wave1
Oct, 2014Views
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Awards
Contest Finalist in Monochrome Addiction Photo Contest
Honorable Mention in Nature Beyond Color Photo Contest
Contest Finalist in All Things Black And White Photo Contest
Contest Finalist in Water In B&W Photo Contest
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Contest Finalist in Water World Photo Contest
Runner Up in Best Water Shots 2015 Photo Contest
Contest Finalist in Best Water Shots 2015 Photo Contest
Contest Finalist in Enchanting Waterscapes Photo Contest
Contest Finalist in Amazing Oceans Photo Contest
Contest Finalist in Black and White Nature Photo Contest
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jaxbeachbum
August 02, 2017
Love the black and white. The waves are incredible. Where was this taken?
Rmay1
September 17, 2023
Congratulations on receiving an honorary mention in Nature beyond Colour contest. Amazing capture.😊
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MyStyleNZ
September 18, 2023
Congrats on your Honorable Mention in the Nature Beyond Color Contest, Stunning and Beautiful Photo 😍💖
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Same photographer See allBehind The Lens
Behind The Lens
Location
This is one of my favourite shots, taken on the Biarritz coast of France. Its a fabulous place for taking Wave and water shots all up that coast and well worth a visit.Time
This was taken, believe it or not, mid-afternoon about 3pm. the weather was dry, but overcast, as it often is in October. The beach was quiet and for one, no surfers got in the way!!Lighting
obviously this is a natural light shot, running around a beach with crashing waves, wind, sand, managing your camera, self and a lighting rig capable of lighting a wave 50 yards away..., well I think I'd definitely pay to see that video!! Obviously that can't really happen so to get the best lighting there are a couple of things to watch for: time of Day/position of the sun - position and angle can make or break your picture, and I'm not just talking about the cool sunrise or sun set colours but also whether you want to silhouette the wave or highlight it? Pay particular attention to what the wind is doing.. a nice breeze blowing off shore makes for better wave photos as it can blow the spray away and holds the wave up slightly as it forms making for better breaks, curls and steep walls. Also the spray can occasionally cause some really cool rainbows to appear and give a more dramatic shot. That spray may also help hide unwanted background clutter (surfers, rocks, headlands etc.)Equipment
for this shot i was using a Canon 5d MK3 with a 300mm f2.8l is II USM lens handheld off the beach -- this lens is one of the best long lenses I've used. Even though its a substantial bit of kit, its lightweight enough to be able to hand hold for prolonged periods. and with 4 stops of IS you can also shot quite slow shutter speeds and achieve excellent results. It's sturdy, weatherproof (to a certain extent!!) and can take a knock or two. whilst the 400 is my favourite of all long lenses, the cpst is slightly prohibitive, so the 300 is a good compromise for this type of photography - its pretty much as sharp as the 400, its pretty fast (2.8 - not bad for a long lens), has a pretty good reach especially with an extender, and the quality doesn't suffer too badly, and it's also light enough to use and carry around comfortably all day! As for other equipment used on the day -- shorts and a warm jacket.. you will get wet shooting waves and if it gets windy - cold too.Inspiration
i love the sea, always have between sailing it, swimming in it and even surfing it (not very well though.. balance on water doesn't seem to be a strong suit of mine!) and got chance to shoot this whilst on a trip with friends. this is one of a few of that day, and i was specifically looking for moments of depth with waves behind waves to create a feeling of the size and power of the sea, coupled with the beauty and angriness of it. For me this shot covers all these things, its majestic, you get a feel for the power of the sea, its size and depth, whilst can appreciate the strength and beauty in its form and shape.Editing
well you can probably tell that there was a bit, obviously its a square crop. this was done to isolate the action in the frame and keep the viewer in the action. the wider shot had the wave tailing away and i felt it detracted from what i wanted the picture to say! exposure, colour and all usual tweaks were made in lightroom before it was sent to photoshop for some more detailed work including using a gradient filter from the top to darken the sky down to the wave to highlight the shape better, some careful dodging and burning to bring out some highlights and shadows to add to the depth in the picture and and some selective sharpening to accent spray, wave edges and specific areas to draw the eye and help it to move around.In my camera bag
I subscribe to the "he who dies with the most toys, WINS!" school of thought so I'm always looking for new kit and to test things out. I like to shoot a variety of subjects and areas so i don't have one specific bag, but as a general catch all if I'm going out and about and need some flexibility... i take canon 5d mk3, 24-70 f2.8 ii usm, 70-200 f2.8ii is usm. i may add in a zeiss 21mm (probably one of the sharpest lenses i ever used) for some landscapes, or a 24mm tilt shift for architecture, or zeiss 35mm and canon 50mm for some street work depending on where I'm going. Finally for longer work sports, action waves - i tend to hire either a 300 or 400 mm F2.8 ii usm from my friends at lensesforhire.co.uk in the UK. Its a lot cheaper than owning one of these beasties, and a great way to trial new kit if your thinking of buying... If I'm shooting architecture or landscapes then obviously the lee filters come out to play - big and little stoppers and a selection of hard and soft grads as required. if I'm doing some street work and decide i want to shoot some abstract stuff i may also use a screw in variable ND filter to allow me to create longer shutter speeds whilst remaining portable! finally, and i can't say this enough to beginners, all my lenses have UV filters on... saved me a fortune a number of times!!!Feedback
if you really want to shoot waves then go for it its rewarding, exhilarating (especially on a windy day) and gets you out in the fresh air!!! remember the following: 1. Always BE SAFE. do not shoot from long low piers or groynes etc. unless you know its safe, in certain places the sea is unpredictable and I've seen people swept off piers by rogue waves. when on the beach make sure you either carry your kit bag or leave it with someone, higher up the beach... again I've seen people kit bags get swept out to sea by a larger than usual wave.. to be honest I recommend leaving it above high water with a friend or even in the car and walking backwards and forwards if you're on your own... 2. always watch what the sea is doing.. when you've got your head down and your looking through a 400 mm lens your world can be very narrowly focused and big waves will get you, not long before i took this one i was caught out and wound up up to my waist by a freak wave, much much bigger than the previous ones that swept in unexpectedly. I was shooting a long way above where the previous waves had been coming into!! .. luckily i managed to set myself and keep my footing - else it would have been a short and expensive shoot. 3. if your on your own, tell someone where you are going, and give them a rough time estimate - just in case.. this is paramount especially if going out in rougher weather, will be near cliffs etc. 4. if you are on a cliff top, ledge or pier, for gods sake do not walk around holding the camera to your eye trying to frame your shot... i recently had to physically grab someone who i thought was about to walk off a pier trying to frame the specific shot with the camera == he was a bit shocked that i grabbed him but better safe than sorry! enough safety onto the fun bits... 1. i recommend that you get the longest lenses you can handle... I've used up to 600mm to do this but they are MONSTERS and you ll need a tripod and probably a porter to help move it around!!! if you do use a tripod, i recommend a substantial one and setup further away from the surf..... 2. research the area you want to go to. check tides and winds etc... look for offshore winds and incoming tides a good combination.. again remember tide is incoming so watch your location... ask locals for good viewpoints and areas. find out if their are favourite surf beaches nearby etc. 3. use a higher iso if you need to... waves move pretty quickly and if yu want to freeze them then you'll need to be fast. so depending on time of day you may need to bump it up a bit... 4. shoot in raw.. you can get a marvellous array of colours, textures, reflections and rainbows shooting waves so give yourself the best chance of being able to bring out what you saw when you shot when you're post processing... 5. use continuous mode when you start.. whilst we all want to improve our one shot - one picture ability, shooting waves takes practice and experience, so use a high speed continuous setting and shoot 4-5 frames per wave - this will I've you the best chance of getting the curve/shape/texture you are looking for. was you get more experienced you can reduce number of shots or go to single frame shooting and be more selective! obviously if you do this and shoot in raw as suggested above take lots of memory cards... 6. when you arrive spend some time studying patterns and the lay of the land and sea. waves often come on repeating or similar patterns so it may be that the second one of set tends to have the best curl or the third is the biggest, send some time looking before you dive into shooting. that way when you can pick the best view and when you are looking through the viewfinder you'll have a rough idea of whats coming in and where. 7 finally, before you leave the beach, look around you!!! the beach can often give you some great opportunities to capture other things, shapes, lectures silhouettes, sunrise/sets, people wildlife etc., so always look around and be flexible. you never know where that killer shot is going to come from. good luck
