Doddabetta's telescope house gets the crowds, but the real panorama is from the car park just below it, ten minutes before sunrise, when the valley is still filling with mist.
Pykara's boat jetty is postcard-pretty by mid-morning, but the reflected-mountain shot needs stiller water — try just after the first boats go out, when the wake has settled again. Elk Falls rewards a slow shutter (bring a small travel tripod) far more than a phone snapshot ever will.
On tea estate roads, the rows themselves are the subject — shoot along them, not across, and the terracing does the composition for you. And don't skip the drive itself: the switchbacks between Coonoor and Kotagiri catch some of the best late-afternoon light on the whole route.
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