House on the rock – Bajina Bašta, Serbia

Overview & Quick Tips

House on the rock is a small wooden house in the middle of the Drina river, in a small town of Bajina Bašta, Serbia. It was built over 45 years ago, and since then it has endured severe winds, storms and floods, and it has been reconstructed multiple times.

Detailed information

A group of young swimmers thought of the concept of the house in 1968, when they needed a place to rest. They used a rock in the middle of the Drina River to lie down, rest and sunbathe, but after a while, they wanted to build something more comfortable, as well as something that will provide them with a shelter from the sun. The idea developed, and in 1969, they built a one-room house on the rock. Since then, the house has been wiped off by the floods several times, because the Drina can sometimes rise up to a tremendous level and cause devastating floods. However, the house was always reconstructed, so it still proudly stands on the same rock, allowing all the guests to photograph it and to pay a visit. After National Geographic published Irene Becker’s photo of the house in the Photo of the Day section, the house has become a subject of interest of many tourists and travelers from around the world.

The best times to photograph the house are morning and early afternoon. These are the times when the house, together with the forests and mountains behind it, is well lit and rich in colors. The sun sets behind the house and creates back light, so late afternoon is not the best time of day to take photos of the house. However, the photos taken in sunset can look magnificent, especially if you use long exposure.

The best place to take photos from is “Dve lipe” restaurant and its nearby surroundings, since this is where you have a clear approach to the river’s bank and different angles to take photos from, because the restaurant is built several meters above the river bank, with a huge balcony overlooking the House on the rock. There are stairs that lead from the restaurant down to the river bank, where you will also have a view on the House, but also some other interesting details to photograph, such as flowers, trees and old boats.

Tripod is not mandatory if you decide to take pictures during the daylight. The light is bright enough so you can easily shoot from hand. Also, the river bank can be quite muddy, so if you are not used to putting a tripod on that kind of ground or you are simply not willing to get id dirty, it is better not to bring it. However, if you want to take photos of the sunset behind the house, then, of course, the tripod will be your obligatory companion. If you shoot from the restaurant’s balcony, there is a wooden fence on which you can lean a camera, so in case you do not have a tripod, you can rely on that.

What to photograph – in addition to the house on the rock in the middle of the river, which is sufficiently interesting to photograph, there are also some other motifs you can pay attention to. First, there are always several people fishing on the river bank, so if you can create interesting portraits. People of Bajina Bašta are friendly, funny and very kind, so you should have no problem if you ask some of them to take a photo while they are fishing.
Then, there are flowers, bushes and trees next to the river bank, which may not be that interesting on their own, but when combined in a frame together with the House on the rock, they can create photos worth looking at.
There are also boats on the river bank, and you will always be able to find at least one, if not more. Lastly, the Drina River itself is extremely clear and has wonderful color, so it can either add to the beauty of your images, or you can even create a captivating photo if you photograph the river on its own.

Equipment – as I already mentioned, a tripod is optional, depending on the time you want to take your photos. When it comes to lenses, it depends on your preferences and style, but I would recommend a zoom lens, especially for photographing the House itself. For other motifs, a wide-angle lens can also be used, but a kit lens with a starting focal length of 18 mm could also suffice for this purpose.
In addition to photographic equipment, make sure to wear proper footwear for this purpose – take an old pair of shoes or boots which you do not mind getting muddy, because the river bank is not very cooperative with a plan to keep your shoes clean.

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