Spring photography in the Howe Sound/ Lions Bay area is one of my favourite times of year.  Days are getting slightly longer; clouds are breaking up more and making interesting patterns in the sky; and the quality of light starts to take on a warmer tone taking over from the cool blues and greys of the winter. With the slight increase in temperature this time of year there is often low-level fog just before sunrise, which allows for terrific opportunities to make very dramatic images early in the day.

I must admit however, that Lions Bay is probably at its most visually spectacular when it gets blanketed in fresh snow. Unfortunately, my camera equipment and tripod are so cumbersome and slow to set up that by the time I’m ready to make an exposure all the snow has already melted. We are also lucky to live on one of the most impressive stretches of roadways in the world, and there are likely only a handful of comparable roads that lend themselves as well to photography as the majesty of the route traversing Howe Sound.

Back in the early/mid 90’s I lived in Carmel, California and had the privilege of driving up and down the Big Sur Coast Highway on a daily basis searching for unique elements of the coastline to photograph. The 26 miles of crashing waves, rolling fog, sheer rocky cliffs, and pleasant bends on the highway make a trip down the Big Sur coast a truly unique experience.   

Similarly, the 200km Garden Route that runs along the southern coast of South Africa encompasses some of most beautiful jagged cliffs, beaches, mountains, and rivers along any road I have seen.

Finally, the coast highway along the Lofoten archipelago in northern Norway is perhaps the most visually spectacular place on the planet, but is also the least accessible of these grand coastal roads. 

At the moment, all the highway construction is somewhat of an impediment to photography (at least for me), because trucks and tractors currently occupy all the good vantage points. But when the new highway work is complete and new vista points are created there ought to be tremendous opportunities to capture the essence of this unique area.