Elisabeth Charmley

Photographer | Naval Architect

Born on the West Coast of British Columbia and immersed in the coastal sailing culture from a young age, I’ve always had an innate love of ships and being on the water. I remember very clearly the first time my Dad put a camera in my hands, explained about aperture, shutter speed and ISO settings and let me loose on the world. I’m not sure which I loved more, sailing or photography, but as I grew, so did my passion and skill in both.

I’ve worked across Canada, Europe and Asia, visiting ships in dry dock as an owner’s representative for the structural survey as part of their class renewal. Company camera in hand, I’ve been there for sunrise, sunset, and all the phases of repair that the ships experience during that ten-day period that makes dry docking such a unique experience. When you see the ships in these photos, you see the ships through my eyes. In reality, a ship repair yard is a dirty and rough environment, filled with loud noises and safety procedures to be followed, but when you love the ships, every time you look up, you see something beautiful. I’ve done my best to capture those moments of beauty in these images.

When I’m not on site I take pleasure in supporting a fleet of 107 operating container ships with my naval architecture expertise and extensive knowledge of ship operations. In the eight years I’ve been with my current employer I’ve been on emergency response teams for operational issues, led projects that supported millions of dollars worth of upgrades and retrofits for the ships which have resulted in massive energy savings, as well as led project teams and traveled internationally to advance and innovate how the shipping industry does business. This experience and the projects I have led have made me a leader in my field.

Another area I am passionate about is industry involvement. I firmly believe that siloed knowledge is useless knowledge, and that the sharing of information and experience is key to ensuring our industry evolves in the right direction and becomes a better place for the next generation. Currently, so much of what I do is tied to reducing green house gas emissions and the fuel consumption of the ships. I love working on these projects because it reduces the impact on the environment through reduction of green house gas emissions (GHG’s), particulate matter and air pollutants.

To this end, internationally, I am an active participant with the National Association of Corrosion Engineers (NACE) as a member of their coatings council. I am also a member of their Bio-fouling Management technology exchange group, and past Chair of a committee that is writing the worlds first dry dock standard for Hull Surface Maintenance and Repair. Additionally, I currently hold the seat of Vice President, Canada West, for the Women’s International Shipping & Trading Association (WISTA) and am a past advisor to their Futures & Technology Committee for the Alternative Fuels work group.

On a local scale, I am the co-founder and Board Chair of a not for profit organization, the Vancouver Maritime Centre for Climate (VMCC), a grass roots industry led initiative dedicated to reducing GHG emissions in the maritime and shipping sectors primarily, but not limited to, the South Western region of British Columbia, Canada. I also volunteer with the Engineers and Geoscientists of British Columbia (EGBC) as a member of their Scholarship Adjudication Committee.

If you have any questions about what I do, be it with the ships or as a naval architect, please reach out to me via the contact page. I’m always happy to chat.