The Emerald Coast is known for many things - but perhaps the greatest among them is our gorgeous beaches! In 2024 U.S. News & World report ranked Destin, FL as the 7th most beautiful beach in the United States. Obviously as a local I feel we should have been ranked first, but that point is mute.
Besides the incredible small town feel and emerald blue waters, we are also known for our powder white sands! The powdery texture makes it almost impossible to walk the beach without getting a good leg workout and the white color makes it almost impossible to photograph without having a lot of light that shines directly in clients faces, bounces off the water, and reflects off the sand.
When I tell clients I almost exclusively do sessions at sunrise or sunset, it is not just for the incredible sky that we get. Don’t get me wrong, our sunsets are unreal here and it is a joy to capture. But the reality of it is, the sun is so harsh out on the beach and the infamous “golden hour” allows for a wider variety of photos without the sun blaring in the face and horrible shadows being cast.
I recently had a small wedding session that we did 2 hours before sunset. In these following series of photos, you should be able to see the progression of the sun and the change in the harshness and brightness of the sun in such a short time. With no shade to be had, and contending with white sand - learning to shoot on the beach in all conditions is ideal as a professional. The goal is to keep the quality of the photo the same throughout the session. The greatest difference you will see is in how much the background changes and the amount of detail in the sky being captured.
Sunset for this date was at 7:20 pm. Meaning we started this session at 5:20pm.
5:20PM-6:20PM - Family photos
The first group of photos were the family/bridal party photos. Because of how early these photos were taken, the desire for the water to be the background, and the sheer size of the group - I had to have my assistant hold up a blocker to shade the faces of the clients in sections. I then went in and individually swapped each persons head/body in Adobe Photoshop - so that the photo without the harsh sun being cast on their face was in the finished product. You can see some of the original harsh light cast in the men's shirts. So the even lighting on everyone came from several photos being edited down to one.
6:20PM - 7:20PM - Bride and Groom Portraits
The illustrious “Golden Hour” was saved for the bride and groom portraits. The massive change in the light really started coming through in the final 30 minutes of the photos as you will see. We also had a very random 5 minute storm pop up out of nowhere! So me, my assistant, and her husband all gathered around the bride shielding her from the downpour while also trying to protect my camera.
6:20 - 6:50 - First 30 minutes these photos have a more even lighting without needing to block the sun and more detail is seen in the sky. But you can still see how much light is bouncing off the beach and white sand. These early portraits require more thoughtful positioning but overall are much easier to manage than the hour before. We also saved the shots along the waterline until the most perfect and dreamy of lighting. We also had the clouds from the random pop up storm making the sky more grey and icky.
6:50-7:20 - These last 30 minutes are where you get those absolutely dreamy photos that so many photographers (like myself) love to post and include in their portfolio. This session was hands down one of the most incredible skies I have ever seen in person. The sun was mostly covered by the storm cloud that poured on us earlier - but the light we were able to get was unreal. It is always my hope for clients to get sunsets similar to this - especially all of my brides.
Final thoughts
If you go back and quickly scroll through from top to bottom - the difference in lighting becomes highly evident. While being able to photograph any time of the day is important as a photographer - getting those dreamy photos with amazing colors in the sky and water is achieved best during sunset (or sunrise). It is one of my greatest honors getting to be a photographer in Destin and 30A, and I have learned so much over the years. My next blog I will show the primary difference between sunset and sunrise sessions!
Location of Photos: Destin,FL
Type of Session: Wedding Portraits
Photographer: Whitney White Photography
Photographer Bio: Whitney White is a professional photographer who services Destin, FL and 30A, FL. She specializes in large families, small families, maternity, couples, and intimate weddings. She is a native of the Panhandle of Florida, and loves that she gets to be a professional photographer in the town she spent most of her childhood. The beaches of the Emerald Coast hold a special place in her heart, and she is thrilled for the opportunity to be a part of your special memories in the place she most cherishes!
