DSLR to the beach

[littlewhitefox]

Hi guys, I am thinking of bring my newly bought (kinda 2 weeks old) DSLR to it's first overseas trip to Phuket soon. Are there any precautions that I should take note when doing some beach photography? (No bikini babes ) Will be using one lens throughout, so the risk of changing lens at the beach area is eliminated.

 

[theprofxav]

Hi guys, I am thinking of bring my newly bought (kinda 2 weeks old) DSLR to it's first overseas trip to Phuket soon. Are there any precautions that I should take note when doing some beach photography? (No bikini babes ) Will be using one lens throughout, so the risk of changing lens at the beach area is eliminated.

Hmmm, try not to open your battery/ memory card compartment (the logic of that is similar to that from the lens). If you must open it for some reason or other, get away from the sandy areas and stand such that the wind is blowing on your back (to block off the wind from blowing little particles).

A UV filter would be a cheap and easy solution to protect the front element of your lens. Alternatively, a polarizing filter maybe useful with the scenery, as it can increase contrast in the skies and decrease any reflection from the water making your photos a bit more dramatic

 

[Reportage]

dont worry. as long sand doesnt get into the sensor or the camera is not dropped into sea water, should be fine. I photograph beach sports a lot of times.

what you need though is suntan and a wide brim hat.

when in doubt, shoot Raw.

 

[Rashkae]

Your camera is not Tofu. worry less, shoot more.

 

[dejavu]

check out this youtube video to see how tough your DSLRs are:

[video=youtube;D1tTBncIsm8]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=D1tTBncIsm8 [/video]

 

[Etna-sama]

Are there any precautions that I should take note when doing some beach photography?

Common sense.

 

[wdEvA]

apart from what theprofxav had mentioned.
I would wipe my lenses and body down with a damp clothe after the shoot when I get home.

 

[littlewhitefox]

check out this youtube video to see how tough your DSLRs are:

yes, i saw this previously. but i definately do not want to treat my camera the same way haha

 

[grumpy]

Your camera is not Tofu. worry less, shoot more.

Common sense.

:thumbsup:
Worry less and shoot more

 

[littlewhitefox]

apart from what theprofxav had mentioned.
I would wipe my lenses and body down with a damp clothe after the shoot when I get home.

just wondering. do i need to clean the interior of my camera bag as well? as i will probably keep it in the bag after every few shots. so some residue should remain in the bag am i right?

 

[littlewhitefox]

apart from what theprofxav had mentioned.
I would wipe my lenses and body down with a damp clothe after the shoot when I get home.

just wondering. do i need to clean the interior of my camera bag as well? as i will probably keep it in the bag after every few shots. so some residue should remain in the bag am i right?

 

[littlewhitefox]

Thanx to the rest of the guys for their valuable inputs as well

 

[Octarine]

just wondering. do i need to clean the interior of my camera bag as well? as i will probably keep it in the bag after every few shots. so some residue should remain in the bag am i right?

What kind of residue would that be? Be careful not to get sand into the bag. After applying sunscreen clean your hands, otherwise sand will stick easily. Always good to give the camera a wipe with damp cloth in evening. That's it.

 

[Octarine]

just wondering. do i need to clean the interior of my camera bag as well? as i will probably keep it in the bag after every few shots. so some residue should remain in the bag am i right?

What kind of residue would that be? Be careful not to get sand into the bag. After applying sunscreen clean your hands, otherwise sand will stick easily. Always good to give the camera a wipe with damp cloth in evening. That's it.

 

[daredevil123]

TS just be careful not to let sand get in contact with your lens. If find sand get into your zoom lens, you will get grinding that is exceptionally hard to get rid of.

 

[littlewhitefox]

TS just be careful not to let sand get in contact with your lens. If find sand get into your zoom lens, you will get grinding that is exceptionally hard to get rid of.

hmm thanx for the advice. in what way will the sand get into the zoom lens? other than *accidentally* dropping the camera/lens on the sand?

 

[SkyStrike]

I guess it's possible if this scenario happens

You were trying to take a photo of a kid kicking the sand and the strong wind blows at you while you are at it. *ya, probably the image will look great, but you may spend the next 2 hrs more more trying to remove sand from the lens if you are too close*

 

[Rashkae]

I guess it's possible if this scenario happens

You were trying to take a photo of a kid kicking the sand and the strong wind blows at you while you are at it. *ya, probably the image will look great, but you may spend the next 2 hrs more more trying to remove sand from the lens if you are too close*

If all you're doing is taking a picture it's no biggie - happened to me many times (beach soccer anyone?). It was very very fine sand too - not the coarse crushed coral that passes for "sand" at sentosa. The lens I used extends when zooming, so I extended it all the way and brushed away the sand. No worries, no grinding, good to go in 10 seconds.

just avoid the other way around - pulling the lens back *inside* when there's still sand there.

 

[phyll]

just wondering. do i need to clean the interior of my camera bag as well? as i will probably keep it in the bag after every few shots. so some residue should remain in the bag am i right?

I think a better idea would be to keep your bag clean of sand by storing your camera only after it has been wiped down. It's difficult to keep cleaning your hands every time you wish to take your camera out too, since I assume your hands may be in contact with the beach sand.

Otherwise, you could just settle for cleaning the camera with a damp cloth (which I do more thoroughly after every trip to the beach) and the interior of your bag at the end of the day.

Enjoy your holiday, and capture the shots you wish to.

 

[wdEvA]

just wondering. do i need to clean the interior of my camera bag as well? as i will probably keep it in the bag after every few shots. so some residue should remain in the bag am i right?

Nope,
it there is sand on your camera, blow it off instantly.

as for cleaning the gears when you are home, it's more of removing salt residues that might come from the salty sea breeze, so the camera bag should be fine.
if you are worried, you can wipe down the gears at the beach before keeping them in the bag and head off =)