Go On A Photowalk And Capture A Manhattan Beach Sunset

MANHATTAN BEACH —You see them posted on social media all the time; those gorgeous Manhattan Beach sunsets. But do you know how to capture them on your own? If not, you'll want to take a Photowalk with Manhattan Beach resident and professional photographer Jefferson Graham.

On Thursday, May 6, Graham is inviting members of the community to a socially distanced "Photowalk" at the Manhattan Beach Pier beginning at 7 p.m.

"We'll meet at the foot of the Pier," Graham told Patch. All are welcome, whether you're just starting out with your smartphone camera, bought a new camera and barely know how to use it, or are advanced. This is just an outing with people who love taking photos. Afterward, we plan to have a socially distanced get-together."

Graham will offer participants advice on how to get the perfect shot as the sun sets. One tip that's iPhone-specific is to use "live" photos for long exposure.

"With the camera on 'live,' which adds a few seconds of video to your image, you can also choose to run the video as loops or as a 'long exposure' with flowing water," Graham said. "To get the effect, take the picture, then open the photos app, swipe up, and choose the long exposure effect. It's that easy."

He also suggests shooting sunsets 5-15 minutes after the sun goes down.

Graham's video television series, "Photowalks with Jefferson Graham," debuted in March on Tubi, a free TV streaming service. On the show, which is geared toward the smartphone crowd, he takes viewers to fun and exotic locations all over the world and teaches them how to get better photos. The first season features half-hour episodes that take place in Oregon, Catalina, Moro Bay, the Big Island of Hawaii, Los Angeles, and Portugal.

Graham is a former columnist for USA Today, where he wrote about technology, often offering smartphone photo tips. He left the outlet in January after 36 years and moved onto the Photowalks series.

"In 2018, I made a travel video of my trip to Osaka, Japan," he said. "When I showed it to a friend, he told me that I forgot one thing...to add photo tips. He was right, so I shot additional footage to include photo tips."

From there, Graham posted similar short videos to YouTube. "I got a call from a producer who told me if I could expand my videos to half an hour, I could get my own show."

Graham is currently editing his second season and says it should air sometime in June.

Register for the Photowalk on Eventbrite.

Catch episodes of "Photowalks with Jefferson Graham"on Tubi.

You can also subscribe to Graham's weekly newsletter.