How to Use Vantage to Plan Your Next Shoot

Planning a photography shoot used to mean juggling half a dozen apps. Vantage puts everything in one place. Here’s how to use it, from the moment you open the app to the moment you arrive on location.

Step 1: Explore the Map

When you open Vantage, you’re dropped into a full-screen interactive map centered on your location. Pinned spots appear as amber markers — tap any one to see what other photographers have scouted there.

You can also tap and hold anywhere on the map to query nearby spots. A bottom sheet slides up with a list of locations within a configurable radius.

Use the search bar at the top to jump to any city, address, or landmark. The map flies to the result and shows you spots in that area.

Step 2: Read the Sun Overlay

The sun overlay is the heart of Vantage. Toggle it on from the map controls, and you’ll see a directional arc showing where the sun rises and sets for the current date.

Scrub through time using the slider at the bottom of the screen. The sun arc updates in real time as you drag — you’ll see exactly where the light will be at 6:15 AM versus 7:00 AM versus noon. Golden hour is marked automatically.

The moon overlay works the same way — toggle it independently to plan astrophotography or blue hour shots.

Step 3: Scout a Location

Tap any pinned spot to open the Location Detail screen. Here you’ll find:

Tags: what kind of photography the spot is suited for (landscape, wildlife, long exposure, etc.)
Average rating: aggregated from all scout reports
Scout reports: written reviews from photographers who’ve been there, including lighting notes, best time of day, gear recommendations, and photos

If the spot has photos attached to reviews, they appear in a scrollable photo strip at the top of the detail screen.

Step 4: Get an AI Visit Plan

Tap the Plan My Visit button on any Location Detail screen. Vantage generates a personalized visit plan powered by AI and real photographer data from that location.

The Visit Planner gives you:

Best times to visit: season-aware windows with explanations (why golden hour here hits differently in spring vs. fall)
Recommended gear: lenses, filters, and accessories suited to what this specific spot demands
Pro tips: practical advice from photographers who’ve actually shot there

Plans are cached so they load instantly on return visits and update each season. Hit the share button in the planner to send the full plan as formatted text to anyone on your crew.

Step 5: Get Directions

Found a spot you want to visit? Tap the directions icon in the top right of the Location Detail screen. Vantage opens Apple Maps with the spot already set as your destination — directions route from your current location automatically.

Step 6: Save to a Collection

Tap the bookmark icon to save a spot to one of your collections. Collections are like folders — create as many as you want. “Colorado road trip,” “Spring wildflowers,” “Drone locations” — organize your spots however makes sense for the way you shoot.

Step 7: Plan a Trip or Map Your Route

Open any collection and you’ll find two planning tools in the top right:

AI Trip Planner (compass icon): Generates a full shooting itinerary for the entire collection — ordered stops with best shooting windows for each location, a consolidated gear list, and trip tips. Season-aware, shareable, and cached so it’s ready when you need it.
Tour Route (route icon): Plots all your collection’s locations on a map as a numbered driving route. Tap Directions to hand off to Apple Maps for turn-by-turn navigation.

Together these turn a saved list of spots into a coordinated day — or multi-day — shoot plan.

Step 8: Write a Scout Report

After you’ve visited a location, contribute back to the community. Tap the edit icon (floating action button) on any Location Detail screen to open the Review Composer.

In your scout report you can:

Rate the spot 1–5 stars
Write a detailed review
Note the best time of day
Leave lighting and gear notes
Attach up to 3 photos directly from your camera roll

Your report helps the next photographer make a better decision about whether and when to visit — and feeds into the AI Visit Planner data for that location.

Step 9: Add a New Spot

Don’t see a location on the map? Add it. Tap and hold on any map location, then tap Add Spot. Give it a name, add relevant tags, and choose whether it’s public (visible to all) or private (just for you).

Private spots are fully encrypted and never shared — ideal for locations you’ve worked hard to find and want to keep to yourself.

That’s the core loop. Scout → plan → shoot → report back. The more you use it, the more useful it gets — and the more useful it gets for everyone else heading to the same location.

Questions or feedback? Join the beta and reach out directly.