By Jessica Nguyen, Brian Pham & Lylyan Yenson
It’s that time of the year again…graduation! On top of actually graduating, seniors can also commemorate their final years of high school through photos that they can look back on. However, finding a nice place for senior photoshoots can be difficult but there should be no worries. Here are beautiful places in Orange County to take your photos!
CRYSTAL COVE
Crystal Cove, located in Laguna Beach, is a popular location to take photos at, in general, due to its beautiful background. On a bright and sunny day, the clear blue sky combined with the crystal blue water will make it a magnificent place to take photos.
Like typical beaches, Crystal Cove has beautiful waves and sandy beaches but also tidepools, hills, canyons and ridges that offer lots of different photo opportunities. Not to mention, Crystal Cove also has varying climates, allowing you to take photos on a bright, sunny day or a foggy, cool evening to fit the mood of your photoshoot; regardless, it’s beautiful either way.
Thousand Steps Beach
Thousand Steps Beach is also another popular beach in Laguna Beach. It’s called the thousand steps that people have to walk up and down from parking to the beach—just kidding, it’s only 230 steps, but it might feel like a thousand. Don’t let the steps deter you from this beautiful beach.
The steps lead you down to an amazing beach. It’s such a great place to take photos without any photobombers in the background because it’s considered a hidden gem to residents, making it quiet and secluded and allowing you to take your time there. You can also take photos on the stairs as well, adding a rustic prop to your photos.
Thousand Steps Beach is beautiful during any time of the year but going during golden hour is the best time. Although parking may be difficult in addition to the steps, they are small obstacles to an ideal photoshoot location.
Heisler Park
Heisler Park, also located in Laguna Beach, has a more diverse scenery offering not only luscious greenery, but a beach background. There are pathways that lead further down the beach from the park if you just want beach photos. This large oceanfront park offers everything from ocean views to artsy park benches.
However, you should be cautious of the narrow streets and limited parking space. It may get crowded with tourists and locals, but it is a big park with various, beautiful backgrounds.
The Noguchi Museum
You may have seen popular photos of a triangle rock and wondered where it came from. The Noguchi Museum is a place that many people haven’t heard of. Nestled in Costa Mesa, it is absolutely gorgeous and perfect for photos with a variety of features that make it different from a typical beach or park with rocks, fountains and streams.
It is a smaller photoshoot area that can get crowded at times but makes it a great place to stop by for great photos.
Anaheim Gardenwalk
If you’re looking for a change of scenery from beaches, the Anaheim Gardenwalk is a great mall to take photos at! There are several levels to the Gardenwalk filled with numerous, photoshootable places, ranging from art galleries to pop-up exhibits. During the night time, the Anaheim Gardenwalk has bright, colorful lights that contrast the dark night but during the daytime, there are plenty of paintings and murals that are great for photos.
On top of beautiful Instagrammable places, the Anaheim Gardenwalk also offers numerous food, drink, shopping and entertainment stores that make it great to eat and relax after a long photoshoot. If you’re looking for a closer place than the Anaheim Gardenwalk, Pacific City and Bella Terra in Huntington Beach are also great shopping destinations to take photos at.
Huntington Beach Pier
Speaking of Huntington Beach, the Huntington Beach Pier is an iconic place to take grad photos of to remember Orange County if you are moving away. As one of the longest piers on the West Coast, it represents the heart of Huntington Beach and numerous tourists and locals have taken photos here.
Looking into the sea or standing in the middle of the pier make great photos but you can also leave the pier and take photos at the beach or near the various stores along the pier.
Oso Creek Trail
Oso Creek Trail is located in Mission Viejo and offers a more natural and rustic look. This forest setting differs from the other beach locations as it trails through the park for over 5 miles from the Butterfly Garden to the Pavion Park.
This diverse trail separates into many different sections from hedge mazes to fairy trails. While it may take a bit of a walk, the setting and photos make up for it. It definitely stands out if you’re looking for something unique for grad photos.
