinger is another place that’s great if you want more rocks (see picture below). It’s located closer to right when you get onto the island.

3. Albion Basin

Albion Basin is located at the very top of Little Cottonwood Canyon in Sandy. It takes about 30 minutes to drive up the canyon. It’s right above Alta Ski Resort. The peak high season to shoot there is the end of July into the beginning of August. It is majorly crowded with photographers during those times. The reason it’s crowded is because it’s wildflower season. I always like going up the beginning of July, that way there are a lot less people. There are less wildflowers, but you still get a great view AND flowers. Just less flowers than if you went during peak time. You do have to pay a $6 fee to get in because it’s a National Forest.

A little plug: do not pick the flowers. Keep the wildflowers blooming and wild!

The pictures below were taken on July 11th, 2018. So you can see there are still many many flowers bloomed.

The picture above was taken at the very top of Albion Basin. Once you get into the gate, there are lots of places to pull over on the side. But if you keep going to the top, you’ll see a dirt parking lot. This is just a walk west from the dirt parking lot. It’s my favorite place to shoot up there because it has that great look out. If you go to the right, there are some rocks that are also fun if you’re wanting a different look! (see pic below)

The sun does set a little bit earlier in the canyon. When I took these pictures, it was about 1.5 hours before sunset.

To see more photos from this shoot, click here.

4. Snow Canyon State Park

Snow Canyon is located in St. George, Utah. I’m from Utah Valley, so this place was a hidden gem for me! For all the photographers in St. George, I’m sure you know all about Snow Canyon State Park! It’s seriously beyond amazing. I’m always blown away at how many different looks you can get in one state. It really is amazing!! AMAZING AMAZING!

Because Snow Canyon is a State Park, just like Antelope Island, it costs $10 to get in. Totally worth the fee. When you drive in, you’ll see tons of pull offs. There’s only one main road. The photo below was taken at Butterfly Trailhead. You park, and then just walk along the red rock. It’s a fun place to explore and just have a good time with whoever you’re taking pictures of. We just hiked around for a while until we found spots we liked, and took pictures on the way.

Definitely wear good shoes! All four of us (me, my husband, and the couple) were wearing Chacos. I almost wore my Birks and decided to wear my Chacos instead and I’m so grateful I did. The rocks can be slippery. I almost fell with Chacos on…I don’t want to know how much I would have fallen with Birks on.

Another place in Snow Canyon we stopped was this red sand area (pic below). It was on the left hand side as we were driving in. I don’t have an exact location for it because there’s not an official name! But there are many many places where you can stop and shoot in Snow Canyon. Go explore!!

To see more photos from this shoot, click here.

5. Little Sahara Recreation Area

This location is so rad. If you’ve never been there, go! It’s fun to go even if you’re not taking pictures. People go there to camp and ATV and such. I always see burnt out campfires and have been wanting to go there just to roast marshmallows and have a good time with friends.

The Little Sahara is located in the middle of nowhere in Utah. It’s about an hour and half from Provo. If you put it in your maps it’ll take you right there! You’re going to feel like you’re going the wrong way, but you’re not. Keep driving. While you’re on the main road, you’ll see a sign that says, Little Sahara, and that’s where you turn. It comes up randomly so make sure you’re staying alert!

There is a fee for getting in. It’s $18 a car and it’s self pay. Just fill out the card and drop the money in the box as directed. Most of the time there isn’t a security guard there…but every once in a while there will be.

The thing I love about this place is that it’s huge. I’ve never ran into another photographer while shooting here. The place I always go in the dunes is the White Sands. It’s on the right a couple of meters past the entrance. There are so many places to explore around just the White Sands. I always drive around a little and try to find an area that also has a cool tree or something that will add a little diversity to my photos.

We also stopped along the drive to the dunes to get even more diversity. I like to give my couples multiple locations when delivering a gallery. I don’t know exactly where these pictures were taken, but it was somewhere along the road before we went into the official recreation area, about 20 minutes out.

To see more photos from this shoot, click here.

I love photography and exploring Utah which is why I made this post! I hope this gives all you explorers a little more direction on where you can go. There are at least 10 more locations I could write on. But these 5 are a few of my all time faves. The possibilities are endless in Utah!