TABLE OF CONTENTS
In this article I will discuss the 10 best wide angle panoramas I ever took. From the remote and spectacular peaks of Southern Greenland, the giant glaciers of the Swiss Alps, to the red colored desert landscapes of Saudi Arabia. I will explain why I choose the composition in each panorama and which elements help to make it a banger. I will also explain how to scout for a wide angle panorama by using Google Earth, your smartphone and other simple techniques! After this article continue with How to Shoot a Panorama to achieve these results yourself!
1. Greenland - Somewhere only we know
Taken from a viewpoint high above the ice-filled fjords in Southern Greenland. This location which was worth the entire trip for me. This is a two shot panorama was taken with the Nikon D800 on a tripod. The person in the photo is yours truly (Max Rive), and I took it on the self-timer. I camped a little lower on a plateau. The weather during the whole day was rainy and stormy. It cleared last minute before sunset and I had to hike up on the ridge as quickly as I could. The sun was still high enough to shine into the valley and create the depth. You can even see the light and shadow line on the fjord! The inclusion of a person/self-portrait helped me in this wide angle panorama to give balance with the setting sun.
Luckily I made it to the top of the ridge in time for this clearance.
2. Patagonia - View towards Fitz Roy
This six shot panorama was taken on the very end of my first trip to Patagonia. I spent five weeks of extensive exploring in both Argentina and Chile. I started my trip on the end of April and finished around mid June. The autumn made place for the beginning of winter. The weather during the last week had clouds attached to the ground (inversion) during each morning and evening.
A great example of a cloud inversion.
In this panorama the mountain Fitz Roy is pretty small. Most of the rivers in the valley are blocked by the sea of clouds – which is not a good thing. Still, I have added this wide angle panorama view from Patagonia because it is such a unique spot and it is also a unique photo in itself.
3. Iceland - Thórsmörk
One of my first photos with the Nikon D800 is this panorama from Iceland looking towards Thórsmörk back in 2012. This was the start of my mountain adventure selfies. This wide angle panorama was taken around 11pm on the end of a long hike which started in Skogar.
What I like most about this panorama in Iceland is the wide view in the distance with all the different layers. There is a lot of depth created by the layers and also the foreground. You have a vertical rock where I am standing on catching the soft sunrise light and then you have a part of the mountain on the right with flowers, keeping your eye inside the frame. Lastly, there are two more rocks visible on the right side of the rock I am standing on, which is the mid-ground. All together they create a lot of depth. The person/me, also helps with showing the scale. In terms of balance the sun and the person add interest on each side - creating a balanced composition. In terms of leading line, the river in the middle leads the eye from one side to the other. Not unimportant to mention is the left side - you can also see a small river with valley - which helps to add depth. Without it, the left side would be empty space.
4. Romsdal - to Heaven or Hell
Back in 2014, when doing a trip to Geiranger - I also visited this viewpoint above Åndalsnes and it's called Romsdalseggen. Well, the total hike is named Romsdalseggen but you will come here on the way. While this two shot panorama, taken with the Nikon D850 and 14-24mm lens, doesn’t have any foreground, it is the transition of color tones which makes it so special for me. The setting sun found a way through the thick layer of clouds - creating dramatic light and colors. The Rauma river in the valley creates a nice twisting leading line from left to right and also reflects the cool and warm color tones - and, it connects with the sun.
The brilliant colour transition is what makes this panorama so interesting.
5. Saudi Arabia - Light-ray panorama
This 12 shot panorama was taken in the otherworldly area of Al Disah in Saudi Arabia. The best conditions in Saudi Arabia are when it is a bit dry and windy as this will create dust storms or at the very least blow the dust around. When the dust is blown around it will increase the depth between the layers. As you can see it can also create some incredible light-rays when the sun rises above the sharp ridges and pointy mountains. The area of Al-disah offers a broad range of the most incredible spots in a small area, so I didn’t had to travel far from my accommodation. The idea behind this composition in this wide angle panorama is to show the incredible depth and layers. I also included the big rock on the right as a subject to connect with the sun on the left. The big, dark mountain below is used for added depth and making the lower part dark by using the shade of the mountain. On the far right of this image I still included a mountain - which is meant to keep the eye of the viewer inside the frame.
You need a dust storm to create light rays like these.
6. Alula - Cave panorama
This is a single, wide angle photo taken in the beautiful deserts of Saudi Arabia. Everything inside the cave is much smaller than it appears in the photo. The background rocks are sandstone and are formed by wind erosion. This wide angle panorama was taken by putting my camera on the ground inside this tiny cave. With landscape photography it is all about what you create with your camera. In this case the low position of the camera creates the illusion to the viewer that it looks like a big cave. The warm and red colors of the sandstone really helped with creating a warm, desert atmosphere.
7. Swiss Alps - Panorama above Interlaken
Maybe my favorite mountain panorama I ever took is this incredible view above Interlaken. A view which has a special meaning to me - it was this area where I first visited when I came to the alps. This wide angle panorama was taken in 2021, when everyone got out and about after COVID. I have been to this viewpoint before in 2017 and 2020. Because of the promising weather forecast for that morning I decided to go again - and I got well rewarded. The river in the middle helps with leading the eye to the background. While even the highest mountains are on the right side - it is the sun in the middle which connects with the river and the person. This multi-shot panorama is all about the depth and layers you will only find in the high Swiss mountains. Each part of the frame adds depth - including the left where you see the Lütschine river flowing into the Brienzersee (lake). The sun is already high above the horizon but this helps with adding depth between the layers.
This is also one of the first hikes Madison and I did together!
8. Greenland - Northern lights bubbles
My first visit to Greenland lasted for 2,5 months. By the end of my trip, in September, the temperatures had dropped down to minus 15 during the night and minus 5 during the day. The lakes were totally frozen over too. The mountains behind the lake have a perfectly symmetrical composition. Add to that the Northern direction - and I had the perfect northern light image location. The bubbles underneath the ice were created by the gas coming up from the plants growing in the lake. This helped me to get some foreground interest in the ice. The reflection of the mountains also added some interest. I took three photos during the first clear sky night and got presented with some incredible northern lights - resulting in this wide angle panorama.
Notice the ice bubbles? These details are important!
9. Swiss Alps - The glacier
While exploring with Google Earth I saw a great view above the Fieschergletscher in the Swiss alps. With a length of 16km, the Fieschergletscher is the second longest glacier in the Alps. But it is not that popular since it sits in the shadow of the Aletsch Glacier, which is the direct neighbour to the west.
In the summer of 2021 I decided to drive all the way to the Alps for this view and hike towards the Wasenhorn. This wide angle panorama consists of 12 photos stitched together. The setting sun is still a fair bit above the horizon, so not the softest light. However, it does illuminate the glacier nicely and it is in the middle - which is a position I wanted. Lastly, I didn’t have camping gear with me, so I had to do a long hike back down. The high mountain on the right of the middle is the Finsteraarhorn (4274 meter), which is the highest mountain of the Bern Kanton. There is a good amount of depth in this panorama. While the right side doesn’t have the most layers, mainly because the high mountains of the Finsteraarhorn are preventing a view behind it - the left side has a lot more depth looking towards the Rhône valley.
Another element which helps a lot with the depth is the foreground mountain I am standing on. The mountain ridge leads all the way to the background on the left and it also points towards the sun with a side-ridge.
Glaciers make for great leading lines, especially in panoramas.
10. Norway - Midnight sun panorama
During my visit to Northern Norway in summer, I explored the mountains around Grovfjord. I found this viewpoint high above the fjords with a nice symmetrical composition. The melting snow from the top of the mountain, created this nice stream I used as a foreground. It is a 160 degree field of view, which was created by stitching together six different photos. There is depth in this wide angle panorama on every layer. From the foreground water-stream, the mid-ground with the waterfall on the right, to the background with the lake, the layers, the rain shower, the most distant layers around the sun and the stormy clouds. The midnight sun in the middle helps with the symmetrical composition and is the main focus point.
How to Scout for Wide Angle Panoramas
A wide angle panorama is different from a single photo because it offers a field of view which is far wider than the human eye can see. This can make it more difficult to see the final composition. While it will always be more difficult to see the end result when standing in the field, there are a few ways to make it easier.
Move your head
The first is simple - move your head around when standing on the spot. From one side to the other. Compare this to just focusing with your eye on one area - you will not see the wide angle panorama this way. While you move your head from one point to the other, you should look out for main subjects, leading lines, where the sun will be, mountains on the side you might want to use to keep your eye inside the frame. Try to connect main subjects with leading lines and if there is a sun, make sure the sun is part of the composition. For example, do you put the sun in the middle for a symmetrical composition. In that case the composition should allow for this, meaning there should not be high peak on one side and nothing on the other. If there is a high peak on one side you want the sun to be on the other side to balance it out. If there is no high peak to balance the sun, maybe include a person in case the scene allows it.
Use Google Earth
Use Google Earth when finding your wide angle panorama, especially if you are aiming for a high mountain viewpoint. If your spot is in the valley next to a lake, using Google Earth is a bit more difficult. But, from up high it shows the scene pretty accurately. Make print screens of the view, moving from one side to the next, with 30% overlap or more, and merge them together in Photoshop. If you cant merge them with Photoshop just do it manually yourself. It is all about seeing the wide angle view. By doing this practice with Google Earth screenshots you can already get an idea of what your photo will look like if you visit that location. Maybe you can see better that the composition is unbalanced or doesn't work for some reason and isn't worth the trip.
Use panorama feature on smartphone
Another way to show the composition of a large field of view panorama is to take a test photo with your smartphone using the panorama feature. Of course your smartphone needs to have this feature. You can best hold your camera vertically and then move from one side to the next to have enough field of view on top and bottom.
Use wide angle lens on smartphone and camera
Alternatively, you can just use the 0.5 lens or the widest lens on your smartphone. Nowadays high-end smartphones often have a wide angle lens which is around 12mm on a full frame camera. The same goes for your camera. If you have an ultra wide lens - like 10mm - 12mm. You can take a photo and then crop off the top and bottom part in-camera to show the wide angle composition.
Final Thoughts
The world's best panoramic locations remind us just how rewarding it can be to see beyond a single frame. If you're inspired to create your own panoramic images, you should read my article on How to Shoot a Panorama, where you'll find practical tips on camera settings, shooting techniques, and stitching images together for seamless results. To make your panoramas even more compelling, don't miss Framing the Scene: Composition Techniques in Landscape Photography, which explores the compositional principles that help transform beautiful views into memorable photographs.
Max Rive is most driven by seeking new perspectives in the natural world and capturing them in his own distinguished style. Max's powerful portrayals of his interactions with the mountains has earned him international recognition in the outdoor community.
Madison McCardle is a passionate landscape photographer driven by curiosity and a desire to capture the true essence of each place she explores. Through her lens, she seeks new perspectives that reveal the beauty and authenticity of the world.
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