Sin City
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Everything about Las Vegas spells extravagance. The entire experience is an over-the-top, in-your-face, hit-you-over-the-head, hedonistic ride – daring you to go back and say “I didn’t have a good time”. With world class themed resorts and casinos, top-notch restaurants, extravagant shows, sexy nightclubs and not to forget the shopping, the town is designed to have it’s hand in your wallet at all times.
With everything Vegas has to offer there is something for everyone to enjoy, whether you are 5 or 75 years old, which is a remarkable change from the city that once frowned upon and discouraged family vacations. Because traveling with kids translates to less time in the casinos, for adults to exhaust their savings and their kid’s college funds.
Given that this was the first time I was visiting Vegas with my wife and not for a weekend of gambling and debauchery (on a friend’s bachelor party of course), I decided to soak it all in. We stayed at Caesars Palace and saw a great Cirque du Soleil show on our first night – LOVE – based on the timeless music of The Beatles. Later that night, inspite of having been up since 5:00AM EST and having endured a 5 hour flight, we ventured out in the desert night to walk along the Strip. For the uninitiated the ‘Strip’ is what Las Vegas Boulevard is commonly referred to as. It’s the strip of road flanked by the neon-illuminated, stunning themed resorts and casinos that Las Vegas is famous for. Whether you are a professional photographer, an avid enthusiast or simply a tourist with a point-and-shoot camera, Las Vegas is an exhilarating place to take pictures.
My focus, in the blog, is going to be on what to shoot, where to shoot it from and how best to shoot it. So here we go.
What to shoot:
1. The Strip: Since I only planned to bust out my camera and tripod on two nights I restricted myself to shooting the themed resorts that line the Strip. Each resort in Vegas is structured around a central theme and the lavish decor and intricate details of these resorts present countless subjects waiting to be photographed. My aim was to capture the energy of the city in my pictures, from the bright lights to the throngs of people walking the streets. With more time I may have ventured inside the resorts themselves to capture some of the themes, but that’s going to have to wait for another trip.
Some of the popular themed resorts are
– Caesars Palace: Inspired by the architecture and art from the times of the Roman Empire, this luxury resort has lavish statues, bluffs, paintings, fountains and even a miniature replication of the Colosseum itself. Celine Dion, the signature performer at Caesars Palace performs at the Colosseum. This is also where we stayed during our trip.
The fountains that lead up to the grand entrance of Caesar’s Palace
– Paris Resort and Casino: With it’s replica of the Eiffel Tower and even a Las Vegas style rendition of the Arc de Triomphe, the Paris resort and casino is impossible to miss on the Strip. The Eiffel Tower also has a restaurant of the same name, much like its original (and much taller counterpart) in France. For a small fee you can go to the top of the tower, which provides some great views of the Strip. Sadly no tripods are permitted at the top and while you can always boost the ISO and take handheld shots, it’s just not the same without a tripod.
The Paris resort and casino has a replica of the Eiffel tower that stands out in Las Vegas’ skyline. The attention to detail is quite amazing and the replica is complete with a restaurant nestled in the tower. Tickets can be bought to go to the top of the tower
Another feature of the Paris resort and casino is the Arc de Triomphe replica. I took the picture on the right to include the sign that spells out Las Vegas Blvd
– New York New York: From one tier-1 city to another, this resort hits a lot closer to home :). The resort has a cool rendition of the New York City skyline as it’s facade (the rooms are actually in the various towers) and models of the Brooklyn Bridge and the Statue of Liberty on the outside. Inside the halls are designed to look like the streets of NYC (except much cleaner) and even named after them.
Also at New York New York is a cool roller coaster, which runs, for part, inside the resort. It can be seen in the picture of the ‘skyline’ below. As a recommendation – do not venture on to this ride after a night of drinking and binging.
A model of the Brooklyn Bridge outside New York New York and yes you can walk across it, just like the real bridge
The “NYC Skyline” of the New York New York resort and casino
Other popular themed resorts are The Venetian/The Palazzo, designed like the canal-veined streets of the city of Venice, the Mandalay Bay with its tropical beach theme and the Excalibur featuring it’s medieval theme. While fun to shoot during the day too, night is when the Strip truly comes to life.
2. The Attractions: There are numerous attractions on the Strip and some of the best ones are free. So while you may have to pay for a gondola ride at the Venetian or a ride to the top of the Eiffel Tower at Paris, the famous Bellagio fountains and the lesser popular Volcano show at the Mirage are free.
– The Bellagio Fountains: The famous, music-coordinated Bellagio Fountains, featured in many movies can be viewed while walking along the Strip. They start around 3pm in the afternoon and repeat at regular intervals till midnight (every 15-20) minutes. All you have to do is set up your camera on a tripod and click away. And if you miss a particular show or it’s too crowded to set up your tripod, wait for the next display. It should not be longer than a few minutes.
The Bellagio Fountains
– Volcano Show at the Mirage: Also while walking along the Strip the Volcano Show conducted by the Mirage can be seen every thirty minutes. A fiery display of flame torches and a simulated volcano spewing lava, with the resort in the backdrop makes for a pretty cool photograph. The only catch here is the show is every 30 minutes, so if you miss one it’s a 30 minute wait for the next display. But considering you can drink and smoke freely on the streets of Las Vegas, waiting a few minutes may not be the worst thing in the world.
The Volcano Show at the Mirage
Some of the paid attractions on the Strip which are worth checking out are the Shark Reef Aquarium at the Mandalay Bay, the sky ride at the Stratosphere, the roller coaster at New York New York and the gondola rides at the Venetian/Palazzo. Another free attraction worth a visit is the lion’s enclosure at the MGM Grand resort and casino.
This is just the tip of the iceberg when it comes to what you can shoot in Las Vegas. The interiors of the resorts are just as stunning as the exteriors, downtown Las Vegas comes with the Fremont Street experience and the old Las Vegas charm, and a day trip to either the Hoover Dam, Grand Canyon, Red Rocks Canyon or even Death Valley is a great option to shoot the desert outdoors.
How to shoot: I have two words for anyone looking to capture high impact pictures of Las Vegas – long exposure. Capturing light trails, people in motion and the bright lights of Vegas add to the drama of your pictures and showcase Las Vegas for what it is – a city teeming with boundless energy.
All these elements need a long(ish) exposure and hence a tripod. Make sure you carry a tripod with you, even if it is a small travel tripod that will fit in your carry-on luggage. A remote shutter release while preferred is not a must. Make sure you use the self-timer, to delay tripping the shutter if you don’t have a remote release. This will prevent blurry pictures.
I tried to incorporate a lot of light-trails in my shots of the Strip to add a sense of dynamism and motion to my pictures.
Cars drive past the New York New York Casino
Planet Hollywood and the Eiffel Tower of Paris resort and casino on the Strip
The Flamingo resort and casino towards the northern end of Las Vegas Blvd
Another challenge when taking pictures of the Strip is correct exposure. The neon lights of the Strip are way brighter than the rest of the scene, presenting a high dynamic range you have to account for when setting the exposure. Using a tripod and an ISO of 200 (100 is also fine) I took 2 exposures for each image, one correctly exposed for the highlights and the other for the scene in general.
An exposure of 1/2 second or even 1/4 second was often enough to expose correctly for the highlights, whereas an exposure of 1-2 seconds captured the rest of the scene accurately, including the light-trails. I then combined the two exposure using the Lightroom ENFUSE Plugin in Adobe Lightroom.
Other HDR software like Promatix or Layer-Masks in Photoshop may also be used. I personally love the natural effect and ease of ENFUSE.
The image above is a combination of two images, one exposed correctly for the highlights and the second for the reflection on the water, combined in Lightroom using the ENFUSE plugin
Two exposures were combined to obtain the above image of the Mirage
Throw some people and a little flash into the mix – With the sheer number of people on the street at any time it’s hard to capture an image without any people in it (not impossible just hard). So the alternative? Use people as seasoning 🙂 As usual I turned to my wife Dipali to be the model in my ‘people pictures’
Dipali outside the Mirage (no flash in this one just a wide aperture of 2.8)
With the Eiffel tower, the moon and some other distracting elements (ahem) taking center stage in this picture, I completely missed the people riding the escalators (visible in the bottom right of the frame) till post-processing
Dipali outside the Bellagio (a little fill flash thrown in)
Where to shoot from: When shooting any location that’s been shot a million times it’s always tricky to try and capture it just a little differently. I am big on seeking out good vantage points to get different perspectives. Luckily the Strip is full of vantage points, you just have to be prepared to walk from one end to the other. The numerous pedestrian bridges linking various resorts on the Strip double up as great spots to set up your tripod and get some shots. Late at night, when pedestrian traffic is less, is a great time to venture out with your camera and tripod. The lights stay on till the sun rises and attractions like the Bellagio Fountains run up to midnight so there is ample time to get shots, well after sundown.
The MGM Grand and the Harley Davidson Cafe shot from the section of the pedestrian bridge outside the Cosmopolitan
The Flamingo and Paris Resorts from the entrance ramp leading into the Caesar’s Palace
Caesars Palace and the Strip from the pedestrian at the Bellagio
Remember – the best view may often be from the Strip itself from across the road. You may have to elbow your way to secure your tripod amidst the sea of people but don’t be bashful 🙂
Shot of Harrah’s from across the street
In short, you never know when a picture is going to present itself while you are walking. So keep your tripod and camera handy at all times, make sure you have fully charged (or spare) batteries and be prepared to set-up your shot quickly. Experiment with long/multiple exposures, incorporate people and other elements like light trails in your shot and most importantly have fun doing it.
I hope you enjoy this post and I look forward to hearing from you.
Thanks
-S
If you would like to purchase any of my images you can do so at – Purchase
Shaunak Thakkar Photography 