Saturday, Sept. 14 is Maine Open Lighthouse day when many of the lighthouses along the coast of Maine open their doors to the public. Consistent with that theme is the now fourth annual Boothbay Harbor Sunrise Photography Lighthouse cruise scheduled for that same day and hosted by photographer Michael Leonard.

This is a unique opportunity for people to be able to make photographs of the areas lighthouses under the very best lighting — sunrise. Lighthouses mostly face east and with the sun rising in the east the lighthouses will be bathed with some very nice low angle light.

Captain Bill Campbell aboard the Balmy Days will take us to the very best look angles of the region’s four lighthouses including Burnt Island, Ram Island, the Cuckolds and Hendricks Head. Mike will be aboard to offer pointers to help folk make their best shots. We leave the dock at 6 a.m. and will be back by about 8 a.m.

In years past some bonus photo opportunities have included seeing a whale, seals, ospreys and some eagles.

The cruise is suited for people of all photography abilities and gear — from cell phones to advanced DSLR cameras.

People on the cruise will receive a coupon worth $25 to Nations Photo Lab with which they may make fine art prints of the photos taken on the cruise.

Following the cruise there will be an opportunity to buy a ticket to visit Burnt Island where we will tour the light station and the lighthouse.

For more information, go to BalmyDaysCruises.com or to Mike’s website, www.phototourismbymike.com where you can click on the Photo Events tab to see this and other photo activities that are scheduled for the rest of this year.