How I took beautiful photos at the beach, despite the awful weather

If you live in a region that isn’t blessed with wall-to-wall sunshine, then making a trip to the beach, even in the middle of summer, can be a frustrating exercise. I set off for a traditional vacation resort, armed with a camera and enough spare change for the dubious arcade machines, but when I got there, despite it being in the middle of June, it was cold, rainy, and windy. No wonder the beach was largely empty, save for one brave soul feeding the seagulls.

The North Pier at Blackpool, in the northwest of England, was no better, devoid of visitors, manned only by the stoic operator of a fairground ride. So, if the sun doesn’t shine, what can you do? Well, let’s discover what to shoot when the weather doesn’t cooperate, starting with what was on the pier itself.

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Boardwalks and piers

Look out for classic and colorful fairground rides on the pier and shoot with a wide angle lens and f/8 aperture (Image credit: Future)

Piers or boardwalks have plenty of real estate, so it’s not a surprise to find fairground rides situated on them. For rides, use a wide-angle lens and an f/8 aperture, then focus on the part of the ride nearest to you. The same applies to things like the ornate booths and kiosks that are on the pier.

An alternative is to use the planks, as most piers or boardwalks are made from wood, to lead the eye from the foreground through to the background. On murky days, make the photo symmetrical and consider converting the image to mono. Older structures may also feature interesting ironwork, lending itself to abstract or even macro photography.

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Discover interesting people and use your 50mm lens with an f/2 aperture. This is Ann Chesters, ride operator on the North Pier — Discover interesting people and use your 50mm lens with an f/2 aperture(Image credit: Future)

Head inland and into the town

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Capture the colourful elements associated with a traditional day at the seaside. Look out for spades, candy floss and coloured rock — Capture the colorful elements associated with a traditional day at the seaside. Look out for spades, candy floss, and colorful candy (Image credit: Future)

I moved away from the beach and boardwalk/pier to the seaside town itself and discovered colorful displays of plastic spades, candy, and other elements of a cheap and cheerful day out at the beach. Consider using a wide aperture to isolate these elements from their busy backgrounds. When I happened upon a poor horse pulling a gaudy carriage along the seafront, I opened up the aperture and focused on the animal’s eyes. You can also use a telephoto lens to pick out interesting shop signs and parts of attractions.

Doom and decay

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As the words on the door duly affirm, this is the result of decades of decay(Image credit: Future)

Unfortunately, the heyday of some beach resorts is long gone, leading to decline and decay. Graffiti-daubed walls and boarded-up houses are all examples of this. If you want to document the plight of someone on the street, I always make sure to ask their permission before taking a photograph and see what help I can offer in return, whether that’s a few dollars, some food or toiletries. Use a portrait lens or short telephoto, anything from 50-85mm, use a wide aperture, f/1.4 or so, and focus on your subject’s eyes.

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Micro Four Thirds system cameras are ideal for a day out at the seaside and capturing candids on the streets due to their small form factor. Here’s a roundup of the best ones this year. Alternatively, you can save space but retain image quality with a full-frame compact camera. And if you can’t rely on the weather, make sure you bring a good-quality camera backpack.

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