Howard Moo Young, Contributor
I'VE ALWAYS been fascinated with flowers, cultivated, in the garden, in the wild, or in floral arrangements, and I've always loved photographing flowers. It's nothing for me to get up when the dew is still on the grass in the early morning, crawling around on knees and elbows with my macro lens and small tripod, studying every angle of every petal on that flower. After I see the lighting that suits me, the final image is composed and taken.
I don't like direct sunlight on my close-up images of flowers, I prefer ambient or overcast lighting as the colours are more saturated. The use of a white umbrella to shield the direct sunlight gives the soft, even lighting that is so much easier to work with. I love back-lit images showing veins in a leaf or petals, and rim lighting which creates a different mood. Be careful of any bright spots in the background.
GETTING REAL CLOSE-UP
Of all the lenses that I have, the 55mm macro is my favourite, which allows me to get real close for such pictures as these. No other lens can capture petals better. A wide angle lens allows me to get under the flower to give an upward view. Because depth of field is so limited in a close-up shot, it's crucial to have the main subject in sharp focus.
A frame-filling image of one flower (or part of one) can often be more dramatic than if you try to capture several flowers, leaves, and the entire background into a single photograph. A sharp image of a flower against a creatively blurred background can have impact, but if both flower and background are fuzzy, it's no longer striking.
CAMERA SUPPORT
Steady your camera with a tripod or another means of support which could be a bean bag or a rock. If you are using a point-and-shoot camera, always check the minimum focusing distance, which is mostly around 2 1/2 to three feet. A zoom lens with macro capabilities will give you a lot of versatility in composing your image and finding the best background. Don't forget that you can use different sheets of black and colour cards, or pieces of stretched velvet material and set these up to change the background. Before taking the image, take a final look around the frame and eliminate any extraneous material, a pair of scissors can come in handy at this time to cut away dead leaves and branches.
TRY DIFFERENT ANGLES
You might want to step back and capture a larger expanse of a field of flowers such as buttercups, or a pond filled with water lilies, or the design of a formal garden using a wide angle lens. If you can shoot from above, you'll be able to see the patterns in flower beds and eliminate background clutter. A light stepladder can come in handy at this time, if you know beforehand the exact spot you're going to photograph and plan for it. Sometimes you might have to step way back and capture an entire tree like the poui, to show the magnificent blooms in all its splendour. A polarising filter will always improve images of this favourite tree against a blue sky.
LIGHTING MAKES ALL THE DIFFERENCE
Back to the quality of light, as it is the key to creating good photography, and will separate a mediocre shot from a great one. This I want to emphasise again, that the best light for photographing flowers is the soft, diffused light of open shade or a light overcast day. This cannot be overstated, as it makes all the difference. On a sunny day, shoot flower photos early in the morning and late in the afternoon for best results. As with most photography, you'll want to avoid shooting under the blazing midday sun and wind up with harsh, contrasty images. Soft lighting brings out the unique texture of each specimen, while backlighting will literally give the flower a warm glow, revealing the translucence of the petals.
Flash can be used to light a flower and accentuate fine details. A ring flash is ideal for this situation, and as with all flashes, the background will be rendered dark. If your built-in flash is equipped with a fill-flash mode, it will automatically calculate how much additional light is needed in any situation. It's a matter of experimenting with or without flash that determines what works best for you. Personally, I shoot all my flower photographs exclusively in natural light. In Jamaica, God blessed us with the most exotic horticulture found anywhere on earth, everytime a new flower opens, I give thanks!
Howard Moo Young is an advertising/graphic design/photography consultant with over 40 years' experience. Email: mooimages@yahoo.com
