It is a great idea to add beach shoots to your boudoir photography business. After all, swimsuit poses are the same as those used in boudoir photography. Working outside the studio can boost your creativity as you work with different light and environmental backgrounds. Not to mention adding another style to your business will add extra income.
However there are some areas to be conscious of when shooting on the beach. Here are my 5 tips for beach shoots.
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Tip 1 – Protect your equipment
The last thing you possibly want is to get sand or salt water near your expensive lens or camera. Buy a plastic rain sleeve and use it to protect your expensive camera and lens while on the beach.
Alternatively if you want to be super cheap, use a plastic shower cap covering the back of the camera and half the lens and secure with a rubber band or hair tie.
While we’re discussing protecting your equipment, this may seem obvious but don’t leave your equipment down within metres of the water edge. The tide can come in quickly and unfortunately more than once my client and I have set our belongings down a long way from the water edge, only to have it swept away! Learn from my mistakes and place any items much further away then you initially expect.
Tip 2 – Beware the hair
It is a good idea to choose a beach area protected from strong wind. Some beaches are windier than others, particularly open beaches without lots of trees and cliffs to break up the wind. The windswept look is one of the benefits of shooting outside. The wind coming towards your subject’s face or to their side would be ideal, however often the wind is coming from the ocean and if you have your subject’s back to the ocean in order to capture the water, the hair will become unruly.
I also suggest lots of hairspray when heading to the beach.
It is also useful to take a comb or brush and handheld mirror to the shoot in case it is needed to tame that hair or comb out those inevitable knots. For quick access to these items, while keeping my hands free at a beach shoot, this makeup belt comes in handy.
Tip 3 – Consider the day
Shooting boudoir inside the studio is scary enough for the client, but add in the public being around watching them pose can greatly increase the anxiety level. For this reason I like to book my beach shoots on weekdays during school terms so the beach is more secluded. This dramatically reduces the number of people on the beach and also reduces the client’s anxiety.
Tip 4 – Don’t worry too much about the location
The outdoor area doesn’t need to be amazing, only a small patch of water and sand is required. I live an hour from the actual beach, however I often shoot at a more convenient spot 15 minutes from my home. Rather than the ocean, it is just the river, and the sand and water is quite brown, as seen in the image below. But all that is need is a patch of sand and water backdrop, so don’t overthink it. A beautiful subject, gorgeous backlight and shallow depth of field can turn a dreary background into a great one. When backlighting just remember to use a reflector to bounce light back into the face, I use a 5-in-1 version.
Tip 5 – Consider a change area
Often the change area will be quite far from the beach so unless you want the client to disappear for 10 minutes at a time you need to have an option for her to get changed in public. I used different ones depending on the client and the situation.
Option 1 First you might want to consider purchasing an ensuite tent. These are sold with camping gear as they are often used as bathrooms when camping. They are very affordable. The stakes will need to be put into the ground so the tent don’t fly away with the wind.
Option 2 Purchase a change towel. It is similar to a towel but the clasp means it will stay on them and not fall down, and it also provides more space than a towel as they change their bikini tops and bottoms.
Option 3 Just hold a towel or the reflector up to shield the client from prying eyes.
So those are my 5 tips for shooting at the beach, I hope you have found them helpful.