What are the best photo spots in the Sahara?

The most photographed and most photogenic dunes in Morocco are Erg Chebbi, the towering sea of orange sand near Merzouga in the east, and the great photo moment there is sunrise or sunset on the high crests. In the low, raking light at the edges of the day, the sand turns deep gold and apricot, every ripple throws a long shadow, and the dunes become sculptural waves. Climb a tall dune behind your camp before dawn — it is hard work in soft sand, but cresting it as the sun breaks over the emptiness toward Algeria is the shot people travel for. Midday, by contrast, flattens everything into harsh white glare, so the magic genuinely is at golden hour.

The classic Sahara composition is the camel caravan, and it is worth setting up for deliberately. A line of camels with their robed guide, silhouetted as they crest a dune ridge against a coloured sky, is the iconic image — position yourself low and to the side so the caravan reads as a clean line along the dune's edge. Footprints are your enemy here: shoot toward untracked sand, and get there before the crowds churn up the slopes. The riders' blue and earth-toned robes against the orange sand do half the work for you.

At night the Sahara offers something few places can: a sky absolutely crammed with stars, far from any light pollution. Your camp lit warmly at blue hour, with the first stars appearing above the tents, makes a gorgeous shot; later, a long exposure of the Milky Way arcing over the dunes is achievable with a tripod and a clear, moonless night. And there is a lesser-known spot worth knowing: the seasonal lake Dayet Srji on the edge of Merzouga, which after rain fills enough to mirror the dunes and even draws flamingos — when it has water, the reflections are extraordinary.

My honest guidance: plan your photography around sunrise and sunset, because in between the desert light is unforgiving; that means staying overnight at a camp, not doing a rushed day trip. Bring more battery and card capacity than you think, plus something to keep fine sand out of your gear — it gets everywhere. If you want the truly remote, untracked dunes for pristine compositions, the deeper Erg Chigaga near M'hamid is harder to reach but far less trodden than Erg Chebbi. Whether the seasonal lake has water depends entirely on recent rain, so treat that as a bonus, not a guarantee, and confirm current conditions before you build a shoot around it.