DC’s cherry blossom season brings a huge number of photographic opportunities. Here’s how to take one of its iconic scenes: cherry blossoms with the Washington Monument.
How-To DC Photo Guides
How-to Guide: Close-up Macro of Washington DC’s Cherry Blossoms
There are a million ways to take a beautiful photo of Washington DC’s cherry blossoms. Here’s how to create something similar to this close-up macro shot.
How-to Guide: Jefferson Memorial and Washington Monument through Round Portals
This shot of the Washington Monument and Jefferson Memorial takes advantage of the unusual framing provided by the stone railing of a small bridge at the Tidal Basin.
How-to Guide: Lincoln Memorial Statue Bathed in Golden Sunlight
The opportunity to take this shot of the statue of Abraham Lincoln bathed in golden sunlight only comes around at a couple of specific times of year, and then only with just the right weather conditions. Here’s how to do it.
How-to Guide | Saucer Magnolias at the Smithsonian Castle
I took this photo last spring during the very brief blooming of the tulip magnolias (or saucer magnolias) in Washington DC. They’re one of the spring’s first dramatic blooming varieties in the DC area, usually beating the more famous cherry blossoms by a couple of weeks.
How-to Guide | The Jefferson Memorial Before Sunrise
A guide to the what, when, where, and how of taking this photo of richly colored skies behind the Jefferson Memorial in Washington DC before sunrise.
DC Photo Resources
Photography & Filming Permits & Permissions
If you plan a commercial photo shoot or video filming in the Washington DC area, you might require a permit. Here are some contact details for applying for them.
A Photographers’ Guide to Washington DC
Information on taking photos in Washington DC, including tips for monuments, landmarks, neighborhoods, and events.
Best Places to Find Out What’s Happening in Washington DC
Here are some useful resources for finding out what’s going down in the DC area.
Lyndon Baines Johnson Memorial Grove
The LBJ Memorial is on the Virginia bank of the Potomac with views of Washington DC’s monuments across the river. It’s dedicated to the 36th president who occupied the White House during the tumultuous 1960s.
Marine Corps Sunset Parade at the Iwo Jima Memorial
The Marine Corps Sunset Parades at the Iwo Jima Memorial are one of Washington DC’s summer treats. Here’s information and schedule on the 2018 season.
Tiny Planet Photos of Washington DC
A series of tiny planet photos of Washington DC’s monuments and landmarks. These start as 360-degree spherical panoramas and ramp up the fish-eye.
A Washington Winter Wonderland
When we get a solid snowfall, Washington DC’s monuments and landmarks become a winter wonderland.
Places to Take Photos
Netherlands Carillon
The Netherlands Carillon stands next to the Iwo Jima Memorial and Arlington National Cemetery and offers one of the best views in the area.
Commodore John Paul Jones Memorial
Commemorating Revolution War naval hero Commodore Jones Paul Jones, the memorial sits on the Tidal Basin in Washington DC, not far from the Washington Monument and National World War Two Memorial.
Japanese Lantern at the Tidal Basin
Sitting on the banks of the Tidal Basin amongst the famous Japanese cherry blossoms, the Japanese Lantern dates back to the middle of the 17th century and has been here since 1954.
Japanese Pagoda
The 17th century Japanese Pagoda is nestled amongst the famous cherry blossoms on the banks of the Tidal Basin in Washington DC.
Navy-Merchant Marine Memorial
The Navy-Merchant Marine Memorial, featuring a large, evocative aluminum sculpture of a cresting wave and seagulls in flight, sits on Columbia Island on the Arlington side of the Potomac.
Iwo Jima Memorial
At the heart of the Iwo Jima Memorial (or the Marine Corps War Memorial) is a massive bronze statue based on an iconic World War II photo of the Marines planting the flag at Iwo Jima. The Memorial is next to Arlington National Cemetery on a hill overlooking the National Mall.
Simon Bolivar Statue
The Simon Bolivar Statue in Foggy Bottom in Washington DC is dedicated to the Latin American revolutionary.
Cuban Friendship Urn
The Cuban Friendship Urn is not the most impressive landmark you’ll find in Washington DC, but it does have an interesting story behind it.
Robert A. Taft Memorial and Carillon
Mr Republican has his own Carillon. Senator Robert Taft had a long political career and had connections–he was a former Speaker and was President William Howard Taft’s oldest son–but the arch conservative is best remembered as an leading opponent of Franklin Roosevelt’s New Deal.
Theodore Roosevelt Memorial
It’s entirely appropriate that the memorial dedicated to Teddy Roosevelt is a little unkempt. America’s 26th president was famously a champion of the environment and an avid hunter and outdoorsman. But his memorial isn’t well known.
First Division Monument
The First Division Monument, standing in President’s Park next to the White House and in front of the Eisenhower Executive Office Building, is dedicated to those who served and died in the First Division of the American Expeditionary Forces.
General William T. Sherman Monument
The monument to Civil War General William T. Sherman is elaborate and prominently placed, in President’s Park (the Ellipse), right next to the White House.