David clapp’s ten tips for Seaside Scenes

1 all about Lighting

whenever approaching your shoot it’s important to follow one fundamental – light. but it’s not just about the golden hour, like in our shoot, wonderful lighting can be available throughout the day, just wait for it.

2 a sense of dimension

use lighting angles to give your boats and harbours a sense of dimension. Side lighting will help the viewer understand the size and length of a boat. observe your surroundings carefully, there’s rarely a rush.

3 a Question of Glass

a two lens setup should work perfectly well. a 2470mm and 70-300mm will be your best friends when shooting harbours. a super wide 16-35mm comes into its own on rugged beaches, for dynamic photography and large foreground interest.

4 step Forward – Zoom out

if you frame your subject but the balance just isn’t right, try walking a few steps forwards and zooming out. the foreground will grow as the background diminishes, altering the dynamics of a composition.

5 step Back – Zoom in

if you wish to compress the subject and its setting, step back and zoom in. the foreground will shrink and the background will enlarge. brilliant for changing the perspective and relationship with what’s in frame.

6 polarize it

if there is one filter to have in the bag, it’s a polarizer. not only is this useful for enriching weak skies with punch, but polarizers also cuts reflection off the water surface and adds additional colour to the sea, perfect for harbours and coastline.

7 a Filtered Brew

long exposures can be achieved in lower light, but try using a 6- or 10-stop nd filter to add something to the waves. a 10-stop reduces shutter speeds but a 6-stop is far more versatile in both day and evening light.

8 a solid platform, but not at the start

Do not tether yourself to the tripod before you have any idea what to shoot. walk around with your camera and make your decisions before attaching it to the tripod.

9 the changing tide

know your tides, not only for safety reasons but for compositions too. a falling tide expands your working area rather than reducing it.

10 Kitchen Roll and Lots of it

tear up pieces of kitchen roll and fold them. put them in a sandwich bag and keep them in your pocket. if waves splash the front of the lens, you’ll be glad you did this as kitchen roll will soak up the water.