Carmanah Point Light Station
Perched on a rugged headland where the open Pacific meets the Strait of Juan de Fuca, this remote concrete lighthouse dates to 1920 and sits within one of the most dramatic coastal stretches on Vancouver Island. The white tower contrasts beautifully against the dark forest backdrop and crashing ocean below, giving you strong graphic compositions with minimal effort. Frame the lighthouse from lower on the rocky bluff to emphasize the height of the headland, or pull back to include the keeper's cottages for a sense of scale and history. Overcast days work surprisingly well here, softening shadows and saturating the greens of the surrounding rainforest. Getting here requires hiking the West Coast Trail, roughly 27 kilometers from the nearest trailhead, so plan this as part of a multi-day backpacking trip. A mid-range zoom lens handles both wide environmental shots and tighter detail work on the tower. (Vancouver Island, British Columbia, Canada)
