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The Scenery Album is one of the most underrated features in Starsand Island. It works as a photography-based collectible system where players travel across the island, locate designated scenic Points of Interest (POIs), and snap photos to fill out their album. Each new photo earns Starsand Points, and reaching certain collection milestones rewards Emotes and other in-game bonuses. The system is similar to viewpoint mechanics found in open-world exploration games, but here the camera itself is the tool.
The Scenery Album tracks POIs across every subarea of the island, including ones that have not been photographed yet. This means it doubles as a built-in checklist, letting you see exactly which locations you still need to visit. For players who enjoy exploration, working through the album is a natural way to accumulate points without any dedicated grinding.
There are two ways to open the Scenery Album:
Through Photo Mode: Enter Photo Mode, then navigate to the Album tab and switch to the Scenery section. This lets you review your collected photos and see which POIs remain.
Through the Phone: Open your in-game Phone and select the Album app. From there, tap the Scenery tab to browse all POIs sorted by region.
The Scenery tab displays every available POI location organized by subarea. Photos you have already taken appear in full color, while locations you have not yet visited show as greyed-out silhouettes. This makes it straightforward to plan your route and track your progress.
To activate Photo Mode and begin taking scenery photos, use one of these inputs:
Input Method | Control |
|---|---|
Keyboard | Press P |
Controller | Press LB + Left |
Phone App | Open Phone (Tab / Y), select Photo Mode app (third option, top row) |
Once Photo Mode is active, you can move the camera and look around to frame your shot. The interface provides a Take Picture button, a View Gallery option, and a Settings menu.
Photo Mode offers three shooting perspectives:
Handheld Mode: standard first-person camera angle.
Selfie Mode: the camera faces your character for self-portraits.
Free Roam: detaches the camera from your character, allowing you to fly it around for cinematic angles.
The settings menu gives you several adjustments to fine-tune each shot:
Zoom: zoom in and out to frame distant or close-up subjects.
Tilt: rotate the camera for angled compositions.
Time of Day: change the lighting to morning, afternoon, sunset, or night.
Brightness: adjust overall exposure.
Contrast: control the difference between light and dark areas.
Saturation: boost or reduce color intensity.
Vignette: add a darkened border effect for a more dramatic look.
You can also hide the UI entirely by pressing Tab (keyboard) or Y (controller) to capture clean screenshots without any interface elements.
Every time you photograph a new Scenery POI for the first time, you earn 20 Starsand Points. This applies only to the first photo taken at each unique location. Returning to the same spot and snapping another picture will not award additional points.
Because scenery POIs are spread across every subarea of the island, completing the album can yield a substantial number of Starsand Points over time. This makes the Scenery Album one of the most efficient passive point-farming methods in the game, especially when combined with regular exploration.
Beyond the 20 points per individual photo, reaching specific photography milestones in the Scenery Album unlocks additional rewards. These milestone rewards include Emotes that can be equipped to your Emote Wheel and used to express yourself in-game. The Album interface shows your current progress toward each milestone, so you can see how close you are to the next reward.
Emotes earned through the Scenery Album are separate from those purchased at Ethereal Styles or found in treasure chests, giving completionists another reason to fill out every page of the album.
Scenery POIs are distributed across all regions of Starsand Island. The album organizes photos by subarea, making it easy to focus on one region at a time. The main areas containing scenic POIs include:
Region | Description |
|---|---|
The central hub with shops, the town square, and various landmarks. Multiple POIs around the plaza, storefronts, and community areas. | |
A mountainous temple area in the northern part of the island. Elevated viewpoints and the ancient temple grounds offer scenic photo opportunities. | |
The coastal zone with sandy shores and ocean views. POIs here include beach landmarks, the dock area, and waterfront features. | |
A scenic cape area with coastal trails. Known for its cliffside views and nature spots that make for striking photos. | |
Lush grassland and farming territory. POIs include pastoral landscapes, fields, and natural features scattered across the meadow. | |
A bay area with distinctive rock formations and waterfront scenery. Several POIs are tucked along the shoreline and surrounding hillsides. | |
A hidden underground forest filled with glowing flora and mythical scenery. Contains its own set of unique POIs separate from the main island map. | |
Offshore Islands | The surrounding islands (Celestwave, Coral Sea, Luminwave, Windflute Island) each contain their own scenic POIs accessible by boat or swimming. |
Use the album as a checklist. Open the Scenery tab on your Phone regularly to see which regions still have greyed-out POIs. Plan your exploration route around those gaps.
Combine with daily activities. When you head out for farming, fishing, or mining, keep an eye out for nearby POIs. Many scenic spots are along common travel paths.
Watch for the map indicator. When you are near an unvisited scenery POI, a marker appears on your minimap. Walk toward it and open Photo Mode to snap the shot.
Explore the Moonlit Forest thoroughly. This underground area has its own separate set of POIs that are easy to miss if you rush through the dungeon content. Take your time and check side paths.
Visit offshore islands. The four surrounding islands each have POIs. If your album progress stalls, check whether you have visited Celestwave, Coral Sea, Luminwave, and Windflute Island.
Pair with NPC photo quests. Some NPCs like Momo have quests that involve photography. Completing these quests naturally while filling the Scenery Album lets you earn quest rewards and Starsand Points at the same time.
Photo Mode: the full camera system used to take scenery photos and free screenshots.
Starsand Points: the currency earned from the album and many other activities.
Emotes: animations unlocked through scenery milestones, treasure chests, and Ethereal Styles.
Islandpedia: another collectible tracker covering fish, bugs, items, and crafting recipes.
Phone: the in-game device used to access the Album app, Photo Mode, and other utilities.
