a1 Photo Tips

Although the winter is now approaching, at the time I write this; my mind is focused on the beauty of a summer garden. That for me is a way of escaping the wintertime blues! So here goes - some flower photo tips: (The great lily photo is made by Per Ola Wiberg.)

Whenever people see me taking photos of flowers on a cloudy day, they seem puzzled. “Why don’t you take those photos on a sunny day?” is a commonly asked question.

In fact, my experience in photography has taught me that sunny days are best reserved for picnics in the park or going for a swim; they aren’t the best for photos! Cloudy skies give me an opportunity to work magic with my camera.

If you take photographs in full sunlight, the light has a tendency to “bounce” off the petals and leaves of the flowers. This will result in shadows that are not going to show your subject in its best light! Full sun is not conducive to great photos, no matter how nice it feels on your face. If you choose a day where there is some cloud or it is overcast, the flowers can be more evenly lit and harsh shadows are eliminated.

Getting Those Beautiful Photos On a Sunny Day

1. Have some patience. Look for a cloudy or overcast day.
The best photographs are taken on cloudy or overcast days, so it may be wise to wait that little bit longer for the perfect day to achieve the ultimate photos of your flowers. On a partly cloudy day, simply wait for some clouds to block the sun and then take the picture. Take care that you have adjusted the exposure to accommodate the reduction in light intensity.

2. Choose the right time of day.
You can avoid overly bright sunlight by giving the camera a rest around noon. Obviously, this is when the sun is at its strongest, giving off a harsh unforgiving light.

Beautiful pictures can be taken early in the morning, with the dew from the previous night still on the petals and leaves, or you may choose to make use of the softer light that comes in the late afternoon prior to sunset to achieve those beautiful pictures.

Example: see the image here of White Coneflowers? I made that one around sunset, one day in August.

3. “Do-It-Yourself” cloudy day.
It is not always practical to wait until a cloudy day happens. If this is the case with you, make your own cloudy day! You can create softer lighting conditions through the use of material that will diffuse the light through partial blocking of the sunlight. It needn’t cost the earth, either – a bed sheet or t-shirt, drop sheet or white garbage bag will do the trick. When such a material is held between your subject and the sun, there will be enough diffusion to make all the difference to your photo. You may like to experiment a little, by taking photos with and without the diffuser, comparing the two. A portable diffuser can be easily and inexpensively made, using a wire coat hanger fashioned into a square over which a white garbage bag is stretched.

4. Make your own solar eclipse.
Sometimes, the only thing for it is to completely block out the sun’s rays. For example, if your background is too “busy” with colour and/or texture, it will detract from the subject. When you darken the background, it has the effect of drawing more attention to the flowers, which in turn helps you to focus on the subject, rather than being “dazzled” by the background. You can achieve this by obtaining some opaque material such as cardboard. Place this so that it creates a shadow on the ground. Your subject will “jump” out from the background!

5. Use the sun to your advantage.
There will be times when you want to have sunlight in your photographs. This is especially so when the flower you want to photograph is in shade and to do it justice requires more light. To do this, you can use a shiny material to cause a reflection of the light on to the flower, creating an instant impact. Examples of materials to use include a mirror, foil, white cardboard or if you want to achieve a “warmer” look, you may choose to use copper or gold coloured foil.

6. To create drama, add backlight.
Many beginner-level photography books will emphasize the importance of keeping the sun at your back. This is good advice, but it is worth considering doing the opposite for a dramatic effect. To give the flowers an added “glow”, take your photo with the sun as a backlight. Put your face to the sun and the sun behind the flowers. You can achieve all sorts of interesting effects this way, from a “stained glass” look to a silhouette. Translucent flowers such as pansies, poppies and anemones (see example here by “tanakawho“!) work really well with this effect.

7. Remember - the most important thing is to have fun.
Photography should be enjoyable. Have some fun experimenting with different diffusers, trying different positions and even some “new” techniques. You may even “invent” a technique!

More Flower Photo Tips

Everybody likes flowers. And I think flowers are probably one of the most popular subjects for making pictures. Actually, I must confess I am one of those people myself.

Well, when I was young and hellbent on becoming a great Artist, I went to great lengths to avoid such “trivial” subjects as flowers! Nay, I took photographs of rotting logs and storm drains, all in black-and-white, and made really dark and gloomy prints from those shots. The gloomier, the more “artistic”!

Nowadays, at a more mature age, I am a bit easier on myself and simply snap pictures of stuff that I find interesting and uplifting. Like the roses in the picture above, which I made while visiting my favorite public garden, in the medieval town of Visby, Sweden.

So - how do you make pictures of flowers? OK, I can only speak for myself but here are some of my personal rules:

1. Avoid Direct Sunlight Like the Plague!

A somewhat provocative statement, right? Yet I find it is true in the vast majority of cases. For instance, the rose picture above was snapped just before sunset, when the sun was so low that it didn’t reach those roses. And about 99% of all successful flower shots I’ve ever made were done in a similar fashion: either near sunset and in the shade, or during overcast (cloudy) days.

2. Find a Neutral and Unobtrusive Background!

When I make pictures of such flowers as roses and peonies, I usually use the green leaves of the plant as background. Done right, this results in a nice neutral and subdued backdrop for those showy flowers.

Now, some flowers are not of the large showy type, but more small and gentle, and may need some company for best effect. Also, they might need a different angle - you may have to get down on your knees to make friends with them!
One modest example of the latter type is these Fritillarias, which grow in a meadow by a river, close to where I live. On that particular day in May, the weather was slightly overcast - perfect for flower pictures!

OK, note how I did this: I picked out a small group of these flowers and made sure I had a fairly neutral, uncluttered, backdrop for them. And to get a shallow depth of field I used the largest aperture my digicam could offer - this served to further minimize any distractions in the background by blurring it. Only one of the flowers is in focus, the remaining two serve a supportive role in the composition.

You can also use the sky as background for your flower shots - as in the nice example here, by “blhphotography“. It is one of the more creative flower pictures I have seen, shot with an extreme wide-angle lens.

Another method, which I don’t recommend, is to put a piece of cardboard with a neutral color behind your flowery subject! The problem with this is, in my opinion, that it gives an un-natural result. If you need total control like that, then pick the flowers and put them in a vase, in a studio!

3. Get Uncomfortable!

As I said earlier, flowers are a much loved subject for picture-making. I’d say they are almost loved to death! One problem with making flower images that are more than just boring snapshots is that these creatures often are fairly small, and tend to grow in the company of various other plants. Therefore, you often have to make some effort, by contorting your body in various ways, to get the camera into an optimal position. This does take a bit of dedication - suffering for the sake of a great result!