West Gate Bridge

Spanning the Yarra River in Melbourne's west, West Gate Bridge is one of Australia's largest cable-stayed bridges and a dramatic subject for urban and cityscape photography. The bridge is best photographed from Westgate Park, just to the east, where you can position yourself low along the water's edge to capture reflections of the structure and its LED lighting in the river below. A wide angle lens works well for emphasizing the bridge's sweeping geometry, while a telephoto lets you compress the span against the Melbourne skyline in the background. Blue hour and the hour after sunset are the prime windows, when the bridge's LED lights activate and the sky still holds enough color to balance the artificial light. The park is easily accessible by car with nearby parking, and the flat shoreline gives you flexibility to move along the water and test different foreground compositions. (Port Melbourne, Victoria, Australia)