Bournemouth Beach and Pier.
Bournemouth Pier and Beach – Long Exposure on a Sunny Winter Day.
On a summer’s day, of course, Bournemouth Beach would be packed with sun bathers. There would be deckchairs, picnics, swimmers. Today, just a couple of solitary people on the beach. Even the promenade is deserted.
Although it was a gloriously sunny day, it was very windy. It had actually started off very cloudy and grey. However, when the clouds began to break, and the sun came through, I sensed an opportunity.
The clouds were moving quite fast, hence my decision to go out armed with the tripod and filters. The use of filters to reduce the amount of light coming in may seem a bit strange. But, they can be used to create wonderful effects very simply.
Unfortunately, by the time I got to the cliff, the clouds over the sea had all but gone, and those that were there were not moving! Inland, they were shifting fairly fast, but I was not in the right location to look in that direction.
Having decided to take a photograph of Bournemouth Beach, I remained undeterred. This first shot was taken as a “banker” – a good starting point, and one on which I hoped to improve. I changed the exposure settings so I could extend the shutter speed to 30 seconds. This gave a better image, with the two people more of a blur, and some movement captured in the clouds.
Sadly, the head of my tripod is very slightly loose. The wind buffeting it captured more movement than intended! So, the longer exposure had to be ditched. Four seconds will do nicely!
With the day being clear, there is a good view across Bournemouth Beach, the pier and Hengistbury Head in the background. Looking further to the right in the distance, the white land mass that can just be made out is Alum Bay and the Needles of the Isle of Wight.
Photograph Details
- Taken: 11 Jan 2017
- Camera: Canon 5D MkIII
- Lens: Canon EF 24-70mm 1:2.8 L II USM
- Focal Length 31 mm
- F/7.1
- 4 Sec
- ISO 200
- Lee Big Stopper Filter