How to Photograph the Sea Coast
Coastal Photos Present Challenges As Well as Opportunities
All the usual rules and principles of landscape photography apply at the coast, together with a few that are special to this environment.
Whether at sunrise or sunset, in a violent storm or looking out over a calm, sparkling ocean, a natural, unspoilt expanse of coast offers a limitless range of beauty and photographic opportunities. Amateur and professional snappers alike are frequently drawn to the seaside, and coastal settings account for some stunning examples of landscape photography.
But for every stunning shot there are countless failures. Disappointments often arise because our sense of beauty and wonder comes from the wide, all-round expanse of sky and sea, and the movement and drama of clouds and waves, which are difficult to capture convincingly within a single frame. As with all kinds of photography, a little planning and some guiding principles will increase your chances of success.
Proven approaches
At the coast all the usual landscape "rules" apply, as well as a few that are special to this environment. A good tripod and graduated neutral density filter are essential, and a polarizing filter can be useful. A spirit level on the camera or tripod will help keep your horizons level.
In areas where there is a big tidal range different sea levels open the way for completely different kinds of shots, so a set of local tide tables will help you plan your trips. Look for those few days each month when the low tide coincides with sunrise or sunset.
The 'rule of thirds' is always a good guiding principle for composing landscapes. At the coast you will usually want to avoid filling large parts of the frame with almost featureless sky or sea. When you can work with interesting cloudscapes, having the horizon a third of the way up from the bottom of the frame can work well; otherwise make it a third of the way down from the top.
As with all landscapes, diagonals leading into the picture are often effective while horizontal lines right across the frame may look like boundaries and are best avoided. When the sea is a large part of the picture, a way of escape, or a route out to the open ocean beyond a reef or headland, can strengthen a coastal composition.
Working with the light
As always you will work with the light, and the ocean offers plenty of opportunities for interesting reflections and highlights, especially around sunrise or sunset or at almost any time in the winter if you work in the higher latitudes.
Get down to the shoreline, especially at low tide. Being low down increases scope for interesting foregrounds and for balancing the shot so the flat surface of the sea does not take up too much of the frame.
One of the attractions of the natural coastline is the raw, exposed nature of the geology, boulders and vegetation, especially when the tide falls and reveals a fresh, colourful and sparkling micro-landscape whose intricate patterns can be nicely enhanced by a careful mix of light and shadow.
Capturing movement
The movement of the sea is a special feature of coastal landscapes. Breaking surf can make prominent white lines, so good timing in relation to the movements of the waves can make the difference between dull and interesting shots.
A calm or a dramatically turbulent ocean, and anything in between, can serve as the basis for good pictures. A long exposure of breaking or swirling waves can create a ghostly, ethereal effect, although handled badly it can look surreal or fake. A fast shutter speed can bring out the details of the surf and spray. But it is worth trying something in between, a shutter speed that gives a motion blur and a stronger impression of movement.
Being able to change the ISO on the fly, shot by shot, is one of the great advantages of digital photography and allows us to change the shutter speed without changing any other settings. It is a good way to experiment when photographing the sea.
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