Wedding beach photo shoots can always go both ways; It can be an excellent experience for everyone involved, especially since you’ll be working with the backdrop of the peaceful waves, and the calming breeze has always been therapeutic, after all. On the other hand, it can also be very stressful, especially if you have to deal with unpredictable weather and other sandy problems. It can be a dream project that can turn sour if everyone isn’t well-prepared.
For this reason, we have listed down a couple of essential tips to consider before the crew can even begin to hit the shores.
7 Important Tips to Achieve the Best Beach Photo Shoot
When done right, these tips will ensure a great set of photos by the end of the project and minimise the amount of stress that the crew may experience and achieve the best beach photo shoot possible:
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Conceptualise the Angles before the Photoshoot
You have the location and the wedding theme right in front of you, but what about the angles of the couple? Thinking of something on the spot is just going to make your job harder. Before you can even travel towards the location, conceptualise how you will place the cameras and your crew of photographers.
Are you going to shoot at a higher angle, or perhaps shoot from the sides? Do you wish to aim the camera high while you’re crouching? These different angles can yield other effects, and they will all determine whether or not the photos will come outright.
A good piece of advise for any spot you’re heading to – not just for a beach photo shoot – is to scout the location befroehand – either in person or online. Google Earth is an incredible resource to scout around before heading to a spot, and it would also be helpful to check out what other photographers have done at the same location.
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Look Up the Weather Reports before Going to the Venue
One main adversary that a photography crew has is the weather. It may be sunny today, but no one knows whether or not it will remain that way until tomorrow. Luckily, various weather reports on TV and the internet will tell you whether or not it would be a good idea to proceed with the photo shoot today.
This is crucial, especially if you’re planning to take pictures by the beachside. You wouldn’t want the bride and groom to be soaked wet once the waves start splashing in. If you want to have a clear day of photo shoots, choose a month with the least amount of storms and pick out a day that you’ll think will not ruin the whole project.
Best way to check on the day for any poor weather is using the radar apps freely available on any smartphone.
All this being said though, depending on how adventurous your bride and groom is, you can get some incredible shots in the rain – on the beach with a storm in the background!
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Pick the Appropriate Shoes for the Occasion
So, you’re planning to shoot on the sand. If that’s the case, you may advise the bride to wear her flats instead of her heels. It is hard enough to try to pose in a tight wedding dress, but it’s much harder to walk on sand if your heels are digging deep enough to plant your feet.
Even if they’re insisting on wearing their heels, explain the whole situation to them. Let them know that they can wear their heels during the wedding day within the comforts of their wedding venue, but they have to wear their flats on the day of the beach photoshoot unless they are planning on getting stuck on the sand.
Your own shoes is probably something to think about too – I personally always wear dress shoes to a wedding which get destroyed in salty water, so if you have the chance, change to some run about sneakers – or even thongs.
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Choose the Appropriate Colors for the Photoshoot
If you want the bride and groom to stand out against the sun’s rays and complement their backdrop, you may choose the colours red, fuchsia, and yellow. These may be bright colours, but they will not camouflage the subject of your photos with the brightness of the day.
On a wedding day – naturally most of the time the bride will be wearing white, which really makes for a nice beach vibe, but can be tricky to expose correctly on a sunny day with so many bright, light colours about. Be sure to expose for the white dress first and foremost, despite everything being under exposed – shadows can be brought back with modern camera – but blown out white wedding dresses cannot!
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Choose Activities Instead of Mere Poses
The best thing about beach photo shoots is that they give the photographers a chance to put their creativity into play. The couple may stroll along the shores, swim in shallow waters, and even build sandcastles, so long as they will not end up doing cliche poses that almost all brides and grooms do on their wedding photos.
If your client wants something unique, suggest this concept to them and feel free to let them know its overall appeal. After all, you are not just taking pictures of people in formal dresses doing typical romantic poses; almost anyone can do that. You are capturing their moments, a segment of their life that separates them from their average days.
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Pick Out a Day Where People Aren’t Flocking to the Beach
It’s hard to achieve the perfect shot when the wind and the sun aren’t cooperating with you, but it’s much harder to regulate other people casually strolling in the background. Yes, some modern software will enable you to edit them out in the post-photography stage, but if there are too many of them, it may be time-consuming and useless since too many edits may ruin the whole image.
Pick out a day when tourists and locals aren’t flocking to the beach for a swim. Don’t schedule your shoots on the weekend; instead, pick out a day in the middle of the week, where people are mostly in their offices. Your client will appreciate your choice, especially since most couples would like to keep their wedding preparations under wraps. This is important, especially if your client is a well-known personality.
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Wear Comfortable Clothes for the Photoshoot
The bride and groom may need to be well-dressed for the shoot, but that principle doesn’t apply to the photography crew. The latter is required to dress so that their movements will not be limited while doing their job. Photographers usually have to stand, crouch, lean, sir, and even lay flat at times just to achieve the perfect shot.
Wearing clothes that may restrict them from doing those positions may be detrimental to their work overall. Encourage your crew to wear light clothes as well, since you are at the beach and wearing layer after layer of fabric may get them dehydrated due to the heat.
Achieving the best beach photo shoot isn’t easy. There is a lot of planning and preparations to be done for the whole project to go smoothly. As a photographer, it’s your job to ensure your clients’ safety, convenience, and privacy.
If the bride and the groom are comfortable with what they are doing and sincerely happy throughout the whole shoot, they will be able to express more raw emotions that you can capture on the fly. Just be sure to follow the tips above, and you’re on your way to having the best photoshoot ever.
If you’re planning to have your wedding day soon, chances are you are looking for a studio that can provide the best wedding photography in Adelaide. In that case, we at the Sven Studios are at your service. We craft only the most precious memories of your wedding day in a fun and relaxing way. Contact us now so we can discuss more your wedding themes and plans!
