View from Washington state ferries

Washington state ferries provide some very interesting photo opportunities. I am not talking about taking pictures of the ferries but taking pictures from the ferries! I discovered this by chance when I was taking an early morning ferry over to the Olympic Peninsula. As always sunrise and sunset provide the best and most interesting opportunities. I have not had much luck with tripods on ferries, usually the ferry is rocking too much to get a crisp shot. I shoot handheld with my Canon 100-400 IS lens instead. Even with the IS lens I would recommend a speed of atleast 1/100th to 1/200 th of a sec. When I find a shot I really like I usually shoot it at a variety of different speeds just to make sure I get the shot. I would also recommend a focal length of at least a 200/300 mm for some of the compositions in this post.

Link to Ferry schedules

Seattle to Bainbridge Island - This ferry has magnificent views of Downtown Seattle and Mount Rainier. The first ferry is at 5.30 AM. It offers some very interesting compositions of the cranes of the Port of Seattle with Mount Rainier. There are also some interesting oppurtunities for creating panorama's of downtown Seattle. A polarizer will be extremely useful if you are shooting around sunrise.

Directions to the Seattle ferry terminal

Edmonds to Kingston - This is one of my favorite ferry rides early in the morning. The first ferry is at 5.45 AM (Except on sundays). This works out perfectly during the summer - you can shoot sunrise from the ferry. There are some very interesting views of Mount Baker with the various islands of Puget sound in the foreground - this is one of my favorite sunrise shots in the area. On the other side you can also see the Kingston ferry terminal framed by the Brothers peak.

Directions to Edmonds ferry terminal