1) Bell Rock
Bell Rock is one of the most photographed rocks in Sedona. You can either stay at the parking lot and shoot or hike in a little to get a better composition. The top of Little Bell is one of my fav to shoot a pano of the Milky Way. A good thing about Bell Rock is that you can shoot all season long as you can walk around the rock to line the Milky Way with it in the background. Later in the season though, you will have to hike in to get a shot.
2) Cathedral Rock
This is one my fav rocks to shoot the Milky Way with. There are a few ways to shoot Cathedral Rock. Earlier in the season, you can hike in to Secret Slick Rock and have a straight shot at Cathedral Rock. The rain sometimes create a bunch of pools and you can get a Milky Way shot with Cathedral Rock and Milky Way reflecting on them. Later in the season, when the Milky Way becomes vertical, you can shoot Cathedral Rock from the main trailhead and make it look like the Milky Way is erupting from the rock. Another way to shoot from here is to hike in a bit to where you can overlook Bell Rock and Courthouse Butte in the distance and make them as your foreground.
3) Munds Wagon Trailhead
This place is not as well known as other places. But it is one of my fav places to shoot panos. The image above was taken here.
4) Seven Sacred Pools
Ok. This place is a little tricky. You have to hike in to get here which is not a long hike from the main trailhead (Soldiers Pass). However, the gate is closed from sunset to sunrise. This means that if you are planning on hiking out the same night, you cannot park there. You will have to either have your car locked in until the morning which forces you to spend the night out there or park somewhere else and hike out at night. Another reason why it is tricky is that the pools only line up with the Milky Way during a certain time of the year and for a short period of time. You may have 30-40min to shoot that night. My recommendation is though to park your car at one of the nearby parking (45-60min hike to the pools), shoot, spend the night, then, hike out. Just bring a sleeping bag to stay warm.
5) Birthing Cave
This place is a bit tricky to find during the day and more so at night. It takes about 40min to hike in and climbing up to the cave can be sketchy at night. If you are planning on shooting here, I would spend the night here and make sure to go with someone else for your safety. I would suggest putting a pin on a map so you know where to make turns, etc. You do not want to be lost on a hiking trail at night.
6) Midgley Bridge
The Midgley Bridge is located a few miles north of Sedona on 89A. Even thought you can shoot here pretty much all season, shooting from the other end of the bridge is my fav (image above). Walking on the bridge is not permitted. However, that is the shortest way to get there..... shhhhh don't tell. Later in the season, you can shoot from the parking lot area. But you won't be able to get the mountains in the back.