I am already planning my photography adventures for 2025.
There will be my annual visit to Vancouver for two big used camera sales and as I always do the third week in July I will attend the Anacortes Washington Shipwreck Festival. However this year I am also planning a drive down the West Coast of the U.S.
As I was telling my friend Jo about some of my favourite stops along that scenic road, I began to think about the time I wandered the streets of Port Townsend, Washington with my camera.
My wife and I had spent the previous days driving up the coast on our way back to Kamloops after I photographed a wedding on the sandy beach of Cannon Beach, Oregon.
We had stopped at the town of Ocean Shores the first night then drove on to Port Townsend, Washington.
I had been too busy working in Cannon Beach to wander the streets with my camera and when we arrived at Ocean Shores it was too late to do much more than find a motel and have supper on the windy beach. So Port Townsend was my first chance to do some photography for myself.
The town is quite a photogenic coastal town with lots of historic 19th century Victorian buildings located on the northeast tip of the Olympic Peninsula and a little over a six-hours from Kamloops.
Because the sky was clear blue and the sun at a low angle I decided I would use my infrared converted camera.
I left my wife resting in the hotel and began by walking along one of the higher lanes above the town taking photos of a lighthouse in the strong contrasting light. I then went on searching out interesting buildings in a tree-lined neighbourhood before venturing down into the city centre. I walked along alleys, main streets, and the small harbour choosing different subjects and angles, taking some photos down the street and some looking up at the interesting old buildings.
For a time I walked along talking to a couple visiting from China, but they were more interested in posing tourist style in front of the buildings, so I wished them well and continued on in a different direction.
I chose subjects on the side of the street that had strong lighting as I was going back and forth so the infrared light would be the strongest.
My walk-about lasted close to three hours before the evening shadows took over. I did try some shots of a couple of double-masted ships moored in the harbour, but they were too distant for my lens.
The infrared gave me black skies and glowing distinct highlights and I chose subjects that were strong in those two areas. I wandered the city’s streets discovering and photographing what I found. All and all it was a good way to end my last day by the ocean before my drive back to Kamloops the next morning.
I haven’t set my itinerary yet, I would like to drive all the way to Los Angeles and I hope I have time to photograph that turn of the century city again.
Stay safe and be creative. These are my thoughts for this week. Contact me at www.enmanscamera.com or emcam@telus.net.
