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, taking photos of sunrises can be very challenging because you are dealing with very bright light which needs to be balanced out. You can do this with ND filters, which work like tinted glass and enable you to control the light and balance specific areas of the picture. If you really plan to shoot excellent sunrise pictures, you have to commit yourself every day to getting up early for a minimum of one month or two. If you go and do photography every morning for this amount of time, you will get several mornings of brilliantly crisp top quality light.
Capturing pictures of sunsets is fairly similar to shooting sunrises. You'll be best off using an ND grad filter to let you control the light. Another thing to consider is using a good F stop, say around F11 or F22 depending on what lens you have. Different lenses have their sweet spots but it's important to get a lot in focus.
Shooting surf is another thing you may want to do at the beach. For this it is beneficial to get various angles. A regular surf photo will have a front-on angle and the surfer will be in the middle of the frame. This can make for a pretty boring shot and has been seen time and time again. For a more interesting shot, get down low on the sand, or up on top of a cliff or a building to get a new angle. Of course, shooting in the ocean is the best place for shooting surf because you are in the middle of it, among the waves and the splash. If a surfer is in the tube, you are right there in that tube with him or her. It is less common for a photographer to be so near 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 need to have the best possible conditions. Stay away from beaches that have a lot of rip currents. Before you enter the water, stand still on the beach for about 10 to 15 minutes and work out how strong and where the rips are. See if it's going to be 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 spot highly skilled surfers in the ocean, it is definitely worth swimming with them because you'll be able to get a lot closer to them than surfers who are not so gifted, meaning that your shots will be more intense. Many talented surfers know how to work well with photographers and can time their shots well.
The shape of the waves is another factor to be aware of. Barrels look wonderful to shoot inside, but if the waves are not really peeling and are just dribbling it doesn't look as exciting.
How to look 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.
You don't need spray on your lens. If your lens does get covered in spray, don't wipe it with a lens cloth. You have to let it dry, then you should ideally use a rocket air to spray off the lens so that all of the dust particles fall off. After this step, you can wipe your lens. If you try to wipe 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 stepping out into humid conditions from a dry air conditioned area, you might notice condensation on the lens and it will be necessary to wait until the lens has warmed up to the same temperature as outside. One way to overcome this is to leave your camera outside (somewhere where it won't get damaged or stolen before you step out to take photos.
So enjoy it and head down to the beach as soon as you possibly can!
However, taking photos of sunrises can be very challenging because you are dealing with very bright light which needs to be balanced out. You can do this with ND filters, which work like tinted glass and enable you to control the light and balance specific areas of the picture. If you really plan to shoot excellent sunrise pictures, you have to commit yourself every day to getting up early for a minimum of one month or two. If you go and do photography every morning for this amount of time, you will get several mornings of brilliantly crisp top quality light.
Capturing pictures of sunsets is fairly similar to shooting sunrises. You'll be best off using an ND grad filter to let you control the light. Another thing to consider is using a good F stop, say around F11 or F22 depending on what lens you have. Different lenses have their sweet spots but it's important to get a lot in focus.
Shooting surf is another thing you may want to do at the beach. For this it is beneficial to get various angles. A regular surf photo will have a front-on angle and the surfer will be in the middle of the frame. This can make for a pretty boring shot and has been seen time and time again. For a more interesting shot, get down low on the sand, or up on top of a cliff or a building to get a new angle. Of course, shooting in the ocean is the best place for shooting surf because you are in the middle of it, among the waves and the splash. If a surfer is in the tube, you are right there in that tube with him or her. It is less common for a photographer to be so near 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 need to have the best possible conditions. Stay away from beaches that have a lot of rip currents. Before you enter the water, stand still on the beach for about 10 to 15 minutes and work out how strong and where the rips are. See if it's going to be 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 spot highly skilled surfers in the ocean, it is definitely worth swimming with them because you'll be able to get a lot closer to them than surfers who are not so gifted, meaning that your shots will be more intense. Many talented surfers know how to work well with photographers and can time their shots well.
The shape of the waves is another factor to be aware of. Barrels look wonderful to shoot inside, but if the waves are not really peeling and are just dribbling it doesn't look as exciting.
How to look 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.
You don't need spray on your lens. If your lens does get covered in spray, don't wipe it with a lens cloth. You have to let it dry, then you should ideally use a rocket air to spray off the lens so that all of the dust particles fall off. After this step, you can wipe your lens. If you try to wipe 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 stepping out into humid conditions from a dry air conditioned area, you might notice condensation on the lens and it will be necessary to wait until the lens has warmed up to the same temperature as outside. One way to overcome this is to leave your camera outside (somewhere where it won't get damaged or stolen before you step 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'll probably want to learn extra great ideas aside from beach photography tips. Our main website has an ever growing amount of very useful 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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