Best Locations To Photograph The Petronas Towers In Kuala Lumpur
Cityscape Photography In Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia
Kuala Lumpur is a modern and exciting Asian city. It’s also home to a stunning skyline that is perfect for cityscape photography, topped off by the iconic Petronas Towers. I wanted to share my favourite locations and viewpoints from which to photograph this stunning skyline having had plenty of experience there myself over the past two years.
Kuala Lumpur Photography Location One - Top Of The KL Tower
The KL Tower is very close to the centre of Kuala Lumpur and is a paid entry location but isn’t expensive at about $30 AUD which also gives you access to the Skydeck. The Skydeck will give you access to the very top of the building from which you can make your images of the Kuala Lumpur skyline. As you can see from my image above, the Petronas Towers are visible from a side-on perspective which I quite liked as they really stand out from the rest of the Kuala Lumpur skyline. Stay up here for sunset and into the blue hour to watch the city lights come on - it’s beautiful! A word of warning, if a storm passes through you will be asked to leave the Skydeck as it is totally exposed to the elements. This is purely for safety so it makes sense but it is worth checking the forecast to avoid wasting a trip up there when a thunderstorm is in the area!
Kuala Lumpur Photography Location Two - KLCC Park
For location number two we’re getting into the very heart of the city now. KLCC Park is behind the KLCC shopping mall which is also where you’ll go to take the lift to the top of the Petronas Towers if that is on your itinerary. In the park you’ll have a chance to walk around and enjoy some greenery which is a welcome break from the bustling city of Kuala Lumpur. At the far end of the park - when looking at the Petronas Towers - you’ll find a series of manmade waterfalls which was the location I chose to get this shot. Timing is everything here because up until sunset the waterfalls were switched off which meant I was able to get this beautiful reflection of the Petronas Towers with those sunset colours forming a key part of the image.
When I revisit this location I think I’ll stay longer so that I can time blend the sunset colours with the city lights as they come on.
Kuala Lumpur Photography Location Three - Traders Hotel Sky Bar
For the third and final location I have selected a spot recently made popular by Elia Locardi which is a bar at the top of the Traders Hotel. I have shot here a few times on my visits to KL with no issue but it is definitely worth checking with the bar staff that it’s OK to photograph from here if you do visit. I had dinner and a couple of drinks on this occasion so there was no issue with the exception that no tripods are allowed. This just means I needed to get creative with a tripod-less setup e.g. I used my lens hood as a sort of basket for my camera.
Once you have negotiated permission and got your camera setup you’ll be treated to my favourite view of the KL skyline! The sun setting behind the Petronas Towers coupled with the city lights coming on is an awesome sight - I can highly recommend it! As you can see from my image, I also have captured the KL Park light show taking place as well. To achieve this, from a technical perspective, you’ll need to take a shot for the sunset and then a second shot a bit later (about 5-10 minutes) to capture the city lights and the light show. In Photoshop it’s a fairly simple task to blend the two images together to achieve what is hopefully a fantastic result and an image you’re proud of. Good Luck!
Three locations, all amazing for different reasons and each with their own challenges from a photography perspective. If you’re visiting Kuala Lumpur I hope this article will help you to take your own images of this beautiful city. Good luck and do let me know if you have any questions about these locations. Thanks for reading.
