If you're interested in some excellent beach photography tips, one of the most beautiful things you can take pictures of at the beach is a sunrise. The sun makes an orange warmth, which makes the colours in your pictures really pop, so the morning is usually the best time of day for photographers to walk on the beach and capture some interesting shots. Especially if you are on the East coast of a country, the sun will rise above the ocean, creating breathtaking seascapes.
However, shooting sunrises can be pretty difficult because you have extremely bright light which needs to be balanced out. You can balance it out with ND filters, which work in a similar way to tinted glass and help you to control the light and balance certain areas of the shot. If you really want to shoot incredible sunrise images, you must commit yourself every day to getting up early for at least a month or two. If you get up and go shooting every morning for this long, you will get a few mornings of really crisp top quality light.
Shooting sunsets is rather similar to shooting sunrises. It's best if you use a neutral density grad filter to help you control the light. Another thing would be to use a good F stop, around F11 or F22 depending on what lens you have. Different lenses have different sweet spots but it's important to get as much in focus as possible.
Shooting surf is another thing you may want to do at the beach. For this it is definitely very good to get various angles. A regular surf image will have a front-on angle and a surfer in the middle of the frame. This can make for an uninspiring shot and has been done time after time. To get a more unique picture, get down low on the sand, or up on top of a cliff or a building to get a different angle. Of course, shooting in the water is the best place for shooting surf because you are right there among the waves and the splash. If a surfer is in the tube, you are in that same tube with him or her. It is less common for a photographer to be so close to the subject.
You should always try to make your picture tell a story. One way you can achieve this is to have an unexpected background in the shot, so for example instead of just shooting out towards the horizon, try to get a cliff in the background, or a boat. It will make your images a lot more unique and will also add scale to them.
For taking photos in the ocean, you will have to choose the best possible conditions. Avoid beaches that have strong rip currents. Before entering the water, stand still on the beach for about 10 to 15 minutes and have a look at how strong and exactly where the rips are. See if you will find it difficult to paddle against the current.
The clarity of the water is also very important, especially if you're going to be doing a lot of underwater pictures. If you have a clear day and the tide is incoming, and there hasn't been a big swell or any rain for a long time, the water is going to be crystal clear.
If you can see highly talented surfers in the water, it is definitely worth getting in the water because you'll be able to get much closer to them than intermediate level surfers, making your photos more exciting. A lot of great surfers understand how to work well with photographers and can time their shots well.
The shape of the waves is another factor to consider. Barrels look incredible to shoot inside, but if the waves are not really peeling and are just dribbling it doesn't look as exciting.
Tips for looking after your equipment at the beach
If it's really misty and you're getting a lot of sea breeze from the ocean, don't set foot on the beach or your equipment will get sandy and dusty.
The last thing you want is spray on your lens. If you do, don't wipe it with a lens cloth. First you should let it dry, and after that you will need to use a rocket air to spray off the lens so that all of the dust particles fall off. Once that's done, you can clean the lens. If you try to clean the sand off too early, you may scratch the coating on the lens.
A polarizing filter can be very useful if you're taking photos on the beach, because it will give you some very nice rich, saturated skyscapes and seascapes.
If you're going to be taking shots in humid conditions from a relatively dry, air conditioned room, you will get condensation on the lens and it will be necessary to wait until the lens has warmed up to the outdoor temperature. One way to overcome this is to leave your camera outside before you go out to take photos.
So enjoy it and head down to the beach as soon as you possibly can!
However, shooting sunrises can be pretty difficult because you have extremely bright light which needs to be balanced out. You can balance it out with ND filters, which work in a similar way to tinted glass and help you to control the light and balance certain areas of the shot. If you really want to shoot incredible sunrise images, you must commit yourself every day to getting up early for at least a month or two. If you get up and go shooting every morning for this long, you will get a few mornings of really crisp top quality light.
Shooting sunsets is rather similar to shooting sunrises. It's best if you use a neutral density grad filter to help you control the light. Another thing would be to use a good F stop, around F11 or F22 depending on what lens you have. Different lenses have different sweet spots but it's important to get as much in focus as possible.
Shooting surf is another thing you may want to do at the beach. For this it is definitely very good to get various angles. A regular surf image will have a front-on angle and a surfer in the middle of the frame. This can make for an uninspiring shot and has been done time after time. To get a more unique picture, get down low on the sand, or up on top of a cliff or a building to get a different angle. Of course, shooting in the water is the best place for shooting surf because you are right there among the waves and the splash. If a surfer is in the tube, you are in that same tube with him or her. It is less common for a photographer to be so close to the subject.
You should always try to make your picture tell a story. One way you can achieve this is to have an unexpected background in the shot, so for example instead of just shooting out towards the horizon, try to get a cliff in the background, or a boat. It will make your images a lot more unique and will also add scale to them.
For taking photos in the ocean, you will have to choose the best possible conditions. Avoid beaches that have strong rip currents. Before entering the water, stand still on the beach for about 10 to 15 minutes and have a look at how strong and exactly where the rips are. See if you will find it difficult to paddle against the current.
The clarity of the water is also very important, especially if you're going to be doing a lot of underwater pictures. If you have a clear day and the tide is incoming, and there hasn't been a big swell or any rain for a long time, the water is going to be crystal clear.
If you can see highly talented surfers in the water, it is definitely worth getting in the water because you'll be able to get much closer to them than intermediate level surfers, making your photos more exciting. A lot of great surfers understand how to work well with photographers and can time their shots well.
The shape of the waves is another factor to consider. Barrels look incredible to shoot inside, but if the waves are not really peeling and are just dribbling it doesn't look as exciting.
Tips for looking after your equipment at the beach
If it's really misty and you're getting a lot of sea breeze from the ocean, don't set foot on the beach or your equipment will get sandy and dusty.
The last thing you want is spray on your lens. If you do, don't wipe it with a lens cloth. First you should let it dry, and after that you will need to use a rocket air to spray off the lens so that all of the dust particles fall off. Once that's done, you can clean the lens. If you try to clean the sand off too early, you may scratch the coating on the lens.
A polarizing filter can be very useful if you're taking photos on the beach, because it will give you some very nice rich, saturated skyscapes and seascapes.
If you're going to be taking shots in humid conditions from a relatively dry, air conditioned room, you will get condensation on the lens and it will be necessary to wait until the lens has warmed up to the outdoor temperature. One way to overcome this is to leave your camera outside before you go out to take photos.
So enjoy it and head down to the beach as soon as you possibly can!
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Before you travel to the beach this summer, you may need to learn extra brilliant ideas aside from beach photography tips. We have a huge amount of very helpful articles that will help you to improve your camera skills quickly. travel on over to Digital Camera Review Guru today and start learning from our entertaining resources.
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