Extreme Heat:
We shoot at the end of the day unless the day you have reserved renders soft light as a result of a nice cloudy sky. As the sun drops the wind generally dies down, the light softens and the temperature becomes more comfortable.
Bugs:
The end of day in most locations along Eastern NC has a slight breeze making it hard for bugs to land. On days when there is no wind or if you decide to shoot at a location other than the open beach it is important to bring a fresh bottle of bug spray. Most sprays come with an expiration date. If you are using an old bottle please understand there is a good chance it will do very little to keep the bugs off. OFF and CUTTER sprays containing a high level of DDT or natural sprays made primarily with citronella are the only sprays we recommend.
Wind:
There is usually always a little wind at the beach. The average is 10mph. Anything over 15mph is grounds to reschedule in most locations along eastern North Carolina. Places like Topsail and Ocean isle have locations to shoot where houses and trees block the wind depending on the directions it is blowing.
Rain:
Try not to jump the gun with the rain. Rain clouds give you the same type of light we wait for at the end of the day but often miss because sunny days often have cloudy horizon lines at sunset. The sun shooting down on clouds diffuses the light while the sun cutting through the clouds at an angle causes the light to drop dramatically because the light has more to go through when angled. When it is cloudy photographers can shoot all afternoon as long as it is not raining. Even days when it rains it does not rain all day producing very colorful sunsets. The only reason you can not shoot in rain is due to spots on clothing and water getting on digital equipment. Light sprinkles are not bad and can be worked around by shooting under a pier or using a tent. Down poor is visible in photos and causes discomfort however when it pores it generally only lasts a few minutes allowing us to shoot once the cloud has passed. Another option on rainy days would be to drive down the beach a few minutes. Usually a 15 or 20 minute drive will render beautiful conditions for photos if it is raining at your location.
The sample photo on my pricing page of the girl in yellow kissing the guy was taken "in" the rain. I put that image up to show how beautiful the light is. If you didn't notice take another look www.tomsapp.com/portraitpricing If there is wind there is not much we can do if you require an ocean backdrop. Away from the beach it is less windy meaning if there is wind we simply shoot on the sound side to get beautiful photos. Most rainy days have very little wind … unless there is a hurricane. If there are rain clouds I will be in touch to let you know when we need to shoot on the day of the session.
I cannot reschedule you before the end of the session date. If there is time to shoot on the date you have reserved with good conditions the session fee cannot be returned and to reschedule would mean an additional fee to reserve a second date. Remember we do this every day. Making people happy is what we do. If I felt you would not be pleased I would let you know. If you're not smiling in the photos I don't eat in the winter. Be easy, enjoy the beach and I'll see you soon!
