4 Tips on Capturing The Beauty of Summer In Your Photos

Summertime is a great time to get to work on your photography to produce stunning images in trying lighting conditions. Where spring is ever-changing with its blooming flowers and unpredictable weather patterns, summer with it’s sunny days is a time of overall sameness with fields growing and greening until they go yellow near autumn. Trees have regained their leaves and flowers are bloomed and filling the air with their sweet scent. Days are longer, filled with blue skies and the bright light from the sun is greater as the sun is higher in the sky this time of year. This can pose all kinds of challenges for photographers, like finding different angles, getting your shutter speed correct, setting your ISO to a low setting since the sun can wreak havoc on your carefully selected camera settings.

For example, If you are a landscape photographer which is very prevalent in summer days, taking great photos is crucial to we recommend setting camera manually for a long exposure. Long exposure photography is perfect for landscape photography, as with this preset you will be able to capture even tiny movements of elements. And as summertime is the crux of the landscape photography business you will want to avoid those harsh shadows. Grow your business and get great shots on your website or upload them to the social media platform of your choice.

To properly capture photoshoots in summer moments and get great photos, avoiding the harsh light that accompanies summer photos we would like to provide some helpful summer photography tips and tutorials below, you can make the challenges of shooting in bright natural light from the sun a relative non-issue, and capture the beauty of summer to enjoy all year long!

1. Overexposing isn't always bad

Overexposure is something you should generally work to avoid. When taking photos in the summertime, look at the subject prior to placing the camera in front of you and see how the light is hitting the subject. Also, avoid letting the sunlight shine directly into your camera lens. This could create a lens flare or overexposure of the image.

However, with the summer sun blazing down, overexposing your images can be tricky. Underexposing can cause your photos to show up dark or washed out. If you manage your exposure levels well even with some of overexposing, you can go up a few stops and bring out the vibrant colors of summer without making it impossible to tell what it was you were trying to photograph in the first place. These exposures can always be adjusted with photoshop and Adobe Lightroom in post processing.

2. Filters are good
   

If you're taking a lot of outdoor photos, you'll want to carry around some UV and polarizing filters to help you deal with the sun. They can help you get the right exposure level and color balance in your photos without requiring you to take overly elaborate measures with shaders, light bouncers, or other means of lighting control that may not work in every setting.

A reflector or filter of some type to bounce light back on the subject and fill in the shadows comes in handy under these conditions as well. This can be a handheld diffuser that you can carry around and position yourself, or it could be something in the vicinity of your photo shoot that will reflect the light back onto your subject or object.

3. The weather doesn't have to be perfect

Sometimes overcast or cloudy weather can help you get clearer, cooler photos. Storm photography can also net you some very memorable images so long as you're careful. Don't be afraid to venture out in inclement weather (though you will want to make certain your gear is protected) and go a little off the beaten path in your pursuit of the perfect photo.

4. Beaches are beautiful any time

Most people head to the beach this time of year which means that there is plenty of opportunity for photography of all kinds. Consider, though, zigging where everyone else is zagging and take your photos during sunrise or sunset. Experiment with different styles of photography while out on the sands and, if you have the gear, look into taking your photography underwater. The summer season is a time of vacations, travel, and a bit of leisure after the hectic winter and spring months. Take your camera with you where ever you go and use our tips to help you make the most of these magnificent months!

A wonderful camera for these moments is the Minolta MN30WP 21MP Full HD 2.8" Touch LCD Screen Waterproof Digital Camera. With it’s incredible 48 megapixel resolution and rated up to 10 feet of waterproof protection, perfect for selfies with it’s LCD screen.

Try this great little waterproof housed camera, for your days at the beach or pool. The Minolta MN4KP1 4K Ultra HD Pocket Camcorder w/WiFi & Waterproof Housing. Coupled with A 170 degree field of view and 270 degree rotation, the 1.3" display lets you preview every shot to ensure that you are getting great photos in more troublesome lighting conditions. With it’s built in Wi-Fi and smartphone integration, the app lets you control your camera wirelessly and manage your exposures. How about a Vlog at the beach?

Additional Tips for Summer Photography

The key to getting great shots anytime is taking multiple photos. The same holds true when shooting photos in bright sunlight. Set your camera presets to manual is a good idea. Close your aperture from a wide aperture to F/16. Shoot low, high, and from different angles by moving around your subject until you find the best light.  The slightest repositioning can make all the difference in the way the light affects your image. By moving yourself and the subject all around you will have many angles of light hitting your subject from which to choose while also seeing the angles of light you’ll want to avoid.

The golden hour is perfect to shoot photos with what is known as bokeh effect, or backlit subjects using a wide aperture. In order to achieve this effect, you must be facing the direct sun on those summer days when capturing your image. 

If images are properly shot, than you will be able to highlight everything in the air during this time of day. A great way to capture the warm natural light in the sky is to shoot with a daylight white balance preset. Set your camera to auto white balance or if you feel comfortable adjusting the white balance yourself then keep the camera in manual mode which we recommend in any event while photographing in the summer sun.

In Blue Hour photography which is the time of day when the sun has just set or is about to rise in the early morning, when the sky takes on a warm deep blue color. The blue hour is a great time to take photos of the moon especially with the right telephoto lens as the moon is not too bright at this time compared to the sky.

When taking photos of subjects, avoid having the sunlight shine down directly from the side onto your subject as this will create long harsh shadows. Keeping the sun behind you while taking shots of subjects isn’t ideal either because this means the subject will be facing the sun causing them to squint. But, this is a good time of day and lighting conditions for fast paced shooting of images or video because the subjects face does not have to be in the exposure.