Boarding Pass: EYW
Still mysterious after all these years.
There’s a singular energy when something very familiar feels new again. I’ve been in love with Key West since the 1990s. It was an intriguing stranger then, and it’s an old friend now. Key West was a tranquil oasis for me during an otherwise relentlessly stressful time in my life. It’s a lot more than Duval Street and Mallory Square to your girl.
Almost ten years had passed since we made one last visit to the Southernmost Point before moving to the Southern Hemisphere for a while. Key West was on my mind. It had been way too long, and now I was a photographer. I had spent most of the past decade as a stranger in various strange lands. It was time to relax in one of my comfort zones.
We flew into Miami and rented a car, traveling through the Keys the way we always did. We made the traditional lunch stop at The Buzzard’s Roost on Key Largo, then set a southwest course for the end of the highway. We rocked up to the Kimpton Key West Lighthouse Hotel, checked in, and prepared for our victorious return to Santiago’s Bodega for tapas on the front porch. After dinner, the camera came out of the bag.
I didn’t really need a map for this one. By staying on Whitehead Street, we were in the heart of Old Town. All I had to do was walk these streets as I had done so many times before, but with my photography eyes on. Darkness was no match for the colors of Key West. I had no lighting with me; I was just working with the ambient. I was trying to take a photo of Jay by the Mile Zero sign, and his face was too dark compared to the backlight. At that moment, a car drove up to the intersection and put its headlights to work as a key light for me just long enough to get the shot. Thanks, kind motorist.
A passing car provided a lighting assist at Mile Marker 0.
Around mid-morning the next day, I thought I would go out and photograph the roosters I had seen up the street the day before. This was September in the Keys, so it was very hot and very, very humid already. As I stepped out of my aggressively air-conditioned room, my lens fogged instantly. Front and back. So I sat gently sunning my new Canon 24mm f/2.8 pancake lens and waited for it to clear. The roosters had been up for hours, they could wait a few more minutes. With a clear lens and a fast shutter, I found those birds and committed them to my sensor.
The plan for that evening was to drive up to a less light-polluted key so I could try astrophotography for the first time. I had bought a used Rokinon 14mm f/2.8 lens just for astro. To my dismay, the clouds I had wished for as I sweatily ran around Old Town all day waited to show up at sunset. I felt bad that Jay had dragged my full-size tripod through the airport and onto the flight, only for it to sit unused in the trunk of the car. I put a travel tripod on my list so I could just slip it in my suitcase next time.
So we hit the Moondog Cafe for dinner, then went out for a little night shooting. Then the rain came, and with it a dash into the nearest convenience store for a plastic bag to use as a makeshift rain cover. Item #2 on the list: rain covers. So cheap. So protective. So stupid that I didn’t have one with me. I bought a 2-pack, so one lives in my camera bag I use at home, and one gets packed for every trip.
Key West photo (and food) map. Click image for interactive map.
Because I knew my way around, I was able to focus on my photography. As I mentioned earlier, I didn’t really need to make a map because Key West was so familiar to me. I made a map retrospectively so you could see where some of my photos were taken, along with some restaurant recommendations if you go. Think about your favorite places, those you return to time after time. You love them for a reason. Maybe it’s been a while. You’ve had lots of experiences since then, photographic and otherwise. Your next trip could feel like the first time. Going back can propel your skills forward.
