Photographing Flowers: Basics

Not recommended for several reasons. One is that it will require you to use a much smaller aperture thereby increasing depth of field. In photographing flowers it is desirable to eliminate as much of the background as possible in order to isolate the flower. Another reason is that it causes harsh shadows and washes out the colors of the flowers.

Colors will be brighter. No heavy shadows to ruin your picture. Less light allows the use of larger f-stops. Most professional photographers choose to shoot on a cloudy or overcast day whenever possible.

Tips & Tricks

• Aluminum Foil

  Carry a piece of foil with you to use as a reflector. The sheet should be about the size of a sheet of paper. Fold it up into a square and tuck it into your camera bag. Use it to reflect light onto the blossom or plant to create highlights, or get rid of shadows.

• Water Bottle

  Carry a small spray bottle with you and use it to mist the blossom or plant. This adds an attractive quality to the image. Consider the light. The droplets will sparkle and glow depending on the direction of the light. Move around and observe the effect from different angles then choose the best from which to shoot.

• Black Card

  Use a piece of heavy, dark colored construction paper to create a simple backdrop. First, meter the scene without the black card in the picture. Then add the card and shoot with the metered setting. The reason for this is that if you meter the black card, the meter will set the camera in order to make the black card appear 18% gray, which is not what you want. You want the flowers to be bold and vivid and the card to remain black.

Links

• Photographing Flowers
• Photographing Flowers--Some Useful Tips
• How to Photograph Flowers
• Taking Flower Photos Further

All images are the sole property of W. L. Folse Photography.

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