Photographing Pink Lake (Loch Iel) Dimboola

About Pink Lake

Pink Lake, historically known as Loch Iel, is a small salt lake beside the Western Highway approximately 6-7 kilometres west of Dimboola in Victoria's Wimmera region.

Despite its modest size, Pink Lake is one of western Victoria's most unusual and accessible landscape-photography locations.

The lake is famous for the pink colour that can develop in its highly saline environment. Microscopic salt-tolerant algae produce pigments that contribute to the lake's distinctive colour.

The intensity of the colour is highly variable.

Depending on rainfall, water level, temperature, cloud and seasonal conditions, the lake may appear:

• Bright pink.
• Salmon pink.
• Pale pink.
• Almost white.
• Or a mixture of pink, white and reflective water.

The strongest colour often develops after rain has replenished the lake and subsequent warmer conditions encourage biological activity.

During prolonged hot and dry conditions, the water can disappear and the lake may become predominantly white.

This variability is part of the photographic attraction.

A visit should therefore not be planned around the assumption that the lake will necessarily be vivid pink.

Even when the colour is subdued, the combination of salt, water, vegetation, Yellow Gums, Salt Paperbarks and the open Wimmera landscape provides worthwhile photographic subjects.

Pink Lake also has an interesting industrial history.

Salt was commercially harvested from the lake for many years, and remnants associated with the former salt-mining operation can still be seen around the lake.

The lake is now protected within Loch Iel (Pink Lake) Lake Reserve.

Viewpoints

Eastern Lookout / Highway Rest Area

The principal viewpoint is on the eastern side of Pink Lake, immediately beside the Western Highway.

The parking area occupies slightly higher ground and provides a broad view across the lake.

This should be the first photographic position on any visit.

Before walking down towards the lake, use the lookout to assess:

• Current water level.
• Strength and distribution of the pink colour.
• Reflections.
• Cloud conditions.
• Wind.
• Potential foregrounds.

Best subjects: wide establishing photographs, the complete lake, changing colour, reflections, vegetation around the lake and large Wimmera skies.

Suggested lenses: wide-angle and standard zoom.

Lake Foreshore

Steps descend from the rest area towards the lake foreshore.

Moving closer to the lake completely changes the photographic possibilities.

Instead of simply recording a pink lake from above, concentrate on the relationship between:

• Salt.
• Water.
• Vegetation.
• Reflections.
• The distant shoreline.

Lower camera positions can make relatively small salt formations and plants much more important within the composition.

Suggested lenses: wide-angle, standard zoom and short telephoto.

Salt and Water Boundary

One of the most productive photographic areas can be the irregular boundary between dry salt and shallow water.

Look for:

• Curves in the shoreline.
• Small pools.
• Pink and white colour transitions.
• Crystalline salt.
• Reflected clouds.
• Small areas of vegetation.

These compositions often work particularly well with a standard zoom or telephoto lens.

Vegetation and Lake

Yellow Gums, Salt Paperbarks and salt-tolerant plants around the lake provide useful foreground and framing opportunities.

Rather than photographing only uninterrupted pink water, try including vegetation to establish that the lake is part of a broader Wimmera environment.

A tree trunk or overhanging branch can also provide depth to an otherwise very flat landscape.

Telephoto Viewpoint

Pink Lake should not be regarded purely as a wide-angle location.

From the elevated eastern side, a telephoto lens can isolate small areas of the lake and remove distracting surroundings.

Look for:

• Pink colour gradients.
• Salt patterns.
• Birds.
• Reflections.
• Isolated trees.
• Water and salt layers.

Telephoto compression can produce more abstract images in which it is difficult to judge the scale of the landscape.

Former Salt-Harvesting Relics

Rusting remnants of the lake's former commercial salt-harvesting operations remain around the reserve.

Where these can be viewed from permitted visitor areas, they provide an interesting contrast between the natural salt lake and its industrial history.

They are particularly suitable for tighter compositions combining rust, salt, water and vegetation.

How I photographed the Pink Lakes

What I took - what was in my kit

I took my LowePro Backpack loaded with Canon 5DSR body, Canon 16-35mm zoom, Manfrotto 190 Tripod, polarising filter and of course a range of lens wipes, spare batteries, sunscreen and bug repellant. In this case I also took the DJI Mavic Pro 2.

Pink Lake does not require specialist photographic equipment, but carrying several focal lengths makes it possible to move beyond the obvious wide photograph of the lake.

Useful equipment includes:

• Wide-angle lens - e.g. 16-35mm for broad landscapes, foreground salt and dramatic skies.
• Standard zoom - e.g. 24-70mm for general landscape photography and more controlled compositions.
• Telephoto lens - e.g. 70-200mm for colour patterns, distant vegetation, birdlife and abstract landscapes.
• Tripod for low-light photography, panoramas, exposure bracketing and precise compositions.
• Circular polarising filter, used carefully because removing reflections may not always improve the photograph.
• Graduated neutral-density filter where the sky is considerably brighter than the lake.
• Macro lens if salt crystals and small salt-tolerant plants are important subjects.
• Long telephoto / wildlife lens if bird photography is a priority.

Techniques

Using Foreground, Middle Ground and Background

Pink Lake can appear very flat when photographed simply as a band of pink water beneath the sky.

Look for salt, vegetation or a shoreline feature close to the camera, use the lake as the middle ground and retain the distant shore and sky as the background.

This creates depth and gives the viewer a stronger sense of being at the lake rather than simply looking at a coloured surface.

See: Photography Techniques

Polarisation

A circular polarising filter can reduce glare from the water and may increase apparent colour saturation.

However, reflected sky and clouds can also be important parts of the composition.

Rotate the polariser while looking through the viewfinder and choose the amount of polarisation that best suits the particular photograph rather than automatically removing every reflection.

See: Photography Techniques

Exposure Bracketing

When the lake is relatively dark but the sky is bright, exposure bracketing can preserve detail in both.

Make several photographs at different exposures without moving the camera and combine them later if the brightness range exceeds what can comfortably be recorded in one frame.

See: Photography Techniques

Panoramas

The broad, relatively flat landscape is well suited to panoramic photography.

A panorama made with a standard or short telephoto lens can retain substantially more detail than simply cropping an ultra-wide photograph.

Level the tripod carefully and overlap adjacent frames sufficiently for reliable stitching.

See: Photography Techniques

Abstract Photography

One of the most effective ways to photograph Pink Lake is to deliberately remove the visual clues that identify it as a lake.

Use a longer lens to isolate areas containing:

• Pink water.
• White salt.
• Reflections.
• Vegetation.
• Ripples.

The resulting photograph can become an arrangement of colour, shape and texture rather than a conventional landscape.

See: Photography Techniques

Other things to look out for

Salt Crystals

Look closely at the salt surface rather than spending the entire visit photographing the overall lake.

Individual crystals and small formations can make excellent detail and macro subjects.

Salt-Tolerant Plants

Small specialised plants grow around this highly saline environment.

Their colour and texture can provide useful detail photographs and foreground elements.

Avoid trampling vegetation simply to obtain a better camera position.

Yellow Gums and Salt Paperbarks

The trees around the lake help place the unusual pink water within a recognisably Australian landscape.

Look for trunks, branches and foliage that can frame the lake or create layers within the composition.

Birdlife

Shallow water can attract wading birds, while Wedge-tailed Eagles have also been observed around the Yellow Gums.

Carrying a telephoto lens can turn an otherwise straightforward landscape visit into a useful wildlife-photography session.

Other Wildlife

Wildlife recorded around the reserve includes:

• Wedge-tailed Eagles.
• Kangaroos.
• Echidnas.
• Lace Monitors.

Reptiles, including snakes, may also be encountered, particularly during warmer weather.

Old Salt-Harvesting Equipment

Rusting remnants of the former salt industry provide very different subjects from the natural landscape.

Look for combinations of:

• Rust and white salt.
• Metal and pink water.
• Old machinery and vegetation.
• Industrial details.

Canola and Agricultural Landscapes

Depending on the season, surrounding agricultural country may provide additional photographic opportunities.

Bright yellow canola against the pink lake, blue sky and muted Wimmera landscape can create striking colour contrasts where suitable viewpoints are available from public roads.

Clouds

Do not assume that a cloudless blue sky will produce the strongest photograph.

Broken cloud can create softer light, reflections and variations in the apparent colour of the lake.

Nearby Locations

Pink Lake is particularly easy to incorporate into a larger photographic trip because it lies beside the Western Highway between Dimboola and Horsham.

The following locations can be combined with Pink Lake over a day, weekend or longer visit.

Dimboola

Only a few minutes east of Pink Lake, Dimboola is worth exploring rather than simply using it as the nearest service town.

Photographic subjects include the Wimmera River, historic streetscape, railway heritage, local art and the landscape around Horseshoe Bend.

Little Desert National Park

Dimboola is one of the principal gateways to Little Desert National Park.

The park provides a complete contrast to Pink Lake, with Mallee and heathland landscapes, wildflowers, wildlife, walking tracks and broad views from locations such as Pomponderoo Hill.

It is particularly worthwhile during the wildflower season.

Arkona Silo Art

Arkona Silo Art is north of Dimboola and features Smug's unusual portrait celebrating local tennis identity Roley Klinge.

The artwork provides an excellent public-art contrast to the natural landscape of Pink Lake.

Horsham

Horsham is the major regional centre east of Dimboola.

Photographic subjects include the Wimmera River, parks, urban public art and the city's large Yangga Dyata silo-art installation.

Mount Arapiles / Dyurrite

Mount Arapiles / Dyurrite rises dramatically above the otherwise flat Wimmera landscape near Natimuk.

It provides excellent opportunities for landscape photography, particularly during late-afternoon light and around sunset.

Murtoa

Murtoa combines the extraordinary Stick Shed, grain-growing history and large-scale public art.

It is particularly worthwhile for photographers interested in rural architecture and agricultural heritage.

Wimmera River

The Wimmera River can be photographed at both Dimboola and Horsham.

River Red Gums, reflections, birdlife and still water make it an excellent sunrise or late-afternoon subject.

Google Map - Pink Lake and Nearby Photographic Locations

Pink Lake can be combined easily with Dimboola, Little Desert National Park, Horsham, Arkona, Mount Arapiles and Murtoa as part of a broader Wimmera photographic trip.

Location

Pink Lake, 4669 Western Highway, Dimboola, Vic 3414 HXW6+R6 Dimboola, ///gurgling.bluff.physicists (-36.402936359364574, 141.9608143650658)

Pink Lake - officially Loch Iel (Pink Lake) Lake Reserve - is beside the Western Highway approximately 6-7 kilometres west of Dimboola in western Victoria.

Address:
Western Highway
Dimboola VIC 3414

The principal visitor area is immediately beside the highway and includes parking, a lookout/rest area, picnic facilities and toilets.

Google Maps: Pink Lake Dimboola