Top 7 Must-Visit Photo Spots in Vienna for Night Photography
Vienna is a city full of charm and elegance. It's a place where stunning architecture blends seamlessly with natural beauty. With so many picturesque locations, it's no wonder that Vienna is a photographer's paradise.
The city offers endless opportunities for capturing beautiful photos. In this article, I'll take you on a tour of the top 7 must-visit photo spots in Vienna, so you can capture the beauty of my home town and create memories that will last a lifetime.
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How to take night photos with iPhone
If you're unfamiliar with iPhone night photography, I've got you covered. Head to the dedicated page about how to take photos at night with iPhone.
So grab your iPhone and let's get started.
7 of the best Photos Spots in Vienna for Night Photography
The Prater
The Prater is a vast recreational area and amusement park in Leopoldstadt, Vienna's second district. You'll find large parks for hour-long strolls and the famous amusement park with the iconic Ferris wheel.
When it's not too cold to take a ride in spring and fall, and it gets dark early, the Prater is an excellent spot for taking night photos of spinning rides. It's a great place to improve your long-exposure skills with iPhone.
Long exposure of a fairground ride at the Prater, Vienna.
The above photo shows the amusement ride named Tagada. Riders sit in a spinning, round bowl. During the ride, pneumatic arms push the bowl and the riders up and down.
I've also published a few tips explaining how to photograph fairground rides at night with iPhone.
Narrow Streets in the first district
One of the best photo spots in Vienna is this (and other) narrow and sparsely illuminated streets in the first district. The best time to take photos here is late at night. During summer, that's after midnight. During the colder months, you can go there before midnight.
Narrow street in the city center of Vienna
I took the above photo with an iPhone 4 using the iOS stock camera app. I applied the vintage look with Adobe Lightroom Mobile. To learn why I use Lightroom Mobile, please visit my Adobe Lightroom Mobile Review.
St. Francis of Assisi Church
The St. Francis of Assisi Church in Vienna looks like a fairytale castle and is located right near the Danube in the second district at the Mexicoplatz. It's one of the newer churches in Vienna. It was built to honor the 50th anniversary of the reign of Emperor Franz Joseph I of Austria - the husband of Empress Elisabeth of Austria ("Sissi").
St. Francis of Assisi Church
I took the photo during the blue hour. I used a ProCamera App widget containing a blue hour calculator to determine the beginning and end of the blue hour.
It was taken using an iPhone XS with Slow Shutter Cam App.
Uniqa Tower
Uniqa is a major insurance company here in Austria. A few years ago, the company built its office tower right near the Danube called, you guessed it, the Uniqa Tower.
Uniqa Tower in Vienna
The tower is illuminated at night with ever-changing light scenes and is a great place to practice your night photography skills. Best photographed from the opposite side of the Danube canal (to get a beautiful reflection of the tower in the water)
I took the photo using Slow Shutter Cam App on an iPhone 7 Plus.
Film Casino
This one is a little secret among the best photo spots in Vienna. It's a rather old and vintage-style cinema in the fourth district of Vienna. It's challenging to get a good picture here. First, the street is relatively narrow here, and there's a crossing right before the cinema. The only good place to get a frontal shot of the facade is from a minor traffic island.
Vintage style photo of the Film Casino
To capture the entire faceade, you'll need a wide lens like the Moment Wide Lens I used for this photo or the new iPhone with the ultra-wide lens.
Taken with ProCamera App and iPhone XS.
Imperial Hofburg
The Hofburg is the best-known photo spot in Vienna. It was the residence of the Habsburg family and the Austrian Emperor from the 13th century until the end of World War I. It's a huge area with beautifully illuminated historical buildings.
Hofburg in Vienna
The above photos are from my shiny new iPhone 11 Pro using the stock iOS camera app and iOS 13 night mode.
Fountain at Schwarzenbergplatz
Schwarzenbergplatz is a well-known photo spot in Vienna. You'll find it in the third district. There, you'll find the Soviet War Memorial, built by the Soviets to commemorate the 18.000 Soviet soldiers who died during the liberation of Vienna at the end of World War II.
Huge fountain at Schwarzenbergplatz, Vienna
Right in front of the memorial is a massive fountain with changing lights. I took these photos with iPhone 11 Pro in night mode.
iPhone photo apps and accessories
To learn more about the iPhone photo apps and accessories I use, please refer to the regularly updated list of the best iPhone camera apps, my recommended iPhone photo editing apps, and my iPhone photo accessories.
For more tips of photo spots in Vienna, see my other blog posts about modern architecture photo spots in Vienna, daytime photo spots in Vienna, and photo spots I photographed during the lockdown.
To stay up to date and always catch every new or updated blog post, let's meet on Facebook or Twitter. I am looking forward to seeing you there.
