Here’s my limited knowledge on Bangkok photography and where to take some good shots. A good range of things and places and people to photograph in Bangkok so bring all your gear and spend some time researching before you go.
I don’t think I ever owned a proper camera in the entire time I lived in Bangkok and didn’t have much interest in photography when i was there. I’ve been back a few times since I stopped living there but it never really appealed to me to shoot a lot in Bangkok. Living in Hong Kong, I can take a short and cheap flight and be there in a few hours, but it’s still not high on my list of places to photograph.
I guess if you’re a first time visitor to Asia it’s different, but I’ve taken more than my share of buddha’s, temples and the like and aren’t really in a hurry to go back to photograph it in a hurry. I may do so in the next few months and will update this post, but for now, here’s a few spots to take photos from. Whether you have a camera or are into Bangkok photography or now, the Lebua State Tower seems to be popular. I’ve been up there but Bangkok can get quite hazy so you need to get luck with some dramatic clouds to take something special.
If you want to photograph the girlie bars and the sex streets, notably Soi Cowboy, Nana and Patpong, proceed with caution. You definitely can’t take photos inside and any attempt to take photos of the girls outside will result in some mean looks and a slap on the wrist. In Soi Cowboy it’s probably accepted, but many of the girls won’t want their photos taken for obvious reasons. Do you really want to come home from Bangkok with a bunch of photos of Thai hookers?
The Grand Palace, Wat Arun and the like are all nice places for some good photos but millions upon millions of photographs have been taken there so you’re going to have to come up with some different.
China Town is full on and a good place for taking photos of street food stalls and just all the action that goes with any China Town. It’s dead in the morning, polluted and hot during the afternoon so night is probably the best time.
Bangkok is a funny place for street photography, the streets are different here, there’s thousands of little soi’s (streets) that connect with each other but it’s not what I would call typical street photography. I’d head to Hua Lamphong Train Station, watch BigHeadTaco’s Youtube video on Rammy Narula. You’ll be inspired to head down there. Chatuchak Market is also a good place to photograph. Chaotic and hot but if you can stand the heat and people, you’ll come back with some memorable shots.
If I hadn’t of lived there for 10 years, Bangkok is probably a place I’d actually consider doing a Bangkok Photography Tour. Yes, as I’ve mentioned many times before, if you do enough research you can figure out all the best places to shoot before you go but then you still need to figure out the best way to get to them and in what order. That’s where a local can come in handy. If you haven’t been to Bangkok, it’s not the easiest place to get around. Yes, taxi’s are dirt cheap and the BTS and underground go a lot of places, but a local will save you time.
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