Sunrise – Historic Seaport Boat Marina

The Historic Seaport Marina is on the North side of the Island. If you are staying around the Old Town area and cannot make it over to the southern side of the island for sunrise, here is an alternative. Watch the sunrise hit the boat marina. Now you will not see it rise above the water line, but you will see it from above the buildings in the distance. I enjoy boats, and this sunrise will feature boats. Also, the boat harbor is very quiet at sunrise. You will probably only see a few fishing charter boats get underway leaving the harbor.

Arrival time. Arrive 20 minutes before sunrise time to find your spot or a couple of spots. Walk around to look at the boats and what you want in your picture. Also look around for the birds and where they be perched. (Also, for coffee drinkers arrive 40 minutes before sunrise and go over to the Cuban Coffee Queen and get a Cafe’ Con Leche and some warm Cuban Bread.)

Prepare. I use a tripod to get a steady picture. Take some test pictures to check the lighting. Look at the horizon and see the sky line to see if you will have clouds or clear sky. Do not let the clouds scare you away. The puffy cumulous clouds, with breaks of blue sky in the backgrounds, can get some interesting colors and patterns.

Prep your filters if you will be adding a color filter or star filters. Around the marina they have some benches to layout your accessories. (You maybe the only person out here taking pictures or even walking around.)

Taking pictures. Enjoy the sunrise and the surroundings. Look for other objects to be the subjects of your photos. You will have many different types of boats to choose from. Reflections in the water add interest in your photo.

I have attached a couple of my photos. I use a DSLR Cannon and tripod to take my photos. Also, if you have a cell phone, come on out and enjoy the sunrise. With the quality of pictures the cell phone take, you can get some great shots. My wife uses her cell phone and has taken some fantastic pictures. You can view some in our website and books.

Sunrise Key West – Ready or not here I come! (7:44 am November 2014) The sun moves quickly when it appears, so keep taking your shots when it starts to come up to capture the colors in the low horizon line.

Sunrise Key West – Good Morning! (7:50 am Same day. November 2014) The clouds add some great rays of the sun. I added the rocks in the scene to look like I am sitting on the rocks.

Sunrise – Peaking over the clouds (7:54 am same day) I added a 10 point Start filter on my lens to get the sunbeam effect. I will twist the filter to get the points hitting a particular subject of effect.

Let’s go fishing (7:56 am same day) Walked down the pier to capture the charter fishing boats. The sun is now bold out behind the clouds. Still using the star filter.