In October Seattle was visited by The Darkroom who hosted a weekend full of events for the photo community. One of my favorite meetups in Seattle is Ferries on Film which invites photographers to board one of the Washington State Ferries and take a 30~ minute ferry ride across the Puget Sound (and back).

The Ferry Terminal

Folks usually gather 45 minutes to an hour before the ferry actually departs and that's a great time to walk around and get photos or network with other photographers. For me, it's a great time to take a peek at everyone's gear. Every time I attend one of these large meetups I always find a few neat cameras I've never seen before!

On the Ferry

One of the most unique things about ferries is that it's a form of public transportation that invites you to walk around and wander. The closest experience I've had to this is on an Amtrak train but even then, you're allowed to walk around but there's not really enough room to do anything more than move back and forth between cars. Usually I'd just make my way to the snack car and back.

Some of the longer ferry routes in Washington take more than an hour and that's plenty of time to get in a few laps, take a nap, and really check things out. I love grabbing photos of strangers in transit and seeing what everyone is up to.

Around the Ferry

I showed up to this meetup with a few friends from the Tacoma Photo Club so it was only fitting that we were on the MV Tacoma. This ferry can hold 2,500 passengers and up to 202 cars. The ship has been in service since 1997 and cost $80 million.

There is something to me about signage and emergency systems that has always tickled my brain. For most people, they blend into the background but to me I always think about how much effort goes into making it very, very obvious what needs to happen in an emergency such as in the case of this break glass panel for the shutoff handle.

From the Ferry

I've taken a handful of landscape shots from the ferry with varying degrees of success. For me, they come off feeling a little lifeless. This photo helps capture one of my favorite things about ferry rides: everyone flocking towards the sides to get the views. It was a beautiful day with a good mix of sun and clouds. I think the details of the clouds are captured really well here along with the colors of the buildings lining the waterfront.