Flower Photography
Flowers make an excellent photography subject. We are surrounded by them, and they come in such a wide range or colours, shapes and sizes that you rarely have to venture too far before you find one that catches your creative eye.
Choose Your Subject
Zoom in close on the interesting part of your flower and crop everything else out. Image by Auntie P.
Decide what the subject of your photo is going to be - is it a single flower, a bunch, or a whole field? You will usually get a more interesting photo by shooting a single flower, or a few flowers - larger amounts tend to end up looking cluttered, with no real focal point.
What is it about your flower that interests you most? It might be the head of the flower, individual petals, the leaves or something else entirely. Choose your viewpoint and composition based on this, getting in nice and close.
Don't be afraid to crop the edges off the subject; doing so often allows you to focus the viewer's attention even more closely on the real area of interest.
Look around to see if you can include anything else in your shot to add interest. When photographing an individual flower this might be something like a bee or spider; when shooting on a larger scale, such as an entire field, there might be an interesting building or piece of farmland machinery you can include.
Colour Is Everything
Use bright, natural sunlight to enhance the colours of your flower. Image by MatFord.
In flower photography, colour is one of the most important things to include. A rich, vibrant shot will look infinitely better than one which is dull and dreary. If shooting outside, choose a day with plenty of bright, natural sunlight to really bring out the colours in your flowers.
Texture and detail can turn a good photo into a great one. Flowers have both in spades, but you can often enhance them by lighting your flower from the side, so that the subtle shadows really pick out the surface details.
Get Set Up
Sharp focussing and a narrow depth of field give maximum impact. Image by Balakov.
Focussing is crucial to a good flower photograph - if your shot is even slightly out of focus it will carry significantly less impact. Switch your camera to manual focussing mode and really take the time to get your flower as sharp as possible. If your camera doesn't offer manual focussing, use macro mode so that you can keep your flower in focus even at very close range.
Open your aperture wide to throw the background out of focus. This will draw the attention towards the flower, creating a more engaging, intimate photo.
Mounting your camera on a tripod is a must when shooting at such close range and with a narrow depth of field - even slight movements can mess up your careful preparations. With the wind blowing your flower about, the last thing you need is for your camera to be moving too.
Be mindful of shadows from your equipment or your body ruining your photo. Choose your viewpoint carefully and be aware of the sun's movement if you plan on staying in the same place for a long time.
Wait. Then Wait Some More
Have patience and you'll capture some stunning flower photographs. Image by code poet.
Patience is a virtue when it comes to flower photography. Be prepared to spend a lot of time lying on the floor, finger poised on the shutter button, just waiting for your flower to stop swaying about long enough for you to photograph it. On mild days you hopefully won't have to wait too long, but sometimes the wind can be a real problem.
To help keep your flower still you may want to set up a makeshift shelter using an umbrella, or get a friend to sit in the wind's path. Alternatively try holding the flower's stem to stop the shaking - just be sure to keep your hand and shadow out of the shot!
Digg
Delicious
StumbleUpon
Reddit
Facebook