Photographing the Badlands National Park: Raw, Wild and Amazing

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It was so much fun photographing the Badlands National Park, South Dakota while camping. Just the name itself shares what to expect. And, as the name also implies, this amazing “bad” place demands respect. It’s shift from calm ruggedness to extreme, wild conditions happens quickly. These wild conditions serve up amazing photo opportunities. Additionally, it serves up some run and seek shelter fast moments too.

Read along and we’ll share great places within the Badlands to see and photograph. Plus, there are hiking trails and observation points, wildlife viewing and fossil viewing in the park too.

For starters, raw and rough terrain fills our views as far as the eye can see. From grasslands to craggy ridges, even the wildlife lives on the edge. Literally. Mountain goats, prairie dogs, elk and vultures dot the cliffs, terrain and skies.

Photographing the Badlands: Light, Locations, Park Access & Camera Gear

Finding Your Perspective

Photographing the Badlands offers photographers a huge deep dive into finding their unique perspective. Just go to Instagram and type #Badlands. Or, visit photographers websites who’s many workshops from this area fill their galleries with brilliant, rich compositions. The good news is that these share ideas of the possibilities and locations.

These possibilities are waiting for discovery. Then, because the conditions vary so much, what you find is truly unique for the moment you’re there.

How much time do you need in the Badlands? We started with three nights and extended one extra night once we were there. Even though we drove across the park multiple times, I found that the more I saw, the more I wanted to stay longer.

As weather conditions vary greatly, the changing atmosphere offers rich compositions.

The Light

In the Badlands, the light plays a huge role in how the terrain looks throughout the day. In the golden and blue hours, colors, textures, vividly emerge. As the sun reaches higher in the sky, textures and colors of the pale and lighter tones quickly flatten to nondescript pales. Plus, heavy shadows emerge in bright sunlight which forces working our compositions differently.

In a snapshot, I found the best images of color and light with early wake up calls and going back in the late afternoon. My goal was catch the light before, during and after the hour of sunrise and sunsets. The middle of the day? Nap time back at our camper! Then it was back for afternoon wildlife photography before hitting the sunset light.

Tip: With sunsets, I use TPE (The Photographers Ephemeris and SkyFire) as a sunset color and setting location gage. The other gage is simply watching the sky. Sunset times and sunset views vary greatly from turn to turn here. The taller cliffs in one spot hide the sun well before the actual setting time. Then, you drive around the curve and there’s the sun casting light across the lower caverns and grasslands.

Locations Across the Park: Access

The Badlands consists of two areas, the North Unit and the South Unit*. When you’re driving in the Badlands Wilderness Area (the North Unit), there’s one main road taking you to strategic overlooks. Plus there’s areas to pull over on the side of the road. It’s easy to get around and navigate.

The well maintained, paved Badlands Loop road meanders through sharp cliffs, rocks and is accessible from multiple park entrance points (see maps here).

There are four main entrance points: 1) the Northeast Entrance (I-90, Exit 131): 2) 21020 SD Hwy 240, Interior, SD 57750. 3) Pinnacles Entrance (I-90, Exit 110): 24240 Hwy 240, Wall, SD 57790. 4) Interior Entrance: 20640 SD Hwy 377, Interior, SD 57750. As we stayed south of the park in the KOA campground, I preferred to use the less traveled Hwy 36B (not one of the 4 official published) as it put me closer to the middle of the park.

*Note: The South or Stronghold Unit is more remote and on the land of the Pine Ridge Indian Reservation. To access areas of the South Unit, permits are required to cross private lands to access the park. There are also very few paved roads. With such easy access, vast and amazing views in the Badlands Wilderness Area (North Unit), I traversed the North Unit.

Locations Across the Park: Where to Photograph

Which area in the park is the best to photograph? Many! Seriously, the beauty of the Badlands is the diversity that catches your eye. The time of year, amount of daylight, the position of the sun serves as a good guide for where to start and end your day.

If you have few days, I suggest driving the park between the Northeast Entrance over to the West Pinnacles Entrance. The Badlands Visitor Center offers maps, exhibits, access to rangers and a bookstore.

Taking the time to explore the views, travel times makes the photography journey calmer and enjoyable. Seeing the swath of diversity, major scenic overlooks, small detours and trails, wildlife, the changing terrain and sky is a starting point for planning.

And, it’s a starting point for reacting. When the wicked weather rolls in, it’s pretty intense and beautiful. But, that intensity may require a fast exit to your car.

Sunrises:

My favorite sunrise area: The Fossil Exhibit trail area on both sides of the road is rich with texture and diverse terrain. On the parking lot side, there’s a hiking trail plus the rocky areas are easy to navigate to find unique vantage points. Across the road from the parking lot is where the sunrise bursts on the scene. The flatter terrain offers framing views for the morning light.

A crowd favorite: The Big Badlands Overlook is a few miles from the Northeast Entrance. This east area of the park offers spectacular views along with a few nearby hiking trails south of this overlook. This includes the short Door and Window trails. The roundtrip 1.5 mile advanced Notch (has a cool ladder climb) Trail and 10 miles Castle Trails offer good views too.

Our dogs travel with us and the park restricts dogs on trails but they are allowed on paved and gravel roads. See the section Bringing Others Along pet guidelines.

Early Mid-morning to Late Morning:

After shooting the sunrise and early golden-hour light, I typically headed left out of the parking lot towards Pinnacles. Remembering that it’s a journey, I stop where the light takes me. Photographing the Badlands many named overlooks on the map are all photo worthy.

But, I will offer that finding areas to hike down, out on the flats, or up provides beautiful vantage points as in the roadside stop above.

Midday to Mid Afternoon:

Each morning included an early wake-up call. I used the noon time to catch quick bite and nap before heading out to scout for late afternoon and sunrise shooting spots. As much as it’s tempting to stay out in the park all day, I give my eyes a quick rest and take a peak at the morning’s images.

Late Afternoon and Sunsets:

I typically have the sun or sunburst visible in my sunset images. However, when photographing the Badlands around sunset, I preferred capturing the lines and colors lit by the sun.

The storms also rolled in late in the afternoon. As I explored the areas at sunset, stops included big open marked and unmarked overlook sites between Homestead and Panorama Point Overlooks.

Camera Gear for Photographing the Badlands

Which lenses?

The ones you take with you on other trips! I’m a believer in the best lens is the one in your hand or in your camera bag. My go to focal lengths for the Badlands included my Nikon 14 – 24mm (super wide), 24-70mm (wide to mid-range) and 70- 200mm on my full frame Nikon 850 camera. If you have a cropped sensor, the equivalent is 10 – 18mm and 18 – 55mm rages. For wildlife, I used my cropped sensor Nikon D500 with the Nikon AF-S NIKKOR 300mm f/4E PF ED VR Lens and 1.4III teleconverter for the Prairie Dogs and birds.

With the extra wide focal lengths, I look for strong leading leading lines with a big background. Or, I’m looking for a strong anchor point up close with bold imagery in the backdrop.

I used my 24-70 for the majority of my images throughout the day and the 300mm for wildlife. The exception was the Big Horn Sheep, emphasis on ‘big.’ I used my 70-200mm to get the whole animal in the frame or for head shots. (see the gallery below)

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Other Camera and Safety Equipment:

Tripod. As the light shifts quickly at sunrise and sunset, bracketing our exposures (see my blog of: Exposure Bracking is Beautiful) in contrasty light serves up the need for our tripods. Tripod is also a must for low light photography so we can slow down the shutter and keep our ISO low.

Safety:

The terrain is rough, raw and wild. Solid hiking boots are highly suggested along with snake gators for safe stepping! If you can’t see where your feet are stepping, use caution. Rattlesnakes are present in the park and they are very camouflaged. The same is true if you’re placing your hands on rocks to assist with your climb or positioning for shooting.

Reminder too that the sun is intense and the air dry. Keep your skin protected with hats, sunscreen and drink a lot of water. If a power-shower emerges, the dry, cracked ground turns to heavy, sticky mud. The trudge through the sludge is a workout.

Where We Camped while Photographing the Badlands

We camped in the Badlands area in our Nucamp Tab 400 Bondock – pictured below. As the heat is extreme in the intense sun, we chose to stay in the nearby KOA campground near Interior, SD. This campground offered welcomed sun-breaking, tree covered camping spaces. This location also provides fast access to two entrance points into the National Park.

The history of the Badlands offers insights that just might influence how we see and capture this unique place. The Badlands earned the name from raw, rough terrain, extreme weather and minimal water. During the blistering days in August, temperatures topped 100 degrees. The Lakota people named this area “mako sica,” or “bad lands.” This badness of rocks, caverns and cliffs is quite easy to cross today compared to the first people that lived and survived here.

With the conveniences of cars and RVs, it is very easy to access the park. However, even on the most sunniest and calm of days, the badness is always looming in the distance.

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