Plan a road trip with family and friends to visit one of the six CapeNature reserves that have a newly installed outdoor photo frame. The premise of the frames is to encourage visitors to take scenic photos while enjoying the wonders of nature. This in turn will grow an online community that helps spread awareness of the beautiful, protected areas surrounding locals and international travelers coming to the Western Cape, South Africa.

The frames are made from iroko wood. The wood of the iroko tree (Chlorophora excelsa), is native to the west coast of Africa. It is sustainable, tough, dense, and very durable, which speaks to CapeNature’s green eco-tourism principles.

What are outdoor photo frames and why are they important?

Trending over the last few years, outdoor selfie frames have become increasingly popular at tourist destinations worldwide. The frames are normally quite big and entirely transparent to allow tourists to use the travel destination’s stunning backdrops for photographs. They strive to perfectly encapsulate some of the destination’s most iconic and eye-catching features, whilst encouraging tourists to use them for capturing memorable moments. Once posted and shared online, tourists’ photographs also do a lot to market the destination, especially if the correct hashtags are used and the destination itself is tagged. On a deeper level, photographs provide a window for destination marketers to understand the psychology of tourists and their perceptions of travel destinations.

These are the must-visit nature reserves with selfie frames:

• Cederberg Wilderness, Algeria, where the selfie frame is situated near the Algeria office with a backdrop of a serene waterfall gorge and Middleberg mountains. S32°22’29” E19°03’37”
• Stony Point Nature Reserve’s frame overlooks the beautiful coastal view of the quaint coastal town of Betty's Bay. Stony Point land-based penguin colony is the third largest breeding colony of African Penguins in the world. It is a sight to behold! S34.37’14.21 E18.89’32.65”
• Grootvadersbosch Nature Reserve has a magical, fairy-tale-like indigenous forest that is ever more enticing to explorers. Its outdoor photo frame captures just this. S33°40’17.5” E21°53’18.4”
• Goukamma’s frame has a picturesque river and river mouth backdrop. S34° 3'56.93 E22°56'37.12"
• De Hoop Nature Reserve lies at the southernmost tip of Africa, where mountains meet the sea. This is the ideal combination for a photo moment! S34°27’8.36” E20°43’58.96”
• Walker Bay Nature Reserve is a coastal dream with the bluest skies to match. Visitors will take a snap at the heart of the famed whale coast. S34° 32’ 46.7” E 19° 22’ 43.0”