Quick Guide To Amed Bali & My Top Locations For Photography
Amed Bali: a paradise for landscape and nature photography that intrigued me for over a year.
The promise of unspoiled black-sandy beaches, a scuba divers paradise and the Mount Agung seemingly disappearing in the ocean sounded like a trip I had to take!
Whenever I travel I try to include as many places worth seeing as possible along to way. My trip to Amed was no exception. If you are like me and want to make the most out of a road trip and tick off those photography worthy spots – keep reading on.
My Top Landscape Photography Spots Near Amed, East Bali
Tirta Gangga Water Palace, Karangasem
As a former royal palace, it features a wonderful green garden, fountains and an array of carvings depicting mystical creatures. The place is a mix of Chinese and Balinese culture and offers some fantastic photography opportunities – if you can beat the crowds!
The large pond right near the entrance with its golden koi fish is the most popular spot for everybody visiting. There are plates in the pond on which you can wander through it, as well as feeding the fish. Once the fish come close to you, you can snap some nice pictures.
In order to actually enjoy the place, I’d suggest come early morning as soon as they open. We visited Lempuyang temple first and arrived at maybe 10 am – too late already!
Pura Lempuyang Temple
Located on the slopes of Mount Lempuyang, this place is often referred to as the ‘Gates of Heaven’. The main photography spot that everybody is lining up here for, is between the gates, where you got the view of Mt. Agung.
A man and his mirror changed this place like no other on Bali. What seems to be a fountain or small pond is, in reality, nothing more than a small mirror, cleverly placed in front of a camera.
Despite the illusion, the area is a paradise for taking photos of Balinese architecture, offerings and it’s magical surroundings.
Lempuyang is Bali’s mother temple and therefore the holiest of them all. The way up is steep and the whole area is bigger than one might expect. When I was there in 2018, there was a big ceremony happening. Hundreds of Balinese flooded to the place. All of them were dressed in white, women carried massive offerings on their hat and the temple was gloriously decorated.
So on one side it was amazing to see, on the other hand I couldn’t really explore the grandeur of the temple area.
For an alternative spot to take some great snaps, head down through the Gates. The views are as good and you certainly don’t have to line up.
Definitely include it on your trip to Bali, just make sure to be there early on!
For more nature and landscape photography of mine – have a look here for some recent trips I covered.
Sunset Photography – Sunset Point in Amed, East Bali
Amed’s rugged coast line changes in altitude and makes it the perfect scenery for some great landscape photography. Only a 10min drive from Amed beach, you can find yourself high on top at Sunset Point. A low-key local bar, serving basic food and cheap drinks – views are priceless.
Sunset Point Amed – Amazing Views of Jemeluk Bay 
Jemeluk Bay at sunset – View from Sunset Point Amed
The views of Jemeluk bay and Mt Agung are incredible. The approaching sunset made for some nice layer landscape photos.
As it’s Bali, changes are high you will experience a fantastic sunset – similar to this one.
Sunrise Photography – Amed Beach
As you already drove to a laidback beach town, I’d recommend staying in a place with ocean view. This step will also make it easier to get up in the morning and see the sunrise on the beach. Jumping out of bed and literally watching the sunrise was never easier!
Tip: If sunrise is supposed to happen at 6.30 am, make sure to be up an hour earlier!
For us, that meant getting up at 5.30 am. I explored a few different angles on Amed Beach, changing the view of Mount Agung. For me, the best spot for capturing Agung volcano is right near Classic Beach Villa. The sky was changing by the second and literally reminding me of a rainbow.
The fishermen returned with their catch, just in time when local woman seeking them to buy a bag off of them.
It was a spectacle, to the right you got that rainbow turning into an orange sunrise. Whereas to the left you had candy-floss clouds, looking like they’ve been painted in the sky. Mount Agung took on shape, as well as a pinkish hue.
Where To Have A Drink in Amed
Right on Amed beach is a place called Reggae Bar. Its a pretty relaxed joint (the name says it all), the food is decent, a mix of Indonesian and Western food. The atmosphere was pretty good, with lots of people relaxing on the sun chairs.
Where To Stay in Amed
Basic – Classic Beach Villa
Upscale – Aquaterrace
My Top Underwater Photography Spots For Amed, East Bali
One of the main reasons I wanted to head to Amed was to go diving. One of Bali’s most renowned dive sites and competitive prices sounded intriguing.
Indeed I have rarely seen a coral reef that was so healthy and the variety of fish was outstanding. With a visibility of 20 metres and a temperature of 28 ° degrees it was underwater photography heaven!
You’ve got a couple of great dive sites near and in Amed – two of them being a shipwreck The WWII shipwreck in Tulamben is apparently very worth seeing, sadly it was closed during Covid though.
The most photographic dive site worth mentioning is called Pyramid. It’s an artificial reef made up of three-metre high, hollow concrete pyramids. In between, we spotted a green moray, huge pufferfish, various scorpionfish and a blue octopus.
The second dive site and mayor photography spot is called Jemeluk. Right in front of Jemeluk beach, you got a sandy bottom which leads to a 45-metre wall. During this dive, we have encountered massive fan corals shimmering in pink. Straight out of a fairytale!
Also, ask your dive instructor to show you the motorbike – so much fun to have a ride!
Both dive sites are shore dives and can easily be done in the morning. We chose Born To Dive and paid 800K IDR of both dives.
Candidasa
On the way back to Canggu, we though, why not take the scenic route? So we headed towards Candidasa and passed countless rural villages and the most stunning coastline. During the whole drive, we could see Lombok in the distance.
If you leave Amed early enough you can easily squeeze a visit of Virgin Beach in. Both are stunning, white-sandy beaches featuring turquoise water – another great opportunity for some beach photography.
Another interesting East Bali photography spot is the Lotus Lagoon. This local landmark features 1000’s of magenta and fuchsia-coloured lotuses and makes a really unique photo-backdrop. And, it’s free to visit!
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