10 Tips for
Great Flower Photography
Flower photography is not only a great
way to spend your time learning different photography techniques
it is also a great way to add to your home decor! Flowers are a
fantastic subject, not just because of their beauty, but also
because of their availability. If you don’t have any flowers in
your own yard to photograph you don’t have to go far to find
some. You can easily photograph flowers at your local park, the
Mall, a restaurant, a friends garden, a community garden, just
about every where you go there are flowers.
If you don’t want to photograph flowers
in their natural setting you can purchase flowers in most
grocery stores or at a local flower shop to take home and
photograph in a studio setting. In fact, it’s hard to find a
legitimate reason for not photographing
flowers.
Let’s get down to business. Here is a
list of 10 tips that will help you create some amazing flower
photography.
1. One of the first things you need to do
with digital photography is to make sure you are using the
correct white balance settings. If your camera has the option, I
recommend that you use the manual white balance function. If
not, then use whatever setting is appropriate for the lighting
you are shooting with. The equivalent to white balance if you
are shooting film is color balance. If you are shooting outside
be sure you are using daylight balanced film. I also suggest
that with daylight balanced film outdoors that you use a slight
warming filter. Most of the flower photography that you may do
will either be in shade or on an overcast day creating a much
bluer light then the film is balanced for. On the flip side, if
shooting indoors with incandescent lighting or normal house
lights you should be using tungsten balanced film. If the indoor
lighting is being supplied by florescent light, then use a
florescent filter with daylight balanced film. This is just a
starting point. Experiment, mix it up. You can get some
fantastic special effects that way. 2. Get a polarizer filter. The great thing
about a polarizer is that it will eliminate or reduce image
degrading reflections. This helps to improve color saturation
and contrast. At the proper angle it will also dramatically
darken a blue sky. This effect is adjusted by rotating the
filter until the desired effect is achieved. There are 2 types
of polarizer’s available, circular and linear. Most of the
advanced metering systems today that are built into your camera
will not function properly with a linear polarizer. So I suggest
you get a circular polarizer to play it safe. I have also seen
warming polarizer’s. While I have not tried one you may want to
experiment with them. 3. Always
use a tripod. Let me repeat that, “Always use a tripod”. Not
only will a tripod steady your camera and help you achieve a
much sharper image, but it will also force you to think about
your composition. You will have to place the flowers in your
photographic image much more deliberately instead of just
pointing your camera and shooting away. 4. Don’t just take a snapshot of a flower
that interests you and then move on. Set up your first shot to
include the whole flower then concentrate on the details of the
flower that attract your eye. Focus on the color or small
details of the flower.
5. Control your depth of field. If you are
photographing a single flower with a busy background then use a
wide aperture to selectively focus on the flower and blur out
the background. Conversely, if you are photographing a field of
flowers the use a smaller aperture setting to bring most, if not
all the flowers into focus. If your camera has a depth of field
preview then this is the time to use it. 6. Look for the unusual. Some examples would
be snow or ice on a flower, A flower growing out of concrete or
even a dead flower that has an interesting
look.
7. Don’t put your camera away just because
it’s cloudy or looks like a storm is coming. Colors really pop
at this time and you can get some amazing photographs in these
conditions. I have even photographed in rainy and foggy weather
with great results. Be sure to use a tripod and keep your gear
dry. 8. On a
bluebird sunny day, soften the harsh contrasty light by placing
a diffusion screen between the flower you are photographing and
the sun. You can purchase a portable diffusion screen or use
something you have on hand. You can completely block the sun and
put your flower in shade, then redirect some light back on the
flower with a reflector. This reflector can be a commercially
made reflector or just something reflective like a white T-shirt
or a piece of foam core. Another photographic technique would be
to use fill flash. If your camera has an automatic fill flash
function then give it a try. Experiment with the lighting ratio
if your camera will let you change the flash output. I find
reflectors to be a better option then fill flash most of the
time. 9.
Photograph your flowers from different angles. Shoot
straight down, from the side, from the underneath, just change
it up a little. 10. Have
fun with it. Don’t be afraid to experiment and try different
things. Once you think you have the photograph in the bag, get
wacky with it!
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