Tools to get started planning a photo shoot

I I don't expect everyone reading this to want to plan their photos in as much detail as I do as a Pro; there is absolutely nothing wrong with just visiting a beauty spot or going for a walk and taking your camera just to see what photo opportunities might arise. Even so, I thought it might be useful to outline how I go about planning a photo shoot, as there may well be elements that might be useful to you, and even if not, hopefully it will be interesting to understand how a professional photographer goes about planning a photo shoot. I won't necessarily use all of these aspects for every shoot, since it obviously depends on the location and the types of conditions I am looking for, but below are the key elements of planning a shoot, and the tools that I tend to use (note that I'm not endorsing any of these tools, they are just the ones I find most helpful!).

Sunrise / sunset planning

One of the most important considerations for a sunrise / sunset shoot is when does the sun rise and set, and which direction will it be in?

For sunrise and sunset times I use an Android App called 'Clear outside' (free) which has lots of weather forecast information (more of this later) but also shows the sunrise / sunset time (and moonrise moonset times) for any particular location.

For the direction of sunrise / sunset (very important if you want to make sure you will actually see the sun when it rises or sets, particularly when shooting at coastal locations) I use another free Android app called 'Ephemeris' which allows you to move anywhere on a map and show the direction where the sun (and moon) will rise and set. It also allows you to do this for any date in the future.

Tide planning

If you're ever heading onto a beach, it's critical that you know what the tides are doing. It's all too easy to get cut off by a rising tide and be in real trouble. As well as safety, for photography it's very helpful to know what the tides are doing; for example I look for low tides if I am looking for some wet beach reflections. If i'm looking for stormy seas crashing over the coast, then these are always most impressive at high tide. Similarly if I want to do some long exposure shots of water swooshing around a pier, then again high tide is the time to be there. It's always safer to explore any beach when the tide is falling, but always be aware of when it will start coming in again and give yourself plenty of time to get back to a safe area with easy access off the beach. For tide times for the next few days I use the free Android app appropriately called 'My Tide Times'.

Mapping

Having access to maps for planning is really important (as well as being critical for safety, especially on the moors). One of the only paid apps that I use (and it's worth every penny of the £25 per year) is the OS Maps app. This essentially gives you access to detailed Ordnance Survey maps of the whole country on your phone - brilliant for planning, but also invaluable when out and about. You can hit a button and it shows you exactly where you are, so you can check if you're on the path that you thought you were on, or if you're in open moorland, which way to head to the nearest road. Although of course if you're heading out onto the moors you should always have a paper backup, it's an incredibly useful app.

Night sky planning

Whether you're trying to do the tricky task of capturing a photo of the Milky Way or just want to do a bit of stargazing and want to know what you're looking at, the free Stellarium app. You can set any location and date, and it will show you exactly what you will see in the sky above you. When planning a Milky Way shoot, I use it extensively both to see the times when the Milky Way will be visible, and where it will be in the sky in relation to particular locations and landmarks.

Weather

This is the most difficult part of planning, and I could write pages and pages about it, so this is only really a very brief intro to a few aspects.

What's the weather likely to be in the next few days?

The best way to get a feeling fo the likely weather for a location a few days ahead is NOT to look at those apps that give you give hour by hour detail for days / weeks ahead. Without going into detail, these can be very misleading. It is far better to read what a human forecaster says - for example the 'Forecast Summary' section near the bottom of this page. The forecaster is able to give you the general idea such as 'scattered showers' or 'frequent heavy showers'; these mean you would experience very different weather that weather apps with symbols simply can't portray.

What's the weather likely to be in the next few hours?

When you're planning for the next few hours (e.g. for sunrise the next morning) this is where weather apps do come into their element, and for this I use the 'Clear Outside' app mentioned earlier. This gives hour by hour detail of likely cloud cover, temperature, chance of rain and fog etc for a particular location. This is what I will use to judge the likely conditions at a location a few hours, up to a day ahead. Although do bear in mind that weather can vary greatly over short distances and there is no guarantee that any forecast is going to be 100% correct!

Just a few pointers to get you started

So, that's just a brief insight into some of the tools and methods I use to plan my photo shoots. Although I have given examples of some Android apps, there are many more available (and for iPhone IOS too). I hope that some of this is of use if you want to start planning a photo shoot, or just so you have a better idea what to expect the next time you go out for a walk with your camera! If you need more advice, feel free to contact me; I’m always happy to help