Bedruthan Sunsets

During the end of May half term last year, we paid another visit to Padstow in Cornwall. The trip provided another opportunity for me to visit Bedruthan Steps to try and get some more sunset photos. I had taken some images I was really pleased with during a similar visit in 2013, with one of these images now even passing the very high bar, set by my wife, for conversion to a canvas and hanging on the wall at home!!! So I was really looking forward to another visit.

As with all landscape photography, the weather is quite important when taking sunsets. When taking sunsets on the beach you also need to take account of what the tide is doing, especially at somewhere like Bedruthan Steps, where the beach is completely covered (and quite dangerous) at high tide. Having visited before, I knew that I wanted to visit at a time when the tide was going out. And of course, as I was on a family holiday, I also had to fit in with meal times, trips out, and generally get myself a pass out for good behaviour!!   

So it was with trepidation that I made my visit to Bedruthan, because, although the tide was due to be going out, it was quite a high tide and I wasn't sure how much of the beach would be uncovered. And, the sky was very, very clear indeed. This is obviously not a showstopper for sunset photos (not like pouring rain) but I much prefer a mixture of cloud and sky, as it adds a lot to the dynamism of a scene and increases the interest of a picture considerably. And importantly, it means you can shoot into the sun well before the sun has gone down below the horizon.

It turned out to be a very frustrating visit. I had to wait a long time for the tide to go out sufficiently far to walk round / over a small headland and onto the main part of the beach. The sky remained cloudless throughout the entire evening. And, annoyingly, because the tide had only just gone out, the sand was very wet, making it difficult to get a firm base for my tripod. When taking sunset photos you are almost certainly using slow shutter speeds and it only takes a minor movement to introduce blur into the image. I think I ended up with the largest number of blurred images I have ever taken!!

That said, I did manage a few images that I was pleased with, focussed in and around one particular rock formation that juts out into the sea.

Bedruthan SunsetBedruthan Steps, Cornwall, UK.

Bedruthan SunsetBedruthan Steps, Cornwall, UK. Bedruthan SunsetBedruthan Steps, Cornwall, UK.

Bedruthan SunsetBedruthan Steps, Cornwall, UK.

The combination of light, water and ripples in the sand made for some interesting images.  Bedruthan SunsetBedruthan Steps, Cornwall, UK.

I walked around the beach looking for different compositions. Although there was some colour in the sky, it wasn't really helping add much to the pictures.

Bedruthan SunsetBedruthan Steps, Cornwall, UK.

Bedruthan SunsetBedruthan Steps, Cornwall, UK.

Bedruthan SunsetBedruthan Steps, Cornwall, UK.

Bedruthan SunsetBedruthan Steps, Cornwall, UK.

As the sun set, the colour of the sky deepened - there was simply a thick band of colour across the horizon.

Bedruthan SunsetBedruthan Steps, Cornwall, UK.

Bedruthan SunsetBedruthan Steps, Cornwall, UK.

Bedruthan SunsetBedruthan Steps, Cornwall, UK.

This final image was taken just before I left the beach. I definitely needed my head torch to climb back up the slippery steps to the car!

Bedruthan SunsetBedruthan Steps, Cornwall, UK.

Whilst it had been a very frustrating evening, I did get one or two images I was pleased with. And they are very different in feel to the ones from the previous year.

For more images from this trip to Bedruthan Steps, and from my visit in 2013, please go to the Bedruthan Steps gallery here.