Not sure how any of the Melbourne photography tours are making any money because this isn’t really a city you need a guide to show you around.  I guess if you’re after some photography advice and some company, then it might be worth doing but really, I reckon you’re better off just wandering the streets yourself and doing a bit of research to find some of the best spots to take photos of in Melbourne.

Pretty much all the Melbourne photography tours will take you to Flinders St Station, the day shot will be nothing more than a snapshot, so take your tripod, ND filters and take some long exposures near sunset or after dark.

Hosier Lane and other graffiti lanes are also a stable on most Melbourne photography tours, if you shoot film make sure you take Velvia and if you shoot Fuji X Series, shoot in raw + fine and stick it on Velvia simulation mode. Black and white also looks good.  If you go in the afternoon it’s a shit show with hundreds of people so don’t even think about going then.  Get up early to have the lanes to yourself, or least 1 or 2 other photographers that have the same dedication as you.

If you head to St Kilda, you’ll also be faced with hundreds of tourists and come back with nothing more than what everybody else, a snap shot filled with people.  Sunsets are still busy, so go out early morning.  I always prefer early morning if I have a choice, everything seems “fresh” and new.  Don’t forget your ND Filters and tripod.  If you don’t have any, get yourself some, I’ve burned through a few different brands and the most neutral with the least amount of colour cast are Breakthrough Photography’s X4’s.  Check them out here. Not cheap but worth paying the extra.

Find yourself a spot along the Yarra, somewhere in Southbank, same again, long exposure to smooth out the water and get some light trails from the boats. Depending on how many stops of ND’s you have, you might be going up to and beyond 2 minutes.  Take your GoPro, or I prefer the Sony FDR X3000, which has far superior video and image quality as well being optically stabilised, and take some time lapses while you’re set up and shooting long exposures with your camera.

The inner city of Melbourne is pretty good for street photography, afternoons there’s always something happening, busy, but not too crowded. You can easily spend a day in the inner city concentrating on street photography.

For more of the best photo spots in Melbourne, google “Melbourne photography tours”, visit their websites and click on the itineraries, which often tell you where to go.  There’s also a bunch of other photography sites that list a lot of places to take photos from in Melbourne, so check those out.

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