Belize offers opportunities to take awesome photographs pretty much everywhere you go. From the further north featuring a great duo of Rum & Ruins to the deep south filled with Relax & Nature, all around the country you won’t stop snapping. Here’s a list of the top 5 places that any photographer should not miss for any reason in the world !
1.Dangriga
Located just a couple of hours away from the capital, this city is nothing but the hub for the Garifuna culture of the whole country. Walking around the dusty streets, having a stroll a sunset near the main park and even swinging by the town’s church will give you plenty of subjects to take photos of. Ever wondered where’s the perfect spot for taking some awesome portraits of traditional people? What about some gorgeous street photography showing the day-to-day life of a true belizean? Well, this is the place!
Nevertheless, if spending sometime around the streets of Dangriga hunting for the right portrait is not for you, then make sure to be around for the Garifuna Settlement Day on the 19th of November. During this period the city is bustling with garifunas who have travelled seas & lands to be there for that special occasion. Just imagine loads of parades, plenty of people wearing traditional clothes and lots of smiling faces filled with smiles, joy and happiness!
Walking around Dangriga, I always used my 24-70mm L and never felt the need for any other lenses but during the festival I also used a lot my wide angle 16-35mm L for “over-the-crowd” shots.
2.Cockscomb Basin
Nature and beautiful landscapes: that’s what this National Park is all about! Although accessing it can be quite expensive without your own transport (read post), once there you’ll find yourself in photography heaven. The reserve is not just the only reserve in the world for Jaguars but it also holds a great variety of other wildlife ranging from hummingbirds to big angry tapirs. For the best chance of spotting Jaguars, make sure to have a stroll on the dirt road leading to the camp! For wildlife, remember to keep your shutter speed high (1/640-1/800) and if you can leave the camera in stand-by cause your snapping window will be less than a couple of seconds for any wildlife you’ll encounter!
The other real treat for early rise photographers is landscapes. In fact, hiking up trails such as the Tiger Fern Trail or Ben’s Buff, will give you amazing views over the whole jungle surrounding the area with the background of the second highest peak in Belize: Victoria Peak. (Hint: Make sure to be on the top of the trails by 6am or alternatively for sunset at around 4-5pm for the best light!).
During our stay at the National Park, I’ve always found myself using my 70-300mm series L as nature was usually too far for a normal lens and shooting landscapes with that lens gave me more freedom to compose and crop the photo the way I wanted.
3.Caracol Ruins
If you’re into architecture photography, the secluded beautiful and not very accessible ruins of Caracol are your best bet. The amazing mayan complexes surrounded by complete wilderness are the perfect spot for showing the contrast between nature and man. The light at sunset is simply beautiful but make sure to consider the time it will take to drive back to San Ignacio as driving the road to the ruins at night can be challenging at times.
For the best view over the whole ruins, climbing to the top of the main castillo is definitely a must-do, especially cause not many people do it! Make sure to bring along a wide angle in your bag, in my case the 16-35mm L, if you wanna have a slight chance of shooting each full complex into a single shot!
This entry was posted in Belize, Photography