Sunset Beach Family Photos 

As a professional photographer, some of the most memorable images can come from a family photo session, and there’s no better family session than one with the whole family featured behind a glorious golden sunset. Sunset beach family photos are a very popular photography niche thanks to this, with some photography companies even charging a sitting fee just to be on the waiting list for a sunset beach family photoshoot!



This is understandable however, as showing off a great group of parents and kids and creating a beautiful moment for a family, can be a lot more difficult than it seems. As such, if you’re looking to break into this amazing niche then you’ll need to hone your skills and try out a few of our tips on how to get your sunset beach family photos to stand out from the crowd.

How To Get the Most Out Of Your Whole Family Photo Session at Sunset

When it comes to sunset photography, settings and technique are far more important than owning specialized gear which is great news for beginners and budget-oriented shooters. Camera settings for sunsets generally involve maximizing depth of field and accounting for the bright light of the sun shining into the camera, with other concerns like shutter speed taking a back seat.

Father playing with his children on the beach one sunsetAperture

A good place to start is to use your camera’s aperture priority mode, particularly if you’re just getting started taking sunset photos, usually found by turning your camera’s settings dial to “A” or “Av”. In basic terms, aperture priority lets you set the aperture while the camera automatically changes the shutter speed for you to compensate.



Setting the aperture number. between f/11 and f/16, will help you get the largest possible depth of field and keep as much of the scene in focus as possible. Shooting at a high f-stop can also create an interesting starburst effect in your sunset photo, really raising it to the next level.

ISO

Keeping your ISO as low as possible is the best option for most photography in general as this helps avoid graininess in your final images. Keep in mind however though, that you might have to crank the ISO higher as the sun goes down and the scene becomes dimmer in order to keep your f-stop number high, so be aware of possible grain.

White Balance

The auto white balance setting generally works fine for sunset beach family photos, though you may want to experiment with the daylight, cloudy, or even shade settings to bring out more yellow, purple, pinkish, or red tones in your sunset pictures.



“Watermarking IS Easier Than a Copyright release and still protects your images”

Watermark Your Work

Family walking at the beach during sunsetEveryone wants to show off their beautiful sunset family beach photos, but no one wants their family photos to be stolen and used for some obscure online advertising campaign! This is where watermarking comes in – an important part of the process for all photography niches, watermarking protects the copyright of your work and ensures that it cannot be reused or altered without your permission.

This is perfect in the online photography world as it allows you to publish your work without the threat of theft. In fact, watermarking can also double as a branding tactic. Much like a painter that mark their work with a signature, digital watermarking is a great way to get your name out there and heighten brand awareness.

The best thing about watermarking however, is that it is simple and free when using WaterMarquee! WaterMarquee is a free online watermarking service where you simply upload your photos and get them back with a custom watermark in no time at all. WaterMarquee also offers premium services that will help elevate any work you produce and mark you as a true photography professional. So what’re you waiting for? If you want to protect your sunset beach family photos, look no further than WaterMarquee.