The higher the waves, the more likely I am to go fins on. In a calm bay, we float out our gear, carry our fins, and gear up in waist deep water. In heavy surf, we sometimes "knee crawl" or even crawl hand and knees, fins on, to get horizontal and kick out past the surf line as soon as possible. It took close to a few hundred shore dives, and a bit of pride swallowing, to get there, but it works for us. Also factor in visibility. Fairly high surf and limited visibility is a lost fin waiting to happen. Condition dictate procedures.
DivemasterDennis