By Erin Hogue @erinhogue
hogueeducation.com, photographymentorhipprogram.com
Why Ucluelet Is a Photographer’s Dream
At the end of the road on British Columbia’s west coast lies Ucluelet, a rugged stretch of coastline that feels raw, wild, and mostly untouched. It’s where the forest meets the sea, and where slowing down isn’t optional – it’s part of the rhythm of the place.
That is what keeps me coming back. Over and over. It’s not just the views, but the stillness that comes with being here. It forces you to be present, to watch the light shift slowly across the horizon, and to notice the quiet details hidden in between.
The Adventure of Accessing Remote Coastal Landscapes
For this trip, the goal was simple: to explore these remote locations and capture their beauty. For me with landscape photography, the journey is often as important as the photographs themselves. Whether it’s by boat, exploring a remote trail, or scrambling over rugged coastline – the obstacles that were overcome to capture the photograph become part of the image itself.
We camped on a remote island off Ucluelet’s coast, surrounded by 360 degrees of breath-taking views. From the same spot we could watch the sun peak over the horizon and sunset fade into the sea. Once you arrive, the calm is undeniable. For me that space and stillness is what sparks creativity.
Shooting with the Sony A9 III in Ucluelet
For this shoot, I worked with the Sony A9 III paired with the Sony 16–35mm G Master lens—a combination built for landscapes. The 16–35mm allowed me to pull in the full sweep of the coastline, capturing the scale of the forest against the vast expanse of the sea and distant mountains.
What stood out most was the A9 III’s dynamic range. It is able to capture every subtle detail —shadows in the mossy forest, highlights glinting across the water—all balanced naturally. No filters and no heavy editing. Just clean, vibrant images straight out of the camera.
And then there’s the global shutter. When the light broke through the clouds for only a few seconds, I could trust that every frame would be captured distortion-free and true to what I was seeing. In fast-changing coastal conditions, that reliability makes all the difference.
The Value of Slow Travel in Landscape Photography
What I love most about photographing landscapes like this isn’t just the image itself—it’s the experience behind it. Being in Ucluelet reminded me why slowing down matters. Creativity comes from presence, from giving yourself over to the wildness of a place, and from letting it shape the way you see.
With the Sony A9 III and 16–35mm G Master lens, that experience translates seamlessly into the frame. The adventure of getting there, the stillness once you arrive, the spark of creativity that follows—it all lives inside the photograph.
Ucluelet is proof that some of the best images come not from rushing, but from slowing down, immersing yourself fully, and letting the place leave its mark on you.