Whether you’re craving concrete or creeks, Metro Atlanta has countless spots just waiting for your shoot. Check out ten of our favorites (in no particular order) below:
It’s gorgeous. It’s overwhelmingly hipster. It’s worth the parking fee. Ponce City Market epitomizes Atlanta’s iconic past with its stunningly stylish future. The massive complex offers so many concrete corners, minimalist, modern scenes, and even a fun-filled, picture-perfect carnival up top. Think outside the instagram box by taking advantage of PCM’s long, lean hallways or its lesser explored nooks. If you need even more proof that this complex is the perfect space to unleash your creativity, consider the fact that Bentley Media Group recently relocated to Ponce. The old Sears, Roebuck & Company building was built to last, meaning every inch of it is ready-made for strong, timeless visuals.
You can’t come to Atlanta and not snap at least one photo at this iconic spot. Obviously, the views are stunning. No matter the weather, Atlanta’s looming lights offer up the perfect backdrop, and with the bridge situated a few stories above street level, you’re in a great spot to take full advantage of the wide cityscape behind you. The constant crowds here are just a testament to the quality of this location, but they are something to consider. Try to head over first thing in the morning to beat the crowds, and to score some halfway decent parking.
Professional Photo Resources is just what its name suggests, professional. Try out the camera of your dreams with a variety of lenses, lighting gear, and gimbals available for your shoot. Plus, once you’ve got that perfect photo, PPR can print it for you in-house on paper, canvas, or even metal. With rates starting at only $400 a day, go ahead and book your date at this full-service studio ready for any kind of shoot you’ve got scheduled.
Places, everyone. Studio Space Atlanta has sets galore, plus prop rental, an on-site studio manager, wardrobe room, built-in music playback and ample free parking. This one is for the pros (the space’s past clients include everyone from CNN to to MTV) who need a fully-prepped space ready for a whole production. Break out of your creative rut with an impressive jail set, let loose with a graffiti-covered indoor alleyway, or make your competitors green with envy with an absolutely massive green screen.
This incredible place not only screams dark, broody, romantic, and beautiful… but it includes pugs… cute ones, lounging all over the impressively expansive antique and art store leading into the pièce de résistance, the Maison Rouge room. A frequent wedding venue, the space can also be rented out just for photo shoots. Perfect for creatives looking for standout scenery.
This place is a hodgepodge of gorgeous architecture and collective of creative talent, which you’re sure to seep up as you snap some industrial yet somehow also bucolic shots. Goat Farm is actually a historic space that will soon grow even bigger. Originally opened in 1889 to house cotton gins, its namesake goats arrived in the 1970s when the entire complex was converted to gardens and more. Bear in mind that if you chose to take your pics here, it’s only respectful to avoid capturing resident artists’ work in the background, which shouldn’t be a problem considering all the nooks, crannies, and dying-to-be-your-backdrop brick walls yours for the picking.
Another spot seeped in local history, Historic Fourth Ward Park is an area Atlanta has absolutely transformed over the years. The Park was thoughtfully designed to incorporate green infrastructure at every corner, which shows through the natural yet composed water features and soft yet modern walls and staircases. Pro tip: get your photographer or videographer to capture your subject from across the water feature, or up on the stairs looking down. The potential for eye-catching angles is endless.
The Atlanta History Center’s website boasts a property full of “style and luxury,” but we’d add old school class and lush greenery to that list too. You might recognize the Center’s incredible Swan House from the last two Hunger Games movies, but the center’s Goizueta Gardens are a star all in their own right. Check out the cozy Wood Family Cabin or feast your eyes at Smith Family Farm. Tickets are required to access all the grounds as is a $500 photography permit, but your gorgeous shots or video is sure to be worth it.
They don’t call Atlanta the “city in a forest” for nothing, and no place better showcases the character of Atlanta alongside some of the most massive, beautiful trees you ever did see better than Grant Park. Simply take in some of the stunning historic homes surrounding this 319 acre park and not doubt you’ll feel inspired instantly. Some suggested shots include perching atop the beautiful old stone walls or walking in front of the park’s signature recently-refurbished water fountain.
Technically, Sweetwater Creek State Park is a little ways out of Atlanta City Limits, but you better believe that the crumbling ruins of a Civil War-era mill will provide you with some incredible scenery: not a skyscraper in sight, plenty of plants and native wildlife, and rambling trails, meadows, woods and more.
Feeling inspired but not sure where to start? Bentley Media Group offers full-scale photography, videography, and video production sure to showcase your next big story.