Myanmar Photography Tips

A photography trip to Myanmar is a fantastic experience. Indeed, Myanmar is believed to be one of the few places on earth where the lifestyle has still been pristine in this modern world. Traditions and culture still affect strongly to the daily life of locals. But, just like a lot of tourist attractions around the world, development, foreign trade and tourism will soon change the life there and as a result, a lot of current attractiveness will unavoidably fate away.  So, even if you love historical and ancient attractions or not, you should visit Myanmar as soon as you can if Myanmar has been one of your dream destinations, especially for travel photography.

For more information, check out our Authentic Myanmar tours or Myanmar Travel Guide. And here are some tips for your perfect Myanmar photography tour.

Where to photo in Myanmar

Yangon

Yangon, the former capital of Myanmar, maintains its colonial charm mixing with the city’s traditional attractions, architectures. The city is covered by its unique spiritual atmosphere. When visiting the city, you definitely should come to Shwedagon Pagoda. The amazing sunset at that stupa is likely made for incredible photos. You could take photos of the local pilgrims and monks offering their devotions. Not only reflecting the locals’ religious life, but the scene also is a colourful paint that would catch everyone’s eyes from the first sight.

The life in every Yangon’s corner can material for your pictures, too. From the bustling day life to the paradise of street food in night markets.

Bagan

Bagan, once the centre of a glorious kingdom, has thousands of charming ancient temples that seem to stand at anywhere your eyes can reach to. Bagan was the world centre of Buddhism in the 11th century and over 10,000 pagodas were built up at that time, while nowadays, over 2,000 remain. Even though most of them can now be thousands of years old, they are still breathtaking that no one can resist. You could also visit the local village of Phwar Saw to experience traditional Burmese life.

Mandalay

Mandalay is the cultural hub of upper Myanmar. 200-year-old teak bridge, the Golden Palace Monastery with sophisticated woodcarvings, and Mandalay Hill at sunset… all can be inspirations to your photos. You could drop by local markets to look into the daily life there and capture hundreds of shots of the sellers and the buyers, the sold goods…. You can take some photo of artisans making the handicrafts, such as silversmiths, wood and stone carvers, and a vibrant street scene.

Inle lake

Inle Lake is the most prominent lake in Myanmar. You could take a local longboat and shoot the floating gardens and the unique leg rowers. The Intha fishermen row by standing up with one leg wrapped around an oar.  You can also shoot the rice fields which are grown on manmade islands within the lake or photograph the Shan ethnic tribe coming to the morning market. You can meet the long-necked tribal women - the icon of Intha and visit the local craft villages perched on stilts. Tribes include the Bamar, Danaw, Danu, Intha, and Pa-O.

When to photo in Myanmar

Myanmar is a tropical country, that’s why the temperature here can sometimes reach 40°C during the day. So, if you want to go out and capture the beauty of nature, you should wake up early. The sunrise and sunset in Myanmar are really beautiful, so you can take a lot of nice shots during these times. To make sure that you can catch these precious times, you should check out when the sun rises and where it goes down from the previous day. Google can be a useful assistant.

The weather can also impact the quality of your photo-shoot, so you should be aware of the best time to visit any destinations before arriving. Check out our Myanmar Travel fact by timeline to find out the most suitable time. You can also know about Burmese festivals held in each month. Festival is always a photogenic event.

Useful tips for photography in Myanmar.

- Always stay fresh for an active day of photo-shooting. Bring enough water and some snack to keep yourself hydrated and full of energy.

- Bring along some extra battery so you could keep your camera work all day long.

- If you want to capture an aesthetic panoramic photo, such as Bagan in the sunset, sunrise from a temple… you might need a wide-angle lens. If you prefer a zoom-close photography style, you can use a fisheye lens.

- For more stable shots, use a camera pod. A selfie stick with an extendable tripod is a good choice though.