Romantic Sunset Beach Engagement Shoot at Harkness Memorial State Park, Waterford, Connecticut

Why Sunset at the Beach is the Best Time of Day to Photograph Humans in Love

Mckenna + Andrew opted for a beach engagement shoot at Harkness Memorial State Park in Waterford, Connecticut. We started near Eolia Mansion with its gorgeous flowers and gardens and ended in the sand and waters of the state beach. We captured these goodies in the month of October when school was back in session, seasonal visitors had returned back to their home states or towns and the park is frequented by far fewer crowds than you may find on a summer’s day. We had a warm evening which allowed for a cute + clean look of a fitted white dress for Mckenna and casual menswear for Andrew. And we opted for sunset.

1. “Golden Hour”

I always prefer photographing couples close to sunset. You may hear this time of day referred to as “golden hour” which refers the hour or so of time before the sunsets and a short period of time immediately following the sun setting in which the sun is low in the sky, emitting the warmest light full of reddish daylight illuminating skin tones so nicely. It is also when the sun is lowest in the sky, which diffuses the light gently and evenly in a way a mid-day sunlight could not (unless of course, there is total cloud coverage which creates that even light distribution us photographers looooove).

2. Open Sky

Golden hour in any part of your state will look lovely – I will not deny you that! However, nothing beats the beach. And I know everyone and their mothers “just love the beach” so my stance is far from novel. Humans innately love being near water (aka an actual life source) and the salty air absolutely does do something to our inner peace. I mean, you are not going to be seeing wall art for sale at your local Marshalls or HomeGoods with “BEACH” on it because it’s a niche interest, ya feel me? But when making the obvious claim that the beach is the best spot for photos, I am referring to the openness of the sky. It is similar to why I love work from the Midwest, the desert or California’s coast! With so few visual obstructions such as telephone wires, varieties upon varieties of trees (hello, Connecticut!) or subsequent shadows from said trees, the landscape is so clean, open and spaced out beautifully that any photos are going to look great.

3. Natural Elements

The beach offers a physical aspect that other locations may not (well, that may not in a socially-acceptable way) and that is the ability to be barefooted and grounded to the earth. I don’t know about you (but, like, I kind of do… because you’re reading this) but once my shoes are off, it signals something to my mind that me and my body and my mind, we’re relaxing… we’re chillin’. We are present in the moment and just focused at what is directly in front of us. It feels like an in-home session almost immediately – like all rules out the window because hey, our shoes are off! And the last time that was a regular practice for most of us was when we were kiddos. So I always encourage my couples to remove their shoes at the beach and keep a more natural approach to the poses. Having your toesies just feels so cozy, intimate, full of touch and connection so I dig it. Also! We are at the beach… we’re seaside, baby! We will be walking through or past water in one way or the other. We will be sitting in dunes, running along the water’s edge as it saturates the packed sand and we’ll be walking on jettys and rocks – so you are better off barefoot anyways. Being barefoot for a couple’s session aligns you with the beach’s environment – free, raw and open.

4. Romanticism

Which brings me to my last point – the beach is innately romantic. The tides ebb and flow with the moon’s gravitational pull, the grassy dunes move when the wind asks it to and the sandy surface feels how the day did – warm and dry, or wet and cool. It’s just lovely!

I cannot say enough about photographing couples at the beach. It has the skyline, the openness, the romanticism and the freedom to create. If I could photograph all of my lovely couples who want photographs together at the beach, I freaking would.

If you want some photographs capturing your innate freeness, your love, your youthfulness – then I would love to hear from you. Reach out here 🙂

About the author:

Britt Hill is a wedding and elopement photographer that creates film inspired photographs for those that love some adventure, who live intentionally and for those looking to do things their way.