Wedding Photography on the Beach

Often I hear people mention before a wedding “Hopefully it will be a sunny day for the photos”. Whereas in fact, many wedding photographers prefer overcast or cloudy weather for wedding photography. Weddings on the beach can be in fact, more difficult for your Gold Coast wedding photographer than say a garden wedding. Reason being is that there is no escape from the sun.
The sun can bring harsh light, dark shadows, squinting eyes, sunflare, glare from the water or sand. These are all things a wedding photographer must contend with. When the sun is high in the sky such as midday or early afternoon, things can be even harder.

The wedding photo above was in fact, taken on the beach at approx. 3pm when the sun was quite harsh. I made a decision on the day to photograph most of the wedding shooting from the shadow side and into the crowd. This may seem odd as you will be missing out on the ocean behind in the wedding photos. However, notice how both the bride and the groom have soft light on their faces. Soft light, as opposed to harsh sunlight is important in making people look their best as it creates an even skin tone, hides blemishes etc.

In the above photo, you can also see the reaction of the crowd during their first kiss which is great for storytelling. I am also not blocking the view of the guests (including the bride and grooms parents). Most of the wedding photos were taken this way and the results were great. If you are planning on having a beach wedding, the ideal time would be just before the sunsets. This means that the sun is lower in the sky and will not create dark shadows on the subjects face. It will also create a nice soft light by illuminating the entire sky, also known as “Golden Hour”. If you would like to see more wedding photography on the beach, please visit our wedding gallery.