Most scenic places in Iowa (Iowa City, Clinton: condos, university, farm)

[GeoMapster]

Back here again.. I forgot to mention if you are interested to take pictures in State Parks. You may try Pike Peak State Park 5 miles south of McGregor on County X56 and Backbone State Park 4 miles south of Strawberry Point in northwest corner of Delaware County. These parks are very stunning to sightseeing. Be sure to bring camera!

Any questions and I will be happy to answer.

Have a great day!

Kevin

[Minnehahapolitan]

I haven't read all this, so forgive me if I repeated something. Lynn County may have been overlooked. The area around Mount Vernon is the highest area for miles around. Nice farms along the Mt. Vernon Road??? between there and Ia. City. Cornell College is adorable. It worked for Grant Wood.

[summer grace]

Originally Posted by dubuqueaskme

Northeast Iowa (to most people) is considered photographers paradise. Especially sites along or within five miles of the mississippi. Highway 52, so far, is the BEST spot for photography. It is so beautiful. You get one-of-a-kind valley views, and you can see over to Galena and even Savanna in some spots. The area around Decorah is also very beautiful. Travel a few miles NORTH, SOUTH, or EAST of Dubuque and........ wow is it pretty. I have thought about becoming a photographer myself. Even the city of Dubuque and how it is such a beautiful town on the banks of the Mississippi is a great spot. There is also a road off Highway 61, 6 miles north of Maquoketa in Jackson County that is considered one of Iowa's scenic roads, and is especially pretty in fall and summer, and with a coat of snow....Go too far west....... and you'll find REDUNDANCE as quick as Christmas. I'd also consider the town of Bellevue. Located on Highway 52, 20-30 miles S of Dubuque, and 30 M N of Clinton.

hope this helped...

Yes, NE Iowa is lovely. It is my favorite part of living here, the loveliness. I know Dubuque and the area around it would be great to photograph, and Decorah!!! That is very worth photographing if you like beautiful Midwestern scenery. Also Lansing, and Guttenberg, right on the Mississisippi. Guttenberg is marvelous where you drive by on 52, and see over the bluffs to the Mississispi, and it takes your breathe away in autumn, but I don't how easy that would be to photograph, unless there's an overlook somewhere.

[Nicnatros]

Does anyone have any good places near Des Moines? Right now on my photoblog website I'm doing a lot of party and nightlife shots. I want to get a good mix of nature stuff too. If you want to see what I have so far in the couple months I've been working on it, http://www.epicstatus.com is the web address.

[GeoMapster]

Hi Nicnatros,

Thank for sharing your website that you are currently working on it... Pretty cool!

About the great places in speaking of nature, there are two State Parks in Polk County especially near Des Moines according to DNR (Department of Natural Resources). These are Walnut Woods State Park and Big Creek State Park. Here are these links to each State Parks info.

Walnut Woods State Park --> http://www.iowadnr.com/parks/state_p...nut_woods.html

Big Creek State Park -->
http://www.iowadnr.com/parks/state_p...big_creek.html

Hope this helps you and let me know if there is anything. If yes, feel free to reply here. Have a great day! Smiles

Kevin

[DSMGuy]

Ledges State Park near Boone is not far from DSM and is the closest thing we have in Central Iowa to NE Iowa (Decorah area).

[Nicnatros]

GeoMapster: Thanks! I'm more or less a beginning amatuer. I hope to get better as time goes on. I really get inspired by seeing pro pics on the internet, it gives me inspiration to keep trying. I believe 1/2 of photography is being at the right spot at the right instant, the other half is shared by proper equipment, setup, and correct settings. Maybe when I win the lottery I can master the first 1/2 and be anywhere at anytime. Thanks for the links, I'll have to check those two out. I've never heard of Walnut woods and the DNR site sounds like it's no more than a 15 minute drive from home. It couldn't be any closer.

DSMGuy: A friend of mine also suggested Ledges, he said it's real scenic. I think we're planning to go later this summer. Thanks for the suggestion.

[Ben Around]

Nic--It's a bit of a jaunt for you, but far SE Iowa has some beautiful places to shoot. I'm thinking specifically of Keosauqua, Bentonsport and Bonaparte. Also, check out the river towns from Dubuque to Keokuk. They are older than the rest of Iowa's towns so have interesting old architecture. Also, they are all located on bluffs along the river, so some beautiful vistas.

Happy shooting!

[Nicnatros]

Thanks, we'll have to take some weekend road trips this summer. My wife has family in Dubuque that we'll be visiting in the next few months. I think I'm now more motivated to go. I'll have to make some wrong turns and detours on the way.

[patmc]

Are you looking for only natural scenes?

They're voting for a 7 Wonders of Iowa list over on www.HeyIowa.com