Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1948-08-01
Camera Angles
Advice on Seashore Camera Work:
By Alexander J. Wedderburn

Advice
+ By Alexander J. Wedderburn
Cvrotor Of Photography
The Smithsonian Institution
When it's time for our annual trip
to the beach, let's take preview OF
the camera possibilities and problems
that are certain to be a major con-
Germ. To get the most from your
few days or weeks at the beach you
will take your camera along to make
permanent record of the SWIM
ming, fishing. grabbing, boating
and other activities that you will
wish to remember after you are
back on the job again. So let's plan
in advance what we shall take in
the way of pictures and how we
shall take them. Special conditions
exist at beach and we should be
prepared to meet them.
Subject matter for the camera
fan probably is more plentiful at
beach resorts than elsewhere. You
will be able to shoot many things
from the usual record shots of the
children playing on the sand or
splashing about in the shadows to
all kinds of sports pictures. But the
primary interest, of course, will be
subject matter relating to the sea
and sand and boats. For the nat
uralist photographer, there will be
many opportunities for pictures Of
the sea-birds' marine life and kim
dred subject matter.
As you have no doubt learned,
tricky lighting conditions exist at
the seashore. The direct sunlight is
harsh and exposures are further
complicated by reflections from the
sand and water. To avoid over
exposure-which is a real and ever
present danger here you should
rely on your exposure meter. For
the best rendition of sand. sea and
sky you will want to have a light
yellow filter along such as XII or
K2. A G filter will serve we'll on
days when haze is a factor to be
calculated. A panchromatic film Of
medium speed will answer all your
requirements. Round out your
equipment with a sturdy tripod for
long exposures and you should come
home with enough first-rate mega
tives to keep you busy in the dark
room during the better part of the
winter months.
Treating Beach Squint.
Since most of your pictures will
probably be made on the sand, we
should look at a few of the problems
that will affect your exposure.
Harsh shadows under the eyes and
near the nose together with the
"beach-squint" are the ruination Of
most pictures of people-especially
the closeups. To overcome this
problem you can have your subject
at an angle to the direct rays Of the
sun and use a reflector just as you
would a fill-in light at home. The
rejecting light from the sand will
help considerably in this instance.
If this is not enough to tighten
the shadows satisfactorily you can
carry along a piece of a sheet or
use sheet of cardboard covered
with rejecting substance such as
tinfoil. Lacking. these accessories
you can use a flash gun as a shadow
chaser if your camera is so equipped.
The best hours for photography
on the beach are those in the early
morning and those in the late after
noon. For one thing the glare at
midday is terrific and your subjects
will react unfavorably. But the
real objection is the same as that
which exists when taking snow pic
lures. Like snow, sand is white and
will photograph fiat and lifeless
under an overhead sun. So If you
made good snow pictures last winter
apply the same rules of lighting Tor
the best results. To begin, forget
the over-the- shoulder lighting that
works out so we'll for most outdoor
shots. Instead get up early or put
off your picture taking until you
have a good side or back lighting
that will bring out the fine texture
of the sand. The fine gradations of
the middle tones of the scale will
be the making of your best shots.
Getting the blacks and whites is
not enough.
Set up your camera and tripod Sc
that the low slanting rays of the
sun pick up all of the fine irregu-
larities of the sand as seen through
the ground glass or finder. 1t Is
important, particularly when shoot
ing into backlight, to prevent any
of the sun rays from striking thu
lens and Jogging the film. A SUM-
shade for the lens will help or
lacking this, you can use any object
such as a hat to shade the lens
Your medium yellow filter will alst
come in handy at this point to helr
reduce the glare and render more
faithful recording of the high light!
and shadows. If you have difficulty
in determining the correct exposure
remember that it is better to under.
expose than oyerexpose because
overexposure will only result in
total loss of detail in the high
light areas.
Unstudied Poses Best.
When shooting pictures OF the
children try, as always, for natural
imposed shots. There is not mucf
point in taking the family out or
| the beach for pictures and Their
| lining them up in a row for a shol
that could have been made almost
anywhere. Let them forget thai
YOU have q camera and then wher
They are making their sand castles
playing games children md enter