5 Days Photography Short Break Tour in Tibet

There are many reasons that you must cover Lhasa in your Tibet photography tour. It is not only the capital city, but also the cultural and historical center of whole Tibet. In our opinion, the breathtaking scenery is the appearance of Tibet, while the sacred Buddhist culture is her attractive soul if Tibet is a beautiful lady as a metaphor. Lhasa is the SOUL.

There is no high snow peaks, large lakes, wild forest, and grassland in Lhasa city, the brilliant cultural existence is Lhasa’s best feature which varies with architecture, Buddhism, folk tradition, etc. Since Buddhism is the essence of Tibet culture, here in Lhasa, many sites are themed by Buddhism. We have selected some unique and outstanding sites for you to learn, and record with your cameras.

Best Highlights for Photography in Lhasa

Potala Palace

Potala Palace is the symbol of Tibet. It is the highest palace complex with thousands of rooms and chapels. It is also the perfect embodiment of the essence of Tibetan Architecture. It used to be the royal place of Kings of Tubo, then became the administrative office of Dalai Lamas when the Fifth Dalai Lama moved to Potala in 17th century. The grandiose appearance is the photographers’ favorite scenes to shoot. The place is 117 meters high, 3700 meters above the sea level, and covers more than 130,000 square meters. The white and red walls, golden tiles, orderly windows form a harmonious and large scene. Inside the palace is a treasure full of arts and relics of Buddhism, but they are not allowed for taking photo.

There is a specially built deck on the right side of Potala Palace which is the best angle to take photo. From there, you can get panoramic front views of the palace both in day and night. The large square in front of the palace is another shooting place where you can find some great framing of the front body of Potala Palace. The local Tibetan, clouds and far mountains are some good background scenes.

Buddhist Temples

Lhasa is the holy Buddhist city of monasteries and temples. Many influential monasteries gather in and around Lhasa city, such as the Three Greatest Monasteries (Ganden, Sera and Drepung) and Jokhang Temple. Among all these Buddhist sites, Jokhang and Sera are two most recommended for shooting photo.

The holiest temple Jokhang features in long history and unique architecture which combines both Chinese and Tibetan styles. Jokhang Temple is also the most popular with pilgrims. The meditation in front of temple is very heartshaking. Sera Monastery is a traditional Tibetan monastery. Its best highlights is the famous Buddhism Debating which is allowed to be watched and shot.

Local Folk Culture

Spend some quiet time observing the living culture of Tibetan is a spectacular experience. You can capture the prostrating Tibetan on Barkhor Street, talking ladies in the tea house, playing kid in garden, etc. To show your respect, you can ask for their permission if you want to take some close picture of Tibetan.

On the remote Qinghai Tibet Plateau, there is a BLUE place keeping pulling thousands of photographers to witness her beauty – she is the Namtso Lake. Namtso is the Holy Lake of Tibetan, the second largest salt lake in China, the highest lake in the world, the Most Beautiful Lake in China commented by National Geography.

Blue is the main color of Namtso Lake. Here you can see many kinds of blue: pale blue, grayish blue, azure blue, sapphire blue, deep blue, etc. As you know, the blue color is one of the favorite colors of cameras. You may wonder the existence of God, but after seeing the endless blues of Namtso, you can’t help yourself paying homage to our mother nature. For most people who visited Natmso, the place is not only a fairyland of holy lake and mountains, but also a magic heaven to clean your mind as well as your camera.

There are a great number of perfect views to shoot, including natural landscape and Tibetan culture. The weather condition usually changes rapidly, and creates different incredible scenes, which notices you to get prepared for shooting at any time. So what are the best highlights to shoot in Namtso?

Best Highlights for Photography in Namtso

Holy Lake

The sapphire blue water of Namtso Lake touching the pure blue sky, several clouds floating above the snow mountain in far horizon, the lake shoreline sketching a beautiful contour – this is the most classic scene for photography in Natmso. The early morning and later afternoon are the best hours to shoot the lake photos when the lights and colors differ in different moments. Other daytime is for you to shoot some clean photos of lakes, snow mountains, grassland, yaks, etc. Use the yak horns placed on the Mani stones as the front setoff, then find a natural view ahead, which is helpful to rich your framing and create some visual touching.

Snow Mountains

The southern beach of Namtso Lake is surrounded by continuous snow mountains looking like a huge white wall. The main peak Nyenchen Tanglha dominates in the sky like the Excalibur. In the early morning, the soft sunlight shines on the peak, the silver white peak changes to golden color. In the daytime, the pure snow mountain stands quietly like guards of Natmso Lake. Near the feet of mountains is the blue Namtso Lake.

Grasslands

The vast grasslands nearby the Natmso Lake give you chances to take some fabulous photos which is full of vigor. You can have a wide sphere of vision of clustered yaks and sheep, cute wild animals, green grassland under snow mountains, tents of local nomads interspersing on the grasslands.

Nani Stones and Prayer Flags

In Tibetan Buddhism, a stone is zoetic with intelligence. So Tibetan carve Buddha and scriptures on the stone for worship and good wish. These stones are the famous Mani Stones. The pilgrims place the stone one on another. As time passing by, the stones become tall heaps. You can add the Mani Stones to your framing to take some unique photos. Tibetan hang many colorful prayer flags along the lake which are some special setoffs.

Tibetan Living

The vast grasslands nearby the Natmso Lake give you chances to take some fabulous photos which is full of vigor. You can have a wide sphere of vision of clustered yaks and sheep, cute wild animals, green grassland under snow mountains, tents of local nomads interspersing on the grasslands.