Beach Photos?

I have read my manual and looked over it quite a few times and have learned a few things about my camera but I have decided to just mainly Google everything and look on this forum for more information about how to fully work my camera because I honestly believe that the manual is hard to understand (for me, that is).

Anyways, I may be going to the beach soon so I want to be able to take good photos. I have yet to take photos with the Canon 70-200mm L (non IS) lens on a sunny day because it seems that every time I have the opportunity to take some great photos, it's either raining or very cloudy.

I am wondering what would be the best shutter speed, aperture and ISO to set my camera at when at the beach.

I will be taking pictures of the ocean, beach, sunset, the pier and the boardwalk, just to give you some ideas of what I will be taking photos of. Does anyone have any recommended settings for any of these?

This trip is going to be quite important and special so I need the photos to be good and since I may be going soon, I don't want to come back from the trip and upload the photos and have them look like crap. I need them to look really nice and I know that most of that is going to rely on the person behind the camera but then again, it would really be helpful to me if anyone could give me any recommended settings for any of the above (ocean, beach, sunset, pier, boardwalk, etc).

I use a T2i and a Canon 70-200mm f4 L (non IS).

There's no such thing as "best" settings, only settings that deliver the results you're looking for. I'd start with your camera in AV mode at ISO 100 and go from there. Play around with different apertures, and exposure compensation values depending on what you're choosing to meter off of.

Do a google search and read up on the Sunny 16 Rule. This is good starting point.

Here is a link with some info for you.

https://sites.google.c​om …unny16rule--exposurechart

Nightdiver13 wrote in post #15675845
There's no such thing as "best" settings, only settings that deliver the results you're looking for. I'd start with your camera in AV mode at ISO 100 and go from there. Play around with different apertures, and exposure compensation values depending on what you're choosing to meter off of.

Good advice here. I'd also use spot metering and be ready with the EC. Bright sunlight, water and sand will drive your meter crazy.

Get comfortable with the light metering function on your camera. And, remember that it is just a guide. You will have to adjust exposure appropriately for your subject, and that may require overesposing to ensure your subject is properly exposed.

This may lead to blown out highlights, especially on a sunny day. So, get comfortable with the hightlight alert function. This will show all areas that are overexposed in black so that you know if the region of interest is properply exposed.

If you're not into reading the manual Canon has a nice starter guide that can help get you started: http://web.canon.jp …g/enjoydslr/par​t1/1B.html

Whatever settings keep your camera at a shutter speed faster than ~1/250th sec. At 200mm, depending on how stable you are, you will want a shutter speed fast enough to handhold and that is usually 1/focal length aka at 200mm you will want 1/200th sec. For me I usually use ISO-400 when walking around in the daylight. This allows me to choose from any aperture without having to change anything else. Even if I shoot f/8 I can get enough light with ISO-400 to handhold.

If this trip and the photos are as important as you say, I strongly suggest you start practicing your photography now, taking into account the suggestions from the users here. Learn how to operate the camera controls and how they work to produce a photo. If all else fails, the T2i has "Scene" modes with preconfigured settings for specific situations. I believe there is a Beach setting.

Keep in mind, the lighting on the beach is very bright on a sunny day. The exposure metering in the camera will try to dim this light down, resulting in photos that are dark and underexposed. If you shoot in Av mode, you will want to move your Exposure Compensation up at least +1 stop to account for this and get properly exposed photos. Similarly, at sunset, the scene will likely be somewhat dark and the camera will want to brighten it up, resulting in an overexposed image with washed out colors. To keep the scene darker and more like you see it, move your exposure compensation to at least -1.

You mention that the trip is important and special, so you want to make sure the photos turn out well. In that case, you need to spend some time learning the basics of photography and practicing with your camera before the trip. I would suggest reading "Understanding Exposure" by Bryan Peterson in order to get a good understanding of the fundamentals. The book can be found on Amazon for under $15.

There are no fixed settings. Beach photography can be difficult depending on the time of day and the result you want. There are often situations where exposing properly for one area of the scene can cause another area to be under exposed or over exposed. Start experimenting now to get a good feel for how your camera works.

ISO 50, 105mm, f/5, 2.5 seconds

Thank you all for all of the great information. Is it possible to get good pictures at the beach without using a tripod? Does anyone recommend getting a UV filter for the lens if taken to the beach? I heard that a UV filter could mess up shots, but I'm not exactly sure if this is true or not.

If anyone else has any more recommendations for setting for the beach or anything, that would be great.

Handheld vs not all really depends on what you are going to be shooting. Are you planning on just taking in the landscapes, shooting action (people playing volleyball for example), showing water movement..... There is a lot of choices for beach shooting. In the bright daylight and just taking pics, handholding is very possible. But showing water motion or shooting in lower light, handholding is difficult to impossible.

This was handheld

ColbyL wrote in post #15675838
... it seems that every time I have the opportunity to take some great photos, it's either raining or very cloudy. ...

That is the time when I get my best photographs. Try it!!

Kawi, those are some beautiful photos. I plan on taking photos of ocean (I do want to pick up the water movement), sunset, pier and boardwalk. I also plan on taking other forms of action shots such as moving boats, dolphins, etc. I will be taking photos of all kinds of things but these are the things I am needing help with the absolute most.

I would mainly be shooting in the daylight and some in the evening when it's still light, but not much at night, if anything.

kawi_200 wrote in post #15694064
Handheld vs not all really depends on what you are going to be shooting. Are you planning on just taking in the landscapes, shooting action (people playing volleyball for example), showing water movement..... There is a lot of choices for beach shooting. In the bright daylight and just taking pics, handholding is very possible. But showing water motion or shooting in lower light, handholding is difficult to impossible.

This was handheld

This was not

How do shoot outside when it's raining or do you shoot outside from inside?

Pepe Guitarra wrote in post #15694068
That is the time when I get my best photographs. Try it!!