While making photos along the Maine Coast, a number of people have spoken to me about photographing their boats. Basically, they wanted to know the real secrets to making their vessels look so good, especially while at anchor. Truth be told, there are no real secrets…just proven techniques that are well known to many professionals. These techniques are my pleasure to share with you.
When doing fine photography of your boat, you are faced with four areas of concern. Those areas are the vessel itself, your camera equipment and film/media selection, the shoreline in which you work and your lighting conditions. If you approach each component separately, then combine them at the time you make your photos, you should have little or no trouble.
Prepare your boat very carefully. It always surprises me how often this is overlooked. Think of your camera as the most beady-eyed, big mouthed, nit-pickin, purity-of-the-breed marine surveyor you have ever encountered and you’ll do just fine.
Any decent camera that will allow you to work without getting in your way will be more than adequate for this type of photography. I have no personal lens choice for boats, except that, whenever possible, my preference is always for the shortest usable focal length, not the other way around. Remember, it’s your boat…you can get up as close as you like. Film should always be the lowest ISO rating you can comfortably work with. People using digital medium should use the camera’s setting that yields the biggest file. The bigger the file, the more detail will be on the photo, but you don’t have to break the bank on this. Any good digital camera in the 4 to 5 magapixel range will do a nice job if you remember to fill your frame.
The shoreline in which you work is the next thing to consider. I like natural surroundings, free of a lot of clutter. Quiet coves are my favorite. Whatever you do though, don’t allow the background to fight the vessel for your viewer’s attention.
The next concern is your lighting conditions. In the end, good photography is mostly about the light. All film and digital media build contrast. You can correct this by simply making your photos with low contrast illumination. It comes as a surprise to many, but early morning light, besides many times being glorious, is usually less contrasty than mid-afternoon overhead sun. Try it! Late afternoon sun can work as well, but the possibility of haze exists. Experiment to see what works best for you.
Once you have all the elements together the photo is practically made. If you are working from land, use a tripod, even if that means getting the legs wet. The tripod does two good things. First of all, it provides a steady platform for your camera. The second good thing a tripod does is force you to s l o w d o w n. This simple act of not rushing through your photos can make a big improvement in your work. I prefer to set my tripod as low as possible. This angle allows your viewer to see a much more graphic view of your boats shear line. If, however, you have just spent a hundred hours refinishing your teak cabin tops and trim, raise that tripod up all the way to display that beautiful detail work! Nobody knows your boat as intimately as you do…let that fact guide your composition. As an additional step, a little fill flash brings out highlights while adding more detail to the shadow areas. Some testing beforehand will help here. Fill flash works best when the flash itself is not noticeable.
As a final step, look closely into your viewfinder and ask yourself “what’s wrong with this picture?” We know what’s right with the photo; it’s your boat. When you ask yourself the other question a number of things may come sharply into focus. “What’s wrong with this picture? Wow, I’m clipping off the front of the bow rail…there’s a garbage can on the beach showing just under the boom…the curtains in the cabin are crooked…who left that rag dangling over the transom?” Give this last suggestion serious consideration because these are mistakes we all make. Sometimes, we get so wrapped up in what we are doing that we tend to miss important details. Spend a little extra time at this point and you will be rewarded with photos that reflect the work, care and effort you put into your vessel in the first place. Good luck.
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