Creek near June Lake
Take a scenic bypass from Highway 395 and discover a serene basin with four lakes, plenty of trails and many cool subjects for photography.
June Lake Loop veers off Highway 395, taking you to a gorgeous valley full of natural wonder. During the winter months, this area is popular with skiers and during the summer, fishing and boating are the main outdoor activities. The lakes meadows and creeks, surrounded by mountains, are a great find for nature photographers.
If you pass through this area, take the detour and spend some time here, you will not regret it.
How to get there
June Lake Loop Map (click to enlarge)
June Lake Loop is easy to find. Road signs along Highway 395 clearly point the way south of Tioga Pass (Highway 120, Lee Vining) and north of Mammoth Lakes.
GPS position
How to photograph June Lake Loop
Aspen branch
The pleasant drive of June Lake Loop presents photographers with a number of great sights. I have marked some of the best places for photography on the map above.
Besides the indicated places, you can find patches of color all along the loop. Drive slowly and monitor the surrounding landscape for possible photo locations. Learn to listen to your intuition! If something catches your attention, stop and look for a great composition. Isolate what you saw from the surrounding clutter. Subconsciously our mind does this already, but to turn those short bursts of attention into great compositions, you need skill and practice.
Photograph aspen trees, reflected in water, from the campground west of June Lake or from the Silver Lake viewpoint! The aspen trees around Silver Lake will turn colorful first, while the trees around June Lake will delight you with their colorful foliage a little later. I found some leafs that had fallen into the water and included them in my composition to add interest to the foreground. Use a circular polarizing filter to cut glare from the water!
The aspen trees look best when you photograph against the sun. As the sunlight penetrates the leaves of the trees, they start to glow. I caught a lens flare on my image, which would take some time to fix. Use a lens hood or make sure you photograph at a 60-degree angle against the sun instead of straight on (0 degrees) to avoid flares. I photographed the scene early in the afternoon, but I could have waited a few more hours for 60 degree light.
Silver Lake Aspen Leaves
Another favorite photography location is the picnic area north of Silver Lake. A creek, surrounded by aspen trees, runs between the parking area and the nearby rock face. The trees are very rich and colorful as you can see in the image at the beginning of this article.
Using a CP filter when you photograph water will reduce glare and make the water more transparent. You can also enhance reflections and make the water appear more mirror like with the filter. Simply turn the filter to achieve the effect you wish.
June Lake Loop is a pleasant detour from Highway 395. Trails, views and picnic areas invite the traveler to take a detour and spend some time exploring the area. Take the drive and spend as much time as you want in this wonderful place.
Best Time of the Day and Best Season
Come here during fall or spring for maximum color. Mid to late afternoon light will be best during the fall.
Time required
It takes about 90 minutes to drive the loop and stop frequently for photography.
Equipment
- Wide-angle lens for large scenic shots
- Telephoto lens for intimate shots (branch image)
- CP filter to enhance colors and cut glare from the water
- Picnic basket
Close Locations
- Mammoth Lakes
- Mammoth Consolidated Mine
- Devils Postpile National Monument and Rainbow Falls
- Mono Lake
- Tioga Pass
- Mono Craters
- Bodie Ghost Town
- McGee Canyon
- Carson Pass, Carson Creek and Monitor Pass
- Convict Lake
- Hot Creek
- Bodie SHP
- Chemung Mine and Masonic Town
- Crowley Lake
- Ancient Bristlecone Pine Forest
- Bishop Creek
Useful Resources
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One Comment
Thank you for posting this. It’s so nice to see a professional response with actual details out there. I positively ate up the pictures you posted. Fall is definitely my favorite season for scenic shots. ^^