 Ray |
How to shoot daylight photos at the beach My daughter is going to shoot a couple of friends at Laguna Beach on Sat. at around sunset, She wants to shoot color prints & b&w. What's the best film? And also some advice on filters. Thanx.
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John P. Sandstedt |
You didn't say what camera she'll be using so, because you asked about filters, I'll assume an SLR [35mm.] Color print or slide film. Both have advantages and diadvantages. I'd opt for print film because of greater latitude; I'm also partial to Fuji Superia [ISO 200 or 400 for this "job" (for color).] Of course, there are several Kodak choices; my preference is always for Fuji when shooting landscapes. A circular polarizing filter! Because she'll lose almost two stops, ISO 400 film will provide more utility. However, some will argue there will be more grain. This has not been my experience taking sunset shots on the Jersey Shore, on Caribbean Islands, in Hawaii, on a number of cruises. She should adjust the position of the polarizer before each shot for maximum effect. For silhouttes, she should take meter readings off the sky. For backlit portraits, she should use spot metering on her subject's face, if the camera has that capability. If not, shee should bring the camera close to the subject's face, take and use that reading. [I assume frontlighting is not being considered as she'd lose the whole sunset impact.] She should always bracket exposures. That is, she should take the same picture at exposures above and below that determined by the camera. For example, assume the meter says f/8 at 125th sec. She should also take shots at f/5.6 and f/11. She could also vary the shutter speed, holding the f/8 aperture setting. With film, she should bracket at no less than one full stop. That's because most computerized developing machines won't recognize the bracketting and try to make middle ground corrections. Make sure she/you tell the developing service you've used bracketting. As always, she should use a tripod if that's practical. Obviously, if the subjects are moving along the beach, this may not be possible. For black and white pictures, I'd recommend the old standard, Kodak Tri-X. It's a workhorse film that everyone can develop. It won't give the "grainlessnss of T-Max," but it's utility and overall quality have stood the test of many, many years for amateurs and professional alike.
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Ray |
Thank you, John you have helped alot. We are both new at photography and can use all the help we can get, so thanks again. Ray
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