8.2. Where Can I Get the Best Shot?

You can photograph Half Dome from many locations; each one of them gives you a different angle and a different view. Some of the most common locations for photographing Half Dome include the Ahwahnee Meadow, Sentinel Bridge, Mirror Lake, Columbia Point, Cook's Meadow, Tunnel View, Washburn Point, Glacier Point, Big Oak Flat Road, and Olmsted Point (see A–I on map).

The best locations from which to photograph Half Dome: (A) Ahwahnee Meadow, (B) Sentinel Bridge, (C) Mirror Lake, (D) Columbia Point, (E) Cook's Meadow, (F) Tunnel View, (G) Washburn Point and Glacier Point, (H) Big Oak Flat Road, (I) Olmstead Point. Other photo ops: (9) Happy Isles, (17) Nevada Fall, (26) Vernal Fall.

8.2.1. Ahwahnee Meadow

Located just west of the Ahwahnee Hotel, the Ahwahnee Meadow is the location from which Ansel Adams made his famous image "Moon and Half Dome." This meadow stretches from the Ahwahnee Road to Northside Drive, and any location in the meadow is a great vantage point for photographing Half Dome (see figure 8.1).

Figure 8.1. Half Dome from the Ahwahnee Meadow (see A on the map) at sunset on a fall evening. Taken at ISO 100, f/18, 1/50 second with a 24-105mm zoom lens at 70mm.

8.2.2. Sentinel Bridge

Standing on Sentinel Bridge and photographing Half Dome at sunrise or sunset (see figure 8.2) gives you one of the classic Yosemite images. Be careful on the bridge and stay off the roadway.

8.2.3. Mirror Lake

From Mirror Lake you are so close to Half Dome that when you look up, it does not have the iconic shape you are used to seeing (see figure 8.3). The rock face looks a lot wider, and the curve at the top is difficult to see. It is truly a different perspective.

Figure 8.2. A view of Half Dome from Sentinel Bridge (see B on the map) during a winter sunrise. Taken at ISO 100, f/5.0, 1/8 second with a 24-105mm zoom lens at 24mm.

Figure 8.3. A view of Half Dome from Mirror Lake (see C on the map) on a fall afternoon. Taken at ISO 100, f/9, 1/100 second with a 24-105mm zoom lens at 65mm.

8.2.4. Columbia Point

Although Columbia Point is a three-mile, steep, round-trip hike, the views of Half Dome and the valley are simply amazing. You get a whole different perspective of how tall and sheer Half Dome appears (see figure 8.4).

Figure 8.4. Half Dome from Columbia Point (see D on the map) on an autumn afternoon. Taken at ISO 100, f/11, 1/160 second with a 24-105mm zoom lens at 84mm.

8.2.5. Cook's Meadow

Cook's Meadow is the big meadow situated between Yosemite Village and Yosemite Lodge, opposite Yosemite Falls. This spot is a classic location for photographing Half Dome. A large elm tree in the west end of the meadow makes a great foreground element to use in your frame. A small pond, covered in lily pads in the summer, looks great as a foreground, and if you get low to the ground, you can pick up a reflection of Half Dome. In early summer, large umbel flowers called cow parsnip also make great foreground elements in an image, as shown in figure 8.5.

Figure 8.5. Half Dome and cow parsnip in Cook's Meadow (see E on the map) on a summer morning. Taken at 100 ISO, f/14, 1/200 second with a 24-105mm zoom lens at 32mm.

8.2.6. Tunnel View

This is the classic view of Yosemite Valley that is the most photographed view in the park (see figure 8.6). From here you can isolate Half Dome from its surroundings by zooming in with a telephoto lens.

Figure 8.6. Half Dome from Tunnel View (see F on the map) on a spring afternoon. Taken at ISO 100 f/16, 1/200 second with a 100-400mm telephoto zoom lens at 220mm.

8.2.7. Washburn and Glacier Points

Half Dome takes on a completely different look from these two vantage points as you view the granite dome from the south. It appears as a thin ridge of rock, giving you a whole new perspective on its shape (see figure 8.7).

Figure 8.7. Half Dome from Glacier Point (see G on the map) at sunset on a summer evening. Taken at ISO 100, f/10, 1/25 second with a 24-105mm zoom lens at 24mm.

8.2.8. Big Oak Flat Road

Located approximately 3.1 miles up the Big Oak Flat Road from the junction of Big Oak Flat Road and Highway 140, you find a turnout that provides a great view of Half Dome. From this turnout, you have Half Dome directly behind the face of El Capitan, and the juxtaposition of the two icons in one photograph is quite impressive (see figure 8.8).

Figure 8.8. Half Dome and El Capitan compressed in one view on a fall afternoon from the Big Oak Flat turnout (see H on the map). Taken at ISO 100, f/11, 1/30 second with a 100-400mm telephoto zoom lens at 400mm.

8.2.9. Olmsted Point

From this vantage point, you are looking from the northeast down to Half Dome, giving you yet another totally different perspective of the rock face as it looms over the granite ridge before you (see figure 8.9).

Figure 8.9. At sunset from Olmsted Point (see I on the map) on a fall evening, Half Dome takes on a whole new look! Taken at ISO 100, f/10, 0.6 seconds, with a 100-400mm telephoto zoom at 235mm.