TIPS | Where to photograph and when - East Point, Darwin

This is the second “installment” to my guides to photographic locations around Darwin for landscape and seascape shots.

You can see the first part here - part 1 is all about places around the Nightcliff Foreshore area. Nightcliff is around 15 minute drive from the Darwin CBD, and about 7-8 minute drive from East Point Reserve.

East Point Reserve is a nature reserve run by Darwin City Council. It’s only around a five minute drive from the Darwin CBD and it’s possible also to ride a bike from the city, if you’re visiting and don’t have access to a car.

You can find out more information about East Point Reserve here.

I like to help other photographers get the most out of our location. There are so many great seascapes around Darwin and half of the challenge to getting the shot, is knowing where to go and when!

I’ve written another similar post on places to shoot in Darwin, back in 2014. You can see this original post here. It’s about time I wrote some updated posts! Although obviously the locations in the 2014 post are still there, I have a new set of my “go to” locations, there are new images to share and new “findings” to pass on. This post is all about photographic locations around East Point.

A basic map of East point Reserve.

MAP POINT 1 - Mini Mangroves and city views.

This is one of my favourite locations at the moment - it’s great at sunrise, but in the wet season it can be good at sunset too. It’s also a great vantage point for storms coming up Darwin Harbour from the rural areas. The city skyline is visible but if you’re wanting to capture the city skyline, you’ll need a fairly decent zoom! Most of my shots below are taken with a wide angle, so the city just becomes a part of the backdrop.

The area itself is pretty much directly below Dudley Point, if you were at the grassy area looking back to the CBD from the cliff tops. There are a couple of access tracks down (you’ll notice them quite easily if you’re looking for them).

Below are some example images at a few different tides. If you’re planning on walking around the cliff, it’s probably important to note that you’ll need a tide lower than 5m otherwise you’ll get cut off on the wrong side of the cliff with no access back up! (Or, an outgoing tide is even better as it eliminates the risk!). I’ve said before, we have a huge tidal swing so the tide can come in and cut you off much faster than in other parts of the country.

Sunrise (sun rises from the left of the image) at approx a 5.8m tide, Canon 11-24mm at 11mm f/13, ISO 200, 0.8 sec

This is an oldie, but I think it shows the lights of the city nicely! Canon 5D Mark III, 17-40mm (back in 2014, this shot!). I would estimate it’s around a 4.8m tide. It’s shot at 19mm, ISO 400, f/9, 20 sec

This shot is a little around to the left from the above two photos. The mangroves are just on the other side of that rock. Canon 5DSr, 11-24mm at 11mm. ISO 100, f13, 1/4 sec. Approx a 6.2m tide at sunrise.

This shot is at quite a high tide, around 7m. I just loved the colour contrast between the rocks and the water! Canon 5DSr, 11-24mm at 11mm, ISO 100, f/16, 0.8 sec - taken in the afternoon light

MAP POINT 2 - More mangroves!

These mangroves are a bit more grown up haha. The ones at point 1 are all very small, they’re almost like a type of bonsai mangrove! If anyone can shed any light on the species, I’d love to know more about them. At this second point, the mangroves are full grown trees. They’ve changed a bit over the last few years I’ve been shooting them, but they do still provide a great location for a mid-tide - that tide height around 4-4.5m I always seem to struggle a little with location inspiration!

The access area is basically near the playground that is opposite Lake Alexander. I usually park in one of those car parks near the toilet block/playground/BBQs/exercise equipment and walk around the beach. The mangroves are in the corner. There’s often people fishing there too.

I find nowadays that sunrise is more preferable, as it’s quieter and less chance of footprints! Sunset is doable too, but the sun sets behind the land behind you, so you’ll probably want a wet season/cloudy sky, if you’re aiming for colour.

Early morning, overcast light at one of my favourite mangroves! This is around a 4.5m tide, and a stitched file - around 9 images at 21mm. Captured with the 16-35mm, ISO 100, f/16, 2 sec. With a Lee graduated ND filter for the sky.

This used to be my favourite group of mangroves - I was so sad to visit in 2018 and find this lone mangrove on the left had been beheaded! It’s long gone now, but there are some other small mangroves sprouting in a similar area, so hopefully in the future I’ll head back there!
This is a sunrise, around a 4.5m tide. Canon 5DSr, 16-35mm at 21mm, ISO 100, f/18, 13 sec

This tree marks the end of this section of mangroves. I like it, and I loved the sky! I spotted the scene when I finished doing a small forest walk, walked across to look off the cliff and had to capture the sky! Canon 5DSr, 11-24mm at 14mm. Sunset, around a 4m tide. ISO 200, f/8, 1/20th - one of the very very few shots I handheld, rather than using a tripod.

Map Point 3 - some cool rocks!

There are two things I love about this spot. One are the awesome rocks at the high tide area of the beach (near to where you would enter the beach), and the other are the cliffs at the northern end.

The rocks really need a high, high tide. Think 7.5m. There used to be more of them, but the wet seasons gone by have thrown a heap of extra sand up on the beach and these rocks are now more covered.

The cliffs probably need a lower tide - maybe around 4-5m… You can then get closer and lower to try to emphasise their size. See a couple of examples below!

7.2m tide at sunset. Canon 5DSr, 11-24mm at 11mm. ISO 100, f13, 0.8 sec

This pano is actually on a higher tide, and I used the 24-105mm lens (at 70mm), to stitch multiple individual images together. It’s ISO 200, f/10, 1.6 sec. Captured at sunset, around a 6m tide.

Map Point 4 - Cliffs

There are actually some really cool cliffs all around East Point. There’s some great spots along East Point Road, before you actually enter the reserve. There’s some great ones around the rocksitters club, and then there are these ones between Dudley Point and the old metal lookout tower thing (see the first image!).

Mostly, I prefer these at sunset, looking out to the sunset sky. Again, mostly these are spots I would visit at a high tide - mostly to keep the images clean of footprints and people.

Canon 5DSr, 11-24mm at 17mm. ISO 100, f/16, 0.4 sec

Below Dudley Point, at East Point. One of the occasions where I got below the cliff tops, at a lower tide, to emphasise the light hitting the cliffs. Canon 5DSr, 11-24mm at 11mm, f/14, 0.5 sec

Approx 6.5m tide at sunset. Canon 5DSR, 11-24mm at 11mm, f/10, 2 sec

Map Point 5: Coffee Rock area

This unique looking rock is great for it’s texture and colour, but it’s also a really hard rock so some of it’s shapes and pools are so awesome to photograph!

You’ll spot this rock at the indicated point on the map, if you’re walking along the trail or the beach you’ll see it. The interesting features here are at the high tide line, but there’s actually quite a large shelf of this rock that is revealed on lower tides. You can walk out for quite a few hundred metres, and a lot of fishermen use the rock shelf to fish off of, at the lower tides.

A moody wet season sky, emphasised more by the super long exposure - I used a Lee Big stopper ND grad 10 stop for this image. 16-35mm lens at 17mm. ISO 100, f/14, 25 sec. This is a high tide - around 7m.

Another fairly high tide here, around 6.5m, captured at sunset. Canon 5DSr, 11-24mm at 11mm. ISO 100, f/13, 13 sec

A fading anvil cloud at sunset. Around a 6m tide, outgoing - which is great as it leaves water behind in these pools!

Canon 5DSr, 11-24mm at 11mm, ISO 100, f13, 1/4

Map Point 6 - the Darwin Rocksitters Club

The first image shows the actual location of the “rocksitters” club - the flagpole and plaque mark the spot! However, this whole area (100m left and right!), have a heap of interesting structure to photograph.

Afternoon light hits the cliffs, with the overcast backdrop. Canon 5DSr, 11-24mm at 11mm. ISO 100, f/16, 1/5, This is around a 6m tide.

Sunrise, at the rock area a little south of the Rocksitters Club (the next point south), which is a popular spot with fishermen - I’ve seen a few pulled out of the water here too! The location can get quite busy if the tides are right - especially at sunset. This is sunrise, which was so beautiful on this morning. A higher tide is needed to cover the muddy rocks up (and that also matches in to what the fisher-people want!), this is around 6.2m. ISO 200, f/9, 1/160th

Now this is shot in the other direction to the shot above! Basically, 100m north of the rocksitters point. an early morning shoot at around a 6m tide - a ten shot panorama, for me about the contrast again between the grey and pinky-red of the rocks. Canon 5DSr, 16-35mm at 35mm, and a 0.9 GND Lee filter. ISO 100, f/16, 0.4 sec.

I hope this summary of some of my favourite East Point locations helps you (whether you be local looking for more inspiration and shoot ideas, or a visitor unsure on where to go). Feel free to get in touch if you have any questions - I always like to help other photographers, if I can!