Yaverland

Yaverland is a long sweeping beach at the eastern end of Sandown Bay. The beach sits beneath Bembridge Down and the the imposing Culver Cliffs. It is a sandy beach but there are many rocks that create interest on the beach along with a number of Groynes and breakwaters. At low tide the beach often has interesting pools and spits of beach. Its an easy to access location with photographic interest as soon as you leave the car park but a walk along the beach towards Culver opens a range of possibilities. Its primarily a sunrise location but works well throughout the year, during winter the Sun rises in the south west over the sea and in the summer it rises behind Bembridge Down.

Getting there:

Yaverland is an easily accessible area with photographic interest right from the car park. A walk along the beach can reward with closer shots of Culver Cliffs.

From Newport take the A3020 towards Arreton, Lake and Sandown. At Blackwater Junction continue straight on the main road which becomes the A3056. Follow this road through Arreton until you reach Lake. Continue straight on over 2 roundabouts in Lake until you reach a T junction with Traffic Lights.

Turn left towards Sandown, the road bends to the right as it climbs lake hill before reaching traffic lights at Sandown. Continue straight on and then turn right Melville Street. (Signposted Sandown Pier). Continue to follow Melville Street until you see the Pier and then follow the road along to the left along the esplanade. At the end of the road turn right and continue to follow the seafront until you reach the Yaverland pay and display car park. There is a slipway and steps down on the beach at the eastern end of the car park.

What to Shoot:

The view of Culver Cliff forms the most obvious subject for a photo here, particularly in conjunction with Red Cliffs which are closer to the car park. The combination of the clay red cliff and the chalk Culver Cliffs provide a nice contrast.

Walking along the beach there will be numerous options for foregound depending on the state of the tide. At low tide there will often be pools of sea water left by the receding tide which can provide interesting foregound and leading line options, or can be a subject on their own right.

Walking along the beach to Culver cliffs will provide many options with rocky areas of the beach revealed at different tide heights. Walking in this direction has the benefit of bringing you close to the cliffs which makes them a larger part of the image.

By the car park there are a number of wooden groynes leading out into the sea which can provide interesting subjects, again depending on the state of the tide there will be options to pair these with either wave trails of pools of water left by the receding tide. If the sand has been moved by the sea there are also areas of rocks which can provide for interesting images too.

Other Options:

Continuing east along the bay you come to Sandown with its Pier providing an interesting subject of a photo. The beach here is very sandy and foreground options are limited, although at low tide there can be pools and ripples in the sand for interest.

Continuing along the beach you reach Shanklin with the Beach Huts at Small Hope Beach, again there are a range of goynes and beach furniture here that at the right tide height can make for interesting long exposure shots. The final stop in the bay is the thatched roof pub at Shanklin Chine which is a popular subject for photos.