10 Most Beautiful Places To See Photograph In Banff Alberta Canada

You have dreamed about your Banff National Park photography tour.  You want to know what are the Most Beautiful Places To See Photograph In Banff? Well, Join us as we show you what we did to create a successful trip and how you can have your best trip ever!

Or, if you are not a photographer, you can still enjoy the incredible beauty of some of the most beautiful National Parks in the world.  You can follow along on our trip to see what we did so that you can create your own trip that is just right for you.   Check the planned trip itinerary from a previous post and see how we actually did following the plan.

Now let’s get going on the travel adventure of a lifetime.

Banff National Park Canadian Rockies

Most Beautiful Places To See Photograph In Banff

Banff National Park Alberta Canada

City of Banff

Lets start this list off right around the city of Banff.  There is so much to see right in that area so it is a perfect place to start.

I have mixed feelings of Banff, I’ve heard so much about how crazy busy it is. But yesterday I had a friend tell me sure they love Jasper but their heart has been stolen by Banff. So we needed to explore the city of Banff a little more. So for this afternoon when we have the time it was time to do it.

We drove into Banff and we are surprised how lovely it was. It was not crazy gorgeous like some of the things we had seen this morning but it was very lovely. We decided to park the car and walk through the city first.

10 Cascades of Time Gardens

We first hit the Cascades of time Gardens which was at the administration building that was the historic first Site of Banff National Park and all of the Canadian national parks.

Cascades of Time Gardens - Banff National Park - Canadian Rockies Banff National Park Photography Tour - Jasper National Park Alberta Canada

Cascades of Time Gardens Banff National Park

The building is a lovely rock structure and the gardens would have been lovely but it appears they’re in the middle of a reconstruction project so check back in a few years and it will be amazing again.

9 Banff Avenue

We walked down Banff Avenue to get the great view of the bustling city streets filled with tourists and the Mountain scene behind it. It really is a great View. It’s kind of a combination of Chicago and Vale Colorado altogether.

Banff Avenue The Bustling City - Banff National Park - Canadian Rockies Banff National Park Photography Tour - Jasper National Park Alberta Canada

Banff Avenue and The Bustling City of Banff

While main street was bustling it was not overwhelming at all. There are all kinds of great shops filled with great food and desserts and things to buy. All kinds of great stuff for tourists. We bought chocolate! 🙂

8 Banff Fairmont Hotel

Then it was time to go to the Banff Fairmont Hotel. For this first time, we mostly just wanted to check out the views from the outside of the hotel. Yes the view is amazing. We planned to go back in the next few days to actually go into it and explore it more seriously.

The Fairmount Banff Springs - Banff National Park - Canadian Rockies Banff National Park Photography Tour - Jasper National Park Alberta Canada

The Amazing Fairmont Banff Springs Hotel

The most important thing is we found the viewpoint to capture the great classic image of the hotel. It certainly is worth checking out this amazing Historic Hotel.

Now it was finally time to explore Fairmont Springs Banff.  I think it is important to spend the time to really see the incredible place.



Fairmont Banff Springs Hotel - Banff National Park - Canadian Rockies Banff National Park Photography Tour - Jasper National Park Alberta Canada

Grand Views From The Fairmont Banff Springs Hotel

Yes you’ve seen the pictures you heard some of the stories of the incredible history of this most glorious hotel in the world.

Video view of Fairmont Banff Springs Hotel 

They are surprisingly open to tourists even though they are a very busy Hotel.

Fairmont Banff Springs Hotel - Banff National Park - Canadian Rockies Banff National Park Photography Tour - Jasper National Park Alberta Canada

Great Ballroom Fairmont Banff Springs Hotel

We had free reign of many of the grounds and just walked around snapping whatever caught our attention.

Fairmont Banff Springs Hotel - Banff National Park - Canadian Rockies Banff National Park Photography Tour - Jasper National Park Alberta Canada

Back Courtyard Fairmont Banff Springs Hotel

It truly is a stunning place and it’s worth some of your time to check it out.

 

7 Lake Minnewanka Banff

Lake Minnewanka is also on all the lists of things to see. There is a recommendation to go on a boat tour in the morning, we passed on that opportunity but instead took the driving tour around the lake. We found several quiet gorgeous viewpoints of the leg and it truly is worth seeing.

Lake Minnewanka Banff - Banff National Park - Canadian Rockies Banff National Park Photography Tour - Jasper National Park Alberta Canada

Lake Minnewanka Banff

We finish the day barbecuing some steaks at our Chalet in the shadows of the stunning Castle Mountain. Mmmmmmm perfection

6 Athabasca River Basin

We were sadly saying goodbye to Jasper and headed off to Banff National Park, but it is easy to be consoled by views like this.

 

Most Beautiful Places To See Photograph In Banff Views From Hwy 93 South From Jaster - Jasper National Park Alberta Canada - Canadian Rockies Banff National Park Photography Tour

Crossing The Athabasca South of Jasper

5 Incredible Views Between Jasper and Banff

As we were heading out of Jasper south towards Banff, We would be driving by some of the scenes that we had already explored.  But these views are so captivating that they are indeed worthy of taking the time to take in the beauty.

Most Beautiful Places To See Photograph In Banff Views From Hwy 93 South From Jaster - Jasper National Park Alberta Canada - Canadian Rockies Banff National Park Photography Tour

Mountain Ranges South of Jasper on Hwy 93

If any scenes capture our eyes with great light on the way South we will stop again and I tried to capture some more images en-route.

4 Castle Mountain

We decided to check into our new residence for the next 5 days at the Castle Mountain Chalet near Castle Mountain. I must say this place is very nice. We are staying in one of the three Suites, with a full kitchen and a glorious view.

Most Beautiful Places To See Photograph In Banff View of Castle Mountain - Banff National Park - Canadian Rockies Banff National Park Photography Tour - Jasper National Park Alberta Canada

View of Castle Mountain from our cabin at Castle Mountain Chalets

Note for foodies, we found surprisingly incredible food at the Baker Creek Bisto on Bow Valley Parkway near Castle Mountain.

Bear Creek Bistro - Banff National Park - Canadian Rockies Banff National Park Photography Tour - Jasper National Park Alberta Canada

Great Food at the Bear Creek Bistro

Perfect for you foodies.  The service was a little wonky (they did not communicate well and they did not up sell us on other great food) but the food was New York City fantastic.

3 Peyto Lake

One place we knew we’re going to stop again is at Peyto Lake. One of my friends told me about a hike at Peyto Lake where you could go around the south end of the lake basically and get away from all people. We knew we were going to take that hike. We arrived at Peyto Lake and it was somewhat overcast or even mostly overcast but one thing we’ve learned here for sure is no matter what the weather go out in it because it will change.

Most Beautiful Places To See Photograph In Banff Views From Hwy 93 South From Jaster - Jasper National Park Alberta Canada - Canadian Rockies Banff National Park Photography Tour

Peyto Lake Rainbow Below Banff National Park

So we found the hike down the east side of Peyto Lake basically getting us towards the South tip. Then we found a rock outcropping where there was evidence of people being there but it certainly wasn’t the huge throngs. In fact there was only one young man there during the time we were there shooting. We stayed there for probably an hour as the weather conditions improved and then got worse and improved and got worse. During the time we got all kinds of great content.


Check out the little Peyto Lake Video

2 Lake Louise

After we checked in we decided to head over to Lake Louise to perform a little reconnaissance and maybe capture a few images.

Most Beautiful Places To See Photograph In Banff Most Beautiful Places To See Photograph In Banff Breathtakingly Beautiful Lake Louise - Banff National Park - Canadian Rockies Banff National Park Photography Tour - Jasper National Park Alberta Canada

Breathtakingly Beautiful Lake Louise

Again being it was a bit damp and close to the dinner hour it was almost nobody there at all.

Taking In The Breathtakingly Beautiful Lake Louise - Banff National Park - Canadian Rockies Banff National Park Photography Tour - Jasper National Park Alberta Canada

Taking In The Breathtakingly Beautiful Lake Louise

So we were able to explore freely and capture all kinds of great images.

Fairmont Chateau Lake Louise Grand Chateau On The Lake - Banff National Park - Canadian Rockies Banff National Park Photography Tour - Jasper National Park Alberta Canada

Fairmont Chateau Lake Louise Grand Chateau On The Lake

We knew we were going to come back there again for sunrise over the next day or two. Now we were hungry and ready to call it a day!

At Lake Louise it was moist and foggy but again we were patient and just waited around for the sky to break a little bit.

Lake Louise Autumn Bright Sunrise Banff National Park - Banff National Park - Canadian Rockies Banff National Park Photography Tour - Jasper National Park Alberta Canada

Foggy Lake Louise Banff National Park Alberta Canada

Then it did for us and I think we got some really great images.



Lake Louise Autumn Bright Sunrise Banff National Park - Banff National Park - Canadian Rockies Banff National Park Photography Tour - Jasper National Park Alberta Canada

Foggy Lake Louise Banff National Park Alberta Canada

We’re not really going to explore much of  the glorious Fairmont Chateau Lake Louise today so we’ll probably go back again tomorrow.

Lake Louise Autumn Bright Sunrise Banff National Park - Banff National Park - Canadian Rockies Banff National Park Photography Tour - Jasper National Park Alberta Canada

Fairmont Chateau Lake Louise

Sunrise at Lake Louise was indeed beautiful.

Lake Louise Early Morning - Banff National Park - Canadian Rockies Banff National Park Photography Tour - Jasper National Park Alberta Canada

Lake Louise Banff National Park Alberta Canada

The weather was quite brisk but there were still quite a few serious photographers out ready to capture the sunrise on the cliffs above because it had been so cloudy recently everyone was anxious to capture some great images.

 

Lake Louise Early Morning - Banff National Park - Canadian Rockies Banff National Park Photography Tour - Jasper National Park Alberta CanadaViewing Lake Louise Banff National Park Alberta Canada

1 Moraine Lake

And for the best of the best I give you Moraine Lake. Moraine Lake is everything I hoped for and more! It was so incredibly gorgeous. There was fresh snow on the Peaks, the water was deep blue, the crowds were small when we got there. I spied out the canoes over on the east side of the lake. They make for a gorgeous interesting background in an image.

Moraine Lake Wedding Canoes Prints - Banff National Park - Canadian Rockies Banff National Park Photography Tour - Jasper National Park Alberta Canada

Incredible Blue Waters of Moraine Lake Banff National Park Alberta Canada


Moraine Lake Wedding Canoes Prints - Banff National Park - Canadian Rockies Banff National Park Photography Tour - Jasper National Park Alberta Canada

Colorful Canoes of Moraine Lake Banff National Park Alberta Canada

We saw at least one or two wedding photographers photographing couples in that amazing location. Just imagine, your wedding photos being taken into place like this. Yep, that would be incredibly memorable.

Moraine Lake Wedding Canoes Prints - Banff National Park - Canadian Rockies Banff National Park Photography Tour - Jasper National Park Alberta Canada

Renewing the Wedding Vows Moraine Lake Banff National Park Alberta Canada

At the Southwest part of the lake there’s a whole bunch of logs all stacked up.  It looks like during flood season they washed up on shore. I knew going over to that location would provide a very interesting view of the entire lake and the ridges up above.

Moraine Lake Wedding Canoes Prints - Banff National Park - Canadian Rockies Banff National Park Photography Tour - Jasper National Park Alberta Canada

Over the Logs at Moraine Lake Banff National Park Alberta Canada

While I was climbing out on the logs there was one point where the logs were a little soft and I actually fell through a little bit so if you decide to do the same thing be very cautious as you’re climbing out on the logs. It was worth it but it can be a little tricky at the same time.

 

Moraine Lake Sunrise

In my opinion, Moraine Lake is the best gem we have seen so far. I suppose I’m talking from an artistic perspective. It has the best blend of everything to make an image artistically beautiful. The incredibly Deep Blue Water, the canoes in the background, the towering rocky snow capped behemoths in the background, pure perfection.

Moraine Lake Early Morning - Banff National Park - Canadian Rockies Banff National Park Photography Tour - Jasper National Park Alberta CanadaThe Amazingly Beautiful Moraine Lake Banff National Park Alberta Canada 

While it is true the quantity of great scenery in the Canadian Rockies is astounding, it is at this particular scene that created the passion and the dream to make me come here. And yesterday the weather cooperated perfectly to capture the perfect picture that I have been wanting to capture the whole time.

Moraine Lake Early Morning - Banff National Park - Canadian Rockies Banff National Park Photography Tour - Jasper National Park Alberta Canada

The Logs at Moraine Lake Banff National Park Alberta Canada 

This is sunrise at Moraine Lake, Banff National Park, Alberta Canada. The sun was shining on fresh snow covered mountain tops. It was so fun to see this incredible scene and I was as giddy as a kid at Christmas time to have the opportunity to capture this view.

Moraine Lake Early Morning - Banff National Park - Canadian Rockies Banff National Park Photography Tour - Jasper National Park Alberta Canada

Colorful Canoes at Moraine Lake Banff National Park Alberta Canada 

Wow, just wow!

Bonus 1 Bow Lake

Bow Lake and the glacier are large protrusions relatively close to a small lake so that the reflection of the mountain can be relatively easy easily captured in the lake if the lighting conditions are good.

The Gorgeous Bow Lake - Banff National Park - Canadian Rockies Banff National Park Photography Tour - Jasper National Park Alberta Canada

The Gorgeous Bow Lake Banff National Park Alberta Canada

We still had pretty good light but by this time the wind had come up a bit and the water was a little bit rough. I decided to use several filters that blocked out the light to create a very long exposure image and that would smooth out of the water and could possibly give me a great reflection. This was a purely experimental shot.

The Gorgeous Bow Lake - Banff National Park - Canadian Rockies Banff National Park Photography Tour - Jasper National Park Alberta Canada

The Gorgeous Bow Lake BW Banff National Park Alberta Canada

Again we got away from the beaten trail and we were all alone for most of this time while capturing the mountain. It was so incredibly peaceful.

Bonus 2 Emerald Lake

While it is true Emerald Lake is not in Banff, it is actually in YoHo National Park in BC it is still a park that is easily visit-able from Banff. Emerald Lake is situated in such a way that it could capture wonderful evening light as the sun is going down.



Emerald Lake Yoho National Park British Columbia Canada - Banff National Park - Canadian Rockies Banff National Park Photography Tour - Jasper National Park Alberta Canada

Reflections Emerald Lake Yoho National Park British Columbia Canada

So we headed out there in the evening to do our best to capture a great image. For this particular image, the clouds came in again and we were left with pretty flat light. So we had to try a couple of the other tricks to get an interesting image.

Emerald Lake Yoho National Park British Columbia Canada - Banff National Park - Canadian Rockies Banff National Park Photography Tour - Jasper National Park Alberta Canada

Canoeing Emerald Lake Yoho National Park British Columbia Canada

We were using rocks in the water and logs in the water to give us some interest in the image and we just played quite a bit. I think this particular image works pretty well considering the lighting.

Emerald Lake Yoho National Park British Columbia Canada - Banff National Park - Canadian Rockies Banff National Park Photography Tour - Jasper National Park Alberta Canada

Lovely Chalet Emerald Lake Yoho National Park British Columbia Canada

Bonus 3 Johnston Canyon

By Saturday after all of our hiking and photography, I certainly was getting a bit tired. Hey I’m old and I’m probably not in the best shape of my life. My wife and I have committed to doing the Whole30.com, 30 day cleanse after this trip to help us get back in shape but that’s a different story altogether. The main point is, I didn’t have the energy to climb up Mount Kilimanjaro or anything like that, so today’s excursion had to be obtainable yet beautiful at the same time.

We kept hearing about Johnston Canyon over and over again and it was within five minutes from our Chalet under the incredible Castle Mountain. This particular day was supposed to be a bit drizzly and so it would be a perfect day for a hike. I thought we might just do the lower Falls but Anne, being the eternal dynamo that she is, you could tell it was on her mind to go all the way up to the Upper Falls. I braced myself for a tough day of hiking and grudgingly started the quest.

Johnston Canyon Hike

Part of the deal is, you don’t really know if the place is going to be beautiful. Well thank God, Johnston Canyon is indeed it worth your while for hiking. The total height to the Upper Falls and back is 4.7 kilometers. In my in my opinion the lower Falls are more naturally beautiful in an artistic way. The Upper Falls are beautiful in a huge powerful way. Hopefully my images will do it to some justice.  You can see what I’m talking about.

Johnston Canyon Hike Upper Falls Lower Falls - Banff National Park - Canadian Rockies Banff National Park Photography Tour - Jasper National Park Alberta Canada Be sure to check out all the details on the blog post: https://waynemoranphotography.com/blog/banff-national-park-photography-tour-simply-amazing/

Johnston Canyon Hike Upper Falls Lower Falls

We were very glad we went on the hike. One secondary note, we are doing this hike on a Saturday and it appears all the tours from Banff came up to the area because we’re relatively close to Banff at this point. The parking area and the hike was quite busy.

Views on Bow Valley Parkway to Banff - Banff National Park - Canadian Rockies Banff National Park Photography Tour - Jasper National Park Alberta Canada

Views on Bow Valley Parkway to Banff

Lives Changed

Our lives have been changed because of the sights, sounds and the experiences we had in this amazing place. Our hearts will be hurting longing to return to the incredible beauty. For us, this is probably a once-in-a-lifetime trip but it is indeed a worthwhile trip because we were able to see and experience the overwhelming beauty of this place.

Plan Your Trip

If you’re looking to plan a trip like this for yourself be sure to check out the itinerary that we used for this trip. It is just a rough itinerary and we planned it with flexibility to so we could make adjustments based on weather and personal preferences along the way.

Conclusion

We certainly enjoyed ourselves on this trip and I hope we encouraged you to make the trip yourself. You will be forever changed and you will be so glad that you made the adventure.

Until next time, get out and capture the adventure!

 

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Most Beautiful Places To See Photograph In Banff

Written by Wayne Moran - Visit Website
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