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Photographing at the beach: tips and tricks

Beach photography: How to Shoot Great Beach Pictures?

Holidays at the beach are a perfect opportunity for beautiful photos, especially at sunset, but not only then. Here are some tips, tricks and ideas on beach photography and how to enjoy the seaside and take great beach photos in complete serenity.
Example of beach photography

Photo by Sumner Mahaffey on Unsplash

Protect your equipment

First and foremost for beach photography, it is essential to keep your equipment safe. On the beach, sand is your worst enemy. Bring a bag or pouch to store your equipment carefully and avoid changing lenses as much as possible in order to limit dust and sand from getting into the body of your camera. 

Other practical accessories will also allow you to protect your equipment while improving your beach images. A lens hood, for example, is an essential accessory for shooting beach photos. It limits glare, caused by the sunlight directly hitting your lens. Don’t forget your lens cap for added protection when you are not shooting. 

Complementary lens filters such as UV, polarizing, or neutral density filters, further protect your lens, limit optical aberrations, and improve the contrast and exposure of your  beach pics. Between the sea and water, both of which reflect a lot of light, these filters are particularly important for summertime beach shooting. 

The “golden hour” and the “blue hour” : best time to take beach pictures

What is the best time to take beach pictures? For the best seaside pictures, we advise that you seek early morning and late afternoon hours, the best times of the day for beach pictures, to enjoy a softer light and to create more dynamic images. 

If the sun is bright, and you want to take beach pictures at midday, the light is going to be too harsh and will strongly accentuate the shadows, which isn’t always aesthetically pleasing. However, you can take advantage of these conditions the way Martin Parr does in his famous beach pics. If you like harsh light, a neutral density filter will be your best ally in moderating exposure. 

The hours before and after sunrise and sunset, the so-called “blue” and “golden” hours, are your best times to take aesthetic pictures on the beach.

Result of a beach photo shoot

Photo by Sebastien Gabriel on Unsplash

Beach photography settings: Use manual modes

Seaside photographs are often subject to strong light, which causes lots of reflections and drastic contrasts. The automatic exposure settings on your camera may generate high-contrast images, often with an overexposed sky or conversely an underexposed subject.

Adjust your settings for beach photography, and choose spot exposure, which measures the light over a smaller area. 

We also recommend that you use manual modes to control shutter speed, aperture, and/or ISO speed to set the desired exposure. It is best to slightly underexpose, even if it means editing in post-production, rather than the other way around. 

The method of bracketing is useful in this type of situation. This means taking consecutive photos at different exposures in order to bracket the optimal exposure between under- and overexposed images. One may also mount the succession of images together for interesting effect. 

Feel free to play with long exposures to create original seascapes. To do this, it is essential to use a tripod. The neutral density filter will also come in handy to limit overexposure. 

Example of beach photography ideas

Photo by Khürt Williams on Unsplash

Wide angle isn’t everything in beach photography

The seaside is often synonymous with unobstructed views. Wide-angle lenses thus seem the best fit; however, you should not hesitate to listen to your ideas and vary the viewing angles. Longer focal lengths, as in portraiture, can also be used to obtain beautifully blurred backgrounds, to focus on a subject, and make a tighter shot.

After all, the beach is not necessarily the main subject, but can be used as a setting to stage other elements. 

Play with the backlight

Backlighting is often difficult to control, but the beach is one of the best places to make the most of it. The soft light and magnificent colors at sunset or sunrise offer the perfect opportunity to photograph silhouetted passers-by or your model. During those twilight hours, backlighting will be much easier to control than in bright sunlight. 

Sunset is one of the best time to take beach pictures

Photo by Zahed Ahmad on Unsplash

Keep an eye on the horizon 

On the beach, as anywhere else, be sure to keep the horizon level, especially if you’re shooting a seascape. Regardless of your subject, when shooting beach photos against a wide-open expanse, a sloping horizon will particularly stand out and may be enough to spoil the picture. 

If you are on a beach holiday, make sure to follow these tips to shoot aesthetic beach photographs. Take advantage of your leisure time to take pics and let the splendid summer light and your imagination be your guides. 

Work with your beach photos settings to take the best pictures

Photo by Cole Keister on Unsplash

Cover : Photo by Fezbot2000 on Unsplash

By Céline Nebor

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