This shoot has probably been the hardest to plan for because weather wise i needed a day where there was a really dynamic, angry looking sky as if its just about to rain but without it actually raining and with no wind what so ever. This is because in building dens out of umbrellas with even the smallest amount of wind all the umbrellas would fly away in opposite directions and i would then spend most of my time chasing them across the beach. In constructing the den we always used to simply balance the umbrellas on each other and therefore a lack of wind was an absolute necessity in building my den. The sky was also really important otherwise my beach den wouldn’t look at effective against a white cloudless sky and white sand. This den therefore took a lot of planning just because i needed to be ready to build it at very sort notice when the weather was perfect. I also want a day in which the tide is fairly high so that there isn’t a vast expanse of empty beach and the sea could create an angry/rainy atmosphere as well.
In building this den i am going to use only umbrellas and a windbreak. The wind break is pretty essential because the umbrellas need a strong sturdy structure to be able to lean on so they can then lean on each other. I am planning on using two main umbrellas and then loads of other smaller umbrellas. I have chosen the brightest and most vibrant coloured umbrellas to use in order to have my den stand out vividly in the surroundings. The tarpolan is what we would have had on the floor to sit on in our dens as the sand is wet from both the sea and the rain. The umbrellas are a variety of sizes to be able to build the den with no gaps, filling all the spaces.
Below is the perfect sky that i need to take my photographs. I have decided to do this shoot down St Ouens beach as we would commonly build dens in this environment. It is also a large expanse of beach which will make the den stand out in the space and also provide an interesting landscape if there is a dynamic sky as the sky takes up most of the frame.
