Capturing the Magic of Leh & Ladakh with Tamron

Posted on August, 2025

As a travel photographer and filmmaker, I’ve always had a list of dream destinations I wanted to explore and capture. One of those destinations was Leh & Ladakh and it has been on my travel bucket list for the longest time. This trip wasn’t something I planned for rather it happened quite suddenly and right in time for the apricot blossom season. To put it simply, I was very excited for this trip.

When I first set foot in Leh & Ladakh, it was like entering a whole new world, one where dramatic landscapes, timeworn monasteries, and raw natural beauty exist in perfect harmony. I couldn’t have asked for a more inspiring canvas. What truly elevated my experience was the apricot blossom season. It felt like nature had put on its best show just for me and as soon as I landed, I was more than ready to capture every moment.

During this trip I was equipped with my Tamron lenses for Sony Mirrorless cameras namely 17-28 mm, 28-75 mm, and 70-180 mm all of which are constant f/2.8 for better light gathering abilities. I was ready to set off on an adventure that would leave a lasting impression in my heart.

Leh greeted me with its high-altitude charm, thin air, and bright blue skies. My Tamron 17-28 mm lens was my constant companion during these first few days, allowing me to capture the vast and expansive landscapes that make Leh city so breathtaking. The wideangle perspective was perfect for showing how diverse and beautiful everything was around me.

The lens is also so light and compact that I was never afraid to take it with me on hiking or just in the streets. It was super easy to carry around, especially while exploring monasteries or capturing wide landscapes. The flare control on this lens is also very good and it is very useful in low light situations as well thanks to its f/2.8 Aperture. Whether I was capturing wide landscapes or shooting on the move, this lens didn’t weigh me down and the results were stunning.

I reached for my Tamron 28-75 mm lens whenever I wanted to get closer to my subject while also framing the surrounding landscape. With this lens, I captured close-up shots of individual flowers, highlighting their soft petals and intricate details during the apricot blossom festival. This focal length is perfect for me to carry all day around and capture pretty much everything while still being very capable as well as light weight. I captured most of my portrait shots on this lens as well. This lens is also my most used lens in my gear kit because of how versatile this is. I find this focal range to be perfect for variety of scenarios, be it environmental portraits or close ups, this performs really well in every situation. This lens also features a ton of customisation options with additional buttons on the lens itself. I use the custom button for manual/auto focus switch quickly during the video shooting. It also allows me to set the focus throw as linear or non-linear.

As I explored more of Ladakh, I got to visit ancient monasteries like Hemis, Thiksey, and Diskit. Each of these places had its own story, its own energy and the rich architecture. All of this made for fantastic photographic opportunities for me. The 28- 75 mm lens once again proved to be indispensable whenever I was shooting portraits of monks or capturing the intricate details of the monastery interiors, the lens adapted to every scenario.

The 70-180 mm on the other hand was perfect for capturing distant mountain ranges, snowcapped mountains and intimate portraits of the Ladakhi people during their cultural performances. I could take images of very candid moments of warm-hearted locals without disturbing the environment around me. One thing that really impressed me with this lens is how fast and reliable the focusing motors are. It never let me miss a moment during those cultural performances.

I was very confident knowing that I have such wide range of focal length options with just these three lenses. This is truly a holy trinity for my style of photography.