Is there a good filter for shooting at the beach?

[tulie]

I have a digital and find my beach shots super contrasty on a sunny day. Is there a good filter I can put on my lens to help? I have a NDF on it now.

 

[oCyrus55]

Well you could try a higher ND filter, maybe an ND8? Or you could try a polarizer.

 

[c_mac]

and depending on what you are doing, you may try a graduated ND filter.

 

[Digital Matt]

All you need to do is go to the beach at a different time of day. Anything midday and afternoon will be contrasty, unless it's over cast. Go in the early morning or just before sunset.

 

[tulie]

I agree with shooting early or late for a more desired result, but sometimes I have to shoot in the harsh light of mid day. Thank you everybody for your responses, much appreciated. Tulie

 

[fmw]

All you need to do is go to the beach at a different time of day. Anything midday and afternoon will be contrasty, unless it's over cast. Go in the early morning or just before sunset.

There you go. Filters are rarely a way to fix anything and certainly not contrast. ND filters simply reduce the light entering your lens. They don't affect contrast. We photograph light and, in nature, the light changes all the time. That is what makes it interesting.

 

[Jeremy Z]

(tongue-in-cheek)

Here's an easy way to reduce contrast. Use a crappy lens. Crappy lenses have crappy coatings, and will give you a bit less contrast.

Also, you could put on a couple of uncoated UV filters. The more layers of glass the light goes through, the less contrast there is.

OK, now a bit more seriously, you could just reduce the contrast a bit in any image editing program. Save the file as a TIF.

 

[PetersCreek]

Is it the overall scene contrast you're unhappy with or is it something like the harsh shadows on people's faces? Fill flash might be of use.

 

[shingfan]

do post processing......HDR on photoshop should do the job......according to what i've learn....bright objects are over-exposed when exposure is too long......dark objects are under-exposed when exposure is too short...hard to get a good balance when the dynamic range is high......so post processing maybe an easy way to go.......or need a gradual filter...

please forgive me if i make any incorrect statment...i'm a newbie....peace

 

[JIP]

I have to agree with fmw and Matt here harsh mid-afternoon sun is just that harsh and contrasty you an try finding a little shade to put your subject in if you are shooting people but if you are shooting scenic type shots there is no way to avoid being around during the "magic hours" just around sunset and just around sunrise.

 

[airgunr]

I've found the Polarizer to be the most helpful on a sunny day at the beach. It won't correct all problems but it will make a great difference if used properly.

 

[sothoth]

I've found the Polarizer to be the most helpful on a sunny day at the beach. It won't correct all problems but it will make a great difference if used properly.

I agree completely. I just bought a circular polarizer to correct the very problem stated in the original post, and it improves it dramatically. It helps
reduce bright spots, removes reflections from the water, and darkens the sky.

You're still better off going when the sun isn't going to give so many bright reflections and glare, though, as others have rightly pointed out.