Gangbyeon Station Techno Mart
Seoul is a fascinating city to see. However, most rarely get a good look of the vastness. As part of an ongoing series of blog posts. I am documenting all of the great locations to photograph a good cityscape of Seoul. In these posts, there should be enough information to know what to expect and if it is worth the journey.
Seoul is a fascinating city to see. However, most rarely get a good look of the vastness. As part of an ongoing series of blog posts. I am documenting all of the great locations to photograph a good cityscape of Seoul. In these posts, there should be enough information to know what to expect and if it is worth the journey.
On the 9th floor of the Techno Mart is a large outdoor terrace that is accessible to the public. From this point, there is a great view of both Lotte Tower and the Peace Bridge. I really appreciate that this is an area that is open to the public, free, and has a great view. No sneaking required.
The subway bridge that spans the Han acts as a good leading line. There is a higher platform on the left side of the terrace. While it does give a slightly better view, there is safety wire all around that is quite high. Towards the middle is a shorter platform that provides the easiest and safest view. From the middle platform, I found that the relationship between the tower and bridge to be less than ideal. In search of a better composition, I found that putting my camera on the ledge under the railing towards the right side of the area was an improvement. Don't do this unless you have a very stable tabletop tripod and a firm grip. Note that there are bright lights lower on the building and they can cause lens flare.
The area closes at 9pm which might be a little early if you go in the summer.
I would recommend lenses between 16mm and 85mm. 16mm is wide enough to get a lot of the freeway below in a photo with the tower while 50 or 85mm nicely frames the tower with the bridge.
Lotte Tower - Seoul Photo Location
Seoul is a fascinating city to see. However, most rarely get a good look of the vastness. As part of an ongoing series of blog posts. I am documenting all of the great locations to photograph a good cityscape of Seoul. In these posts, there should be enough information to know what to expect and if it is worth the journey.
Seoul is a fascinating city to see. However, most rarely get a good look of the vastness. As part of an ongoing series of blog posts. I am documenting all of the great locations to photograph a good cityscape of Seoul. In these posts, there should be enough information to know what to expect and if it is worth the journey.
Lotte Tower in Jamsil shouldn't be written off just because it is a busy tourist attraction. On a clear day, the tower gives you a panoramic view of the city in every direction. There are three floors and enough space to find an area of the windows to shoot from yourself. Because you are shooting out of the windows of a busy attraction, bring something to wipe the windows and well as a jacket to cover your camera. Cleaning the handprints and blocking stray light and reflections will give the best chance of a clean image.
I recommend going on a weekday. While there are normally long lines on Saturday and Sunday, there were only a few people there on the weekday I went. Keep in mind that it is 28,000 won per person to go to the top.
I would recommend focal lengths above 24mm. There are a lot of opportunity to be creative here. Bring something to cover the window around your lens when you shoot to cut out reflections. As a side note, large lenses are not allowed. I saw a 70-200 at the top but my own 100-400 was refused.