Embracing the Beauty of a Coastal Morning Through My Camera Lens

I often take my camera with me on a walk or short outing. My purpose is two-fold. Firstly, I like to take every opportunity to take photographs. Secondly, I aim to constantly review my images and discover how to improve my photography.

I recently took a Sunday morning stroll along the promenade of a local coastal town.

Sundays have a different vibe as they are more leisure focused, and my walk took in scenes from all walks of life.

Families were out together enjoying some spring sunshine on the beach, a group of young people were enjoying a picnic, swimmers braved the cold sea water, while others took to the sea in sailing boats. Many people just strolled along the promenade walking their dog or chatting to each other. Children played on the sand or paddled in the water, and the ice cream parlours had long queues as people waited to enjoy an ice cream by the sea.

The welcome burst of spring sunshine enticed young and not so young to visit the coast and make the most of the day.

When a location is busy it can be difficult to pick out good compositions. Most of the scenes, while enjoyable for the people involved, offered nothing exceptional for photography. I walked to the old pier and harbour where a few boats were heading out for a leisure sail.

Here are a few images from the day.

I was drawn to the colour here, as my starting photo.

The light was very flat so this image turned out to be nothing special,

I liked the similarities between these two men walking in front of me; the black clothes, white socks and trainers and the way they seemed to be walking in step.

The swan heading in the opposite direction to the boats adds a bit of interest to the photograph.

I didn't realise I had cut off the top of the railings. Rookie mistake!

My favourite image of the morning. I like the way the couple seem to be interacting, which creates a sense of story. While I often like to isolate subjects and avoid a cluttered image, in this shot I think the additional objects serve as supporting subjects, which helps to create the story.

While I enjoyed my morning of photography the images were disappointing, but that's all part of the photography process. It did give me the opportunity to identify my mistakes and see how I can improve.