Proposal spots on Madeira
Where to propose on Madeira
These are the places where I have photographed proposals, and the ones I recommend for them. For each one: what is worth knowing and how the light behaves there.
Pick the version of the proposal first, then the place. The place depends on the version.
The three ways a proposal shoot runs →
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At a glance
| Place | Suits | From Funchal | Light |
|---|---|---|---|
| Miradouro do Guindaste | Tourist photographing the view | About 40 min | Clear day: 2 to 3 hours before sunset; overcast |
| Ponta de São Lourenço | Tourist photographing the view | About 40 min | Bright overcast, late afternoon |
| Pico do Arieiro | Normal couples session or tourist | About 40 min | Sunrise |
| Praia Formosa | Normal couples session | 10 min | Sunset |
| Seixal Beach | Normal couples session or tourist | About 50 min | Afternoon or golden hour |
| Funchal Old Town | Stranger with a camera | On foot | Early morning, early evening |
| Fanal Forest | Normal couples session or tourist | About 1 hour | Late afternoon and evening |
How to choose
- Privacy worries you most: Ponta de São Lourenço. It is wide.
- A tourist photographing the view: Miradouro do Guindaste, Ponta de São Lourenço, Fanal, Seixal or Pico do Arieiro.
- Sunrise in the mountains: Pico do Arieiro.
- Black sand under high cliffs: Seixal.
- A normal couples session close to Funchal: Praia Formosa.
- A stranger with a camera: Funchal old town, where there are people around.
- Laurel forest instead of the ocean: Fanal, late in the day.
Miradouro do Guindaste
A clifftop viewpoint on the north coast near Faial. There is a glass platform here, and right next to it a rocky ledge where everyone goes to take photographs. The ledge is where I shoot.
- Suits
- A tourist photographing the view. I am there before you arrive, and it looks as though I am simply a tourist photographing the scenery.
- Why this place
- Most viewpoints on Madeira put a railing in every frame. Here you stand on bare rock with the ocean below.
- Worth knowing
- The place is small. When other people are close, there is little room to change the angle. The ground is uneven volcanic rock, so wear something with grip. Wind comes straight off the Atlantic, and hair will move.
- Light
- From the ledge the camera looks east over the ocean, and you face west, towards the island. In the morning the sun is behind you and shines into the lens: backlight. The mountain to the west takes the sun off the ledge about an hour and twenty minutes to an hour and three quarters before sunset, and after that the ledge is in even shade. On a clear day the best light is about two to three hours before sunset. Overcast suits this place: flat soft light keeps the sky from blowing out behind the cliff and stops the ocean going white.
- Getting there
- About forty minutes from Funchal. You park on the road and walk three minutes down.
Ponta de São Lourenço
The easternmost peninsula of Madeira. Bare volcanic rock and no trees. Cliffs drop straight into the Atlantic on both sides.
- Suits
- A tourist photographing the view. For this version I recommend it together with Miradouro do Guindaste.
- Why this place
- It is wide. Even on a busy day there is always a corner away from the main viewpoint. If privacy is what worries you most, this is where I would start.
- Worth knowing
- This is the most exposed place I shoot. The wind is constant rather than occasional, and loose fabric moves with it. Wear proper shoes rather than sandals: the ground is uneven volcanic rock.
- Light
- Bright overcast suits it better than hard sun. A bright grey sky keeps the shapes of the ridges and the colour of the rock. Late afternoon works too, with long shadows running across the slopes.
- Getting there
- About forty minutes east of Funchal. Drive to the Baía d’Abra car park at the end of the road, then a short walk to the first viewpoints.
Pico do Arieiro
At 1,818 metres, Madeira’s third-highest peak. On most mornings it sits above the clouds, and when the conditions are right the cloud layer spreads below you like a flat white sea.
- Suits
- A normal couples session, or a tourist photographing the view: I am there before you arrive.
- Why this place
- Almost every place this high needs a hike. Here you drive to a car park near the summit and walk a few minutes to the viewpoints, so you can arrive in the dark, in good clothes, without a climb first.
- Worth knowing
- The cloud layer is not guaranteed: some mornings you drive up and arrive inside the cloud rather than above it. It runs roughly ten degrees colder than Funchal, and the wind has nothing to break it. Bring more than seems reasonable, including something for your hands. A coat can come off for the frames and go straight back on.
- Light
- Sunrise. Fifteen minutes before the sun clears the horizon the ridges go purple and the cloud sea turns grey blue. Then the first light hits the peaks and everything above the cloud goes pink for about ten minutes. Being in position early is not optional.
- Getting there
- Forty minutes from Funchal on a road that climbs the whole way. In June that means leaving town around half past four. In December you can leave at six and still be early.
Praia Formosa
Funchal’s own beach, ten minutes from the centre. Dark sand and pebbles, with volcanic rock at the western end.
- Suits
- A normal couples session. There is a promenade behind the beach, so there will be people, and a photographer on a city beach raises no suspicion.
- Why this place
- The rocks at the western end give height and texture, and enough separation to work with. The sun drops behind the cliff at that end and lights the whole beach sideways for the last hour. If the weather turns, you are ten minutes from town.
- Worth knowing
- The weather here changes inside an hour. Mike and Amelie had sun, drizzle and cloud in the same evening, and the drizzle is in their frames.
- Light
- Sunset. In December the light starts pulling gold across the water by five, and you get roughly forty usable minutes. In late April sunset is around eight. In midsummer you are shooting past nine.
- Getting there
- Ten minutes from the centre of Funchal. Easy parking, cafes and toilets on the promenade.
Seixal Beach
Black volcanic sand on the north coast, with about 200 metres of cliff standing behind the beach and the Atlantic in front. A small waterfall drops off the rock face at the far end.
- Suits
- A normal couples session, or a tourist photographing the view: I am there before you arrive.
- Why this place
- The bay is enclosed, so light bounces off the cliff faces and fills the shadows on its own. Portraits hold texture here without any direct sun on them.
- Worth knowing
- The beach fills up by mid-morning; before about nine it is at its quietest. The north coast is cooler and windier than the forecast for Funchal suggests, so bring shoes you can get wet. Strong colours read well against black sand. Pale beige disappears into the rock.
- Light
- Before about nine the sun has not cleared the ridge, and the light is flat and even. By afternoon it turns warmer and more contrasty, better for golden hour than for portraits at noon. Edin and Arita stayed for the half hour after sunset.
- Getting there
- About fifty minutes from Funchal, over the mountains to the north coast. Parking is at the beach itself, with no walk.
Funchal Old Town
Cobblestone streets and painted doors in the historic centre of Funchal. Palms and the yellow walls of Forte de São Tiago by the sea.
- Suits
- A stranger with a camera, or a normal couples session. In the old town a photographer offering pictures is an ordinary sight. With people around at any hour, it does not suit the tourist version.
- Why this place
- No driving and no parking to solve. The old town stays usable on grey days, when the landscapes go flat.
- Worth knowing
- In the middle of the day the streets are full of people and the light is straight overhead. Early morning before the cruise passengers arrive and early evening once the tour groups have gone are quieter.
- Light
- Early morning or early evening. Once the light drops below the hills it goes soft, good for portraits.
- Getting there
- In the city, on foot. From the cathedral square it is a short walk down to the harbour.
Fanal Forest
One of the oldest laurel forests in Europe, at 1,150 metres. Trees that are centuries old, their trunks wrapped in moss, on a flat open plateau.
- Suits
- A normal couples session, or a tourist photographing the view: I am there before you arrive.
- Why this place
- Laurel trees and no ocean at all. The guided groups come in the morning, so late in the day there are fewer people.
- Worth knowing
- Fanal is consistently colder and wetter than Funchal at the same hour, so bring a layer more than you think you need. The fog is never guaranteed, so the date needs some slack in it.
- Light
- I shoot here late in the day. Late afternoon gives the soft diffused light Fanal is known for, and the fog is often there in the evening as well.
- Getting there
- About an hour from Funchal on the north coast road, paved the whole way. You park at the top with no walk to speak of.
When
We always agree on the start time individually, depending on the goals of the shoot and your wishes.
A famous place I do not use
Cabo Girão has a glass skywalk 580 metres above the sea and a permanent queue of visitors on it. The view is real, the privacy is zero.
A place that is not on this page
I shoot at proven locations, the ones I recommend. For a place where I have not worked, I offer a scouting visit, so that you and I can make sure the place suits you. I go at about the same time of day, about a week before the shoot, and send you a video from the spot with a pin on the map. €60 in Funchal, €100 outside the city.
Questions about proposal spots
- Where should I propose on Madeira?
- It depends on the version. For a tourist photographing the view I recommend Miradouro do Guindaste and Ponta de São Lourenço, and Fanal, Seixal and Pico do Arieiro suit it too. A proposal booked as a normal couples session works anywhere, including Praia Formosa, ten minutes from Funchal. For a stranger with a camera, Funchal old town.
- Which proposal spot on Madeira gives the most privacy?
- Ponta de São Lourenço. It is wide, and even on a busy day there is always a corner away from the main viewpoint. On Madeira it can get busy in the most unexpected places, so I never promise an empty spot.
- What time of day should we plan the proposal?
- We always agree on the start time individually, depending on the goals of the shoot and your wishes. The light differs by place: at Guindaste the best light on a clear day is about two to three hours before sunset, bright overcast suits São Lourenço, Pico do Arieiro is for sunrise, Praia Formosa is at its best around sunset, and at Fanal I shoot late in the day.
- Will there be fog at Fanal?
- Often there is, in the evening as well. The fog is never guaranteed, so the date needs some slack in it.
- Will we be above the clouds at Pico do Arieiro?
- On most mornings the peak sits above the clouds. The cloud layer is not guaranteed: some mornings you drive up and arrive inside the cloud rather than above it.
- Do you photograph proposals at Cabo Girão?
- No. It has a glass skywalk with a permanent queue of visitors on it. The view is real, the privacy is zero.
- Can you photograph a proposal at a place that is not on this page?
- Yes. For a place where I have not worked, I offer a scouting visit: about a week before the shoot I go there at about the same time of day and send you a video from the spot with a pin on the map. €60 in Funchal, €100 outside the city.
Send me your dates and the place
A proposal costs the same as any other session, from €250. Tell me your dates, which version you want and which place you have in mind.
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