Oregon Coast

Bandon beach

While the southern Oregon coast is home to many beautiful sea stack-laden beaches, little compares to the variety found in Bandon Beach. The sheer number of monoliths and formations here is stunning. Photographers are spoiled for choice among the endless compositional variety. Like most beaches, the real beauty reveals itself during low tide when more of the rocks are exposed, including their colorful base.

There are two primary entrances to Bandon Beach: Coquille Point on Kroenberg County Park and further south at Face Rock State Scenic Viewpoint. I found the stacks at the latter to be closer and more diverse but there are so many photographic possibilities on this beach that one can’t go wrong with either.

Cape perpetua

Situated west of Eugene, Cape Perpetua is a coastal headland well known for its amazing sitka spruce-dominated old-growth forests, which I document in this guide. However, the coast is incredible as well. Instead of the sea stack-dominated beaches that are profiled in many of the locations in this guide, the beach here is rich with many diverse, unique features. One feature, named “Thor’s Well,” swells with water as the waves flow toward land and it appears to expel that water into the recesses of the earth through a deep cavity. Another feature, named the Sprouting Horn at Cook's Chasm is similarly driven by waves, shooting water into the air as a fountain. A number of narrow ravines flank the area, funneling incoming waves and churning it around before expelling it back out to sea.

seal rock

Seal Rock Recreation Site is located in the heart of the central Oregon coast and home to abundant landscape and wildlife beauty. The most iconic landmark is the massive sea stack, Elephant Rock, a monolith at the north end of the beach that juts out of the sand in imposing fashion. Further south, a smaller wall of sea stacks provides a great photo backdrop due to their multicolored appearance and repeating patterns. The beach is especially magical during low tide when smaller rocks appear and multicolored tidepools reveal pockets teeming with marine life.

Cannon beach

Without question the most famous and visited of all of Oregon’s beaches is Cannon Beach. Owing to its relative proximity to Portland the beach and its quaint coastal towns of Cannon Beach and Seaside, this section of the northern Oregon coast is packed with tourists. It’s also home to the enormous Haystack Rock, an icon of state’s beach system. This 235-foot (72-meter) high sea stack is home to bird colonies and during low tide, visitors can explore the numerous tide pools at its base. These tide pools teem with colorful and diverse sea life, including starfish, barnacles, and sea anemones.

From a photography perspective, Haystack Rock is so large that it’s actually quite difficult to obtain a compelling photograph unless taken from far away. Just south of the monolith are a few distant sea stacks called “The Needles” (pictured here), which I feel are much more photogenic. Smaller and more vertical, these rock formations look like fingers rising from the ocean floor and are well positioned during sunset.

Cape kiwanda

Along with Cannon Beach, Cape Kiwanda is one of the more popular spots for vacationers from around the state. The beach is a bit of a microcosm of the Oregon coast. It has an expansive stretch of sandy shoreline, sea stacks, and large cliffs. There’s something for everyone but for photographers, the best section is in the north around the elevated cliffs. Here, the rocky coast provides many interesting compositions as the waves ebb and flow, moving water around, over, and in between the eroded rocks.

Washington coast