The Magnificent Seattle Waterfront at Dusk

Up in #Seattle since Jan 5th when we drove his Ford Explorer packed with office equipment, computers, books, clothing and made the 18 hour 2 night journey north from Ventura California. With a bit of good luck we found a furnished studio in downtown Seattle 3 blocks from Alaskan Way and quickly set up base. It is still winter and most days it is either cloudy or rainy. When it rains in Seattle, the sky just opens and it rains cats and dogs the whole day long. We have also had a few days of glorious sunshine and temp is normally in the mid 40s to low 50s, what you would call mild winter days. It is comfortable as long as one is properly dressed for the weather.

Yesterday we decided to do a test run on the light rail transit from #Westlake Station downtown to #SEATAC Airport. It cost a mere $2.75 per trip and takes about 40 minutes from point to point. Hence it is very convenient to fly in and out of SEATAC if you live downtown not mentioning the many restaurants and shops on every block. Driving can be nerve wrecking though, pedestrians and tourists everywhere. However #Seattle has a very good public transit system that connects downtown with nearby suburbs and one can definitely do without a car. Parking is prohibitively expensive and if you are looking for an apartment downtown, be sure to ask if you would have a parking spot.

On the way back from the airport, we got off at #International Station/Pioneer Square, 3 stops before #Westlake Station and walked home along the waterfront. It was a beautiful late afternoon and we caught the sunset just in time. I am a happy camper each time I am near the water.........

Here are a few snapshots taken with his #HTC One smartphone. It is amazing that these shots are so good that to me they rival those taken with my DSLR. You be the judge. Unfortunately I did not have my Canon 10D and lenses with me, it was too heavy to be lugging them around in a backpack, instead I opted to take the# Olympus XA2 loaded with a C41 Kodak Black and White film and did some black and white instead. I hope I have at least a few good shots from the 35mm film.

Finally below a picture of the beautiful Seattle skyline. Steadying the #HTC One on top of the giant binoculars on the pier was a key factor in getting a decent night scene. The IS (Image Stabilization) feature is another vote for getting a HTC One smartphone. Shot is not perfect but on a 8x10 print it will probably look good enough to frame. A small Gorilla pod would definitely help and again I left home without it.

No wonder my DSLR stays at home more and more these days.