Yesterday began the summer (at least in Spain) and there are many of us who are dragged with it like a magnet to the seashore. The beach is our refuge, what charges us batteries, our Zen place. If you are one of these people, it is likely that you are already enjoying it or that you are packing. That is why today I am going to give you a few tips to take pictures on the beach. If you are in the southern hemisphere, even if you are not suffering the same heats as we do and do not need the sea to cool off, it does not imply that it is not pleasant to walk along the shore or that you have some advantages that right now here we are very far from enjoying , such as an empty cove or a storm at sea. You stay?
1. MANAGE LIGHT WELL
Light is the most important element in a photograph, something that we repeat in the blog often and that we will not stop doing. Because it is like that. There is no other, just as two plus two are four no matter how much we want to be original or provide new information. I insist today with the issue of light because on the beach, many times you sin too much. People usually go down around noon and want to have their memories of those moments, what happens is that in those hours the sun causes a very hard light, creating very marked shadows and removing details. Another mistake very repeated by beginners is trying to achieve the silky effect when there is a lot of light. This does not mean that you cannot take photos at the central times of the day, but that you should know what type of images are best with this light. For example, hard light enhances the bright blue of the water, so if you want to highlight turquoise waters of a bright white sand, that will be the best moment. However, for a portrait, you better wait for Lorenzo to come down or place your model under the umbrella or in some shade. If you are going to photograph a group of people, avoid that some are in the sun and others in the shade. To have soft or diffused light take advantage of sunrise or sunset. On the other hand, being the sand a powerful reflector you must be careful when exposing, if the subject of exposing and measuring scares you or you do not know very well what I am talking about.2. APPLY THE RULES
As much as the landscape is spectacular or the moment worth immortalizing, as you do not compose the elements in an attractive way, the image will be flat, empty, absent of interest. Remember that there are rules, such as the horizon or three thirds, and skip them only and only when you have a clear intention.3. NO MORE CROOKED HORIZONS (PLEASE!)
Unless you have a clear intention, very, very justified, get the horizon straight. If you do not succeed when shooting, do not hesitate to pass your image through an editor and straighten it. Otherwise, you will ruin the photo. If I squeak something from the image above, that's it. Although in this case it is only one millimeter, it is enough to damage your eyesight.4. TAKE ADVANTAGE OF NATURAL FRAMES
Natural framing is a compositional resource that you can use to add appeal to your photography. The beach can offer you many possibilities, if you don't believe me, here is an example.5. GUIDE THE VIEWER'S GAZE
Use any element of the scene that helps you guide the viewer's gaze in your photography. Footprints, waves, repeated patterns any line that drives attention as and where you want will add appeal to your images.6. ADD DEPTH
When passing a two-dimensional landscape there are so many elements that are lost along the way that it is very easy for you to get a flat result, in every sense of the word. There are some tricks to avoid this, one of them is to add depth to the scene. How can you get it? It includes elements in the different planes, both in the foreground and in the background. Look at the following image.7. CHANGE THE POINT OF VIEW
A different perspective can turn a picture completely. You can go from achieving an image without interest to get a spectacular image simply by changing the angle from which to shoot . Do not limit yourself to photographing at eye level, at that sight we are already so accustomed that it does not tell us anything new, get down, get on the rocks, shoot from a boat but move and surprise. This resource can also be used to change funds. If you want to portray your children on the shore and the beach is very busy, change the perspective to make bathers disappear.8. LOOK AROUND
As tempting as the sea is, it catches the eye to an almost hypnotic point, sometimes it is also interesting to take a look around and discover the landscapes that the sea has drawn. Rocks, mountains, dunes or other natural elements that shake hands with the ocean can be very worthy of being photographed.9. TELL STORIES
The beach is a wonderful setting to tell stories. Write micro stories with your camera taking advantage of a location where the film industry gives cakes Here is a guide to tell stories through your photos.10. CAPTURE MOMENTS AND EMOTIONS
I like the word "snapshot" much more than "photography" for what it implies. A snapshot is not simply drawing with light, it is capturing that moment, that moment that you want to keep in your retina forever, goes far beyond light or technical details. It is going straight to feelings. Surely on the beach you find a lot of those moments that inspire you tenderness, nostalgia, joy ... Do not let them pass.11. PUT RHYTHM ON YOUR IMAGE
On the beach, as in any other scenario, you will find repetition patterns that you can use to print rhythm to your image and I do not mean the song of the summer . There are many ways to do it, Alexa tells you here.12. GET SOME OF YOUR BEST PORTRAITS
The beach, in addition to offering impressive backgrounds and spectacular natural light at sunset or sunrise, gives you water, an element that works wonderfully as a co-star in a portrait. Here are some tips for taking amazing portraits with water (or in the water).13. TAKE PHOTOS UNDERWATER
Today there are many mobile phones that you can immerse and that have high quality cameras. If you are lucky enough to have one of them or an aquatic housing, no matter how much you have the possibility of using the pools to shoot underwater, do not waste the photographing under the sea, because there is nothing like the light, the colors and the backgrounds that the ocean offers you. Let your imagination fly to achieve spectacular underwater photographs and take advantage of the brightest moments, in this case, noon is a fantastic option to press the button.14. USE POLARIZING FILTERS
A tool that can help you with the handling of light or with color management, are polarizing filters , do not be afraid to use them.15. PRACTICE LONG EXPOSURE PHOTOGRAPHY
If you have not yet experimented with the long exposure, I recommend that you try on the beach and practice the silky effect at sea, you will not regret it! Of course, a tripod is essential and do it when there is almost no light.16. DON'T FORGET BLACK AND WHITE
We will not deny that one of the biggest attractions of the beach is the blue of the sea. That does not mean that there are moments or snapshots that cannot be dressed in black and white .17. PROTECT YOUR CAMERA
If you want an excuse to change cameras and you plan to throw yours in the trash, the best thing you can do is leave it on the sand or let it enter. If it is not your case, take care of it. Protecting it is not leaving it at home, it is to ensure that it does not fall using the strap, do not leave it on the sand (never, in any case) and store it in its case when you are not using it. This tip will not help you to take pictures today but you must follow it if you want to shoot again tomorrow I could keep telling you to take advantage of capturing textures in the sand, photographing crabs or conches with a macro, play with forced perspective, get spectacular landscapes at sunset or sunrise , and so on. But no, I'm going to stop here because I don't want to have you reading all day, but take advantage of your vacation to have fun with your camera. With these seventeen tips you have plenty of material to hang your camera around your neck and go to the beach without further delay than a small pause to share this article if you found it interesting. Thank you and see you next time!