Apr 04 2010

How to Photograph Flowers Close-Up in 5 Steps

How To Photograph - Flowers Close Up in 5 Steps.

We’ve all seen a flower that’s simply stunning. The question is – How To Photograph and capture the beauty we see with our eyes. Here’s how you can capture great flower close-up photos in 5 easy steps.

STEP 1 - TIME OF DAY – The light is constantly changing and can help or hurt your photos depending on the time of day. The most difficult time to shoot flowers is in the middle of the day with direct sunlight. The ideal time to shoot is early morning or late afternoon. The sunlight at these times to usually warmer, less harsh, and will allow the naturally saturated colors to glow. You must know what your camera can NOT do.

STEP 2 - WEATHER — Like sunlight, weather can also help or hurt. Windy conditions are very difficult to shoot close-ups. The best weather to photograph flowers in is fog, or a thin blanket of gray clouds. The clouds will diffuse bright sunlight and allow you to photograph the full range of lights and darks in the flower. Squint to improve your photography.

STEP 3 - GO MACRO FOR CLOSE-UP — If you’re shooting with a DSLR consider a macro lens. This will give you the ability to get close while maintaining sharp detail on the flowers. If you’re shooting with a point and shoot camera, switch over to macro or close-up mode (if available, check your manual). This setting will allow you to bring your camera very close, within a couple inches of the flower.

STEP 4 – USE A TRIPOD — With the extreme close-up focus of macro lenses, moving just a hair forward or back will send the flowers out of focus. A tripod will prevent movement on your part. If a slight breeze is moving your flowers, consider placing a piece of cardboard or your best friend between the flowers and the wind.

STEP 5 – EXPERIMENT AND HAVE FUN — Take your time and compose your flower using the full frame of your camera. Get close, then closer, and so close it turns the flower into an abstract. Try a wide open aperture setting of f/2.8 or f/4 and focus on just one small area of interest. Try shooting stopped down to f/16 or f/22. This may require a shutter release cable or using the timer delay in order to prevent movement in the camera. Use a spray bottle to mist the flowers with water for added highlights. In short, experiment and have fun.

How To Photograph — If you like this How To Photograph post or would like to have a photo question answered, leave a comment below, or send me an email. Also be sure to subscribe to this blog to receive ongoing great photo tips and inspiration!

Gear Used – Nikon D700, Nikon 105mm macro lens, Gitzo Tripod

by Kent Weakley

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CE's PhotographyApril 12 - 2:36 pm

Wow, Great How To yet again…
Can’t wait till I have some time to try it out
Thanks

PAUL CLARKApril 14 - 2:04 pm

Hi Kent…Looking forward to your class this Sat.
My wife makes jewelry and has asked I photo some of for a website she has.
I have a small light box,black back drop and a Nikon 40Dx…but can’t seem to get the lighting right on the silver jewelry…some portions are over exposed and shiny …while other parts remain in the shadows.
I have lamps on the two sides and above the objects

any suggestions you may have would be appreciated…

thanks again
Paul

Kent Weakley Reply:
April 14th, 2010 at 4:04 pm

Hi Paul, Good to hear from you, and I’m looking forward to class this weekend too. Shiny objects can be tricky. You need to bounce light all around to make them sparkle and you need to limit reflection around them one way to do this is with a light tent kit like this one Let me know if this helps.

RanaApril 17 - 10:18 am

Hello, I’m a new subscriber I found you through MY 3 boybarians. I was playing around with my point and shoot yesterday and took some photos of my flowers in the grass and pics of the grass. It was really interesting to see how lighting and focusing can make a difference in your photos. Thanks for the extra points to try out. Looking forward to going through your older posts. Have a great weekend!
.-= Rana´s last blog ..Spring! =-.

JoniApril 17 - 10:40 am

Great tips; thanks for sharing.

By the way, I love your equine driving shots. I tweeted about them: Combined Driving Action -Photography by Kent Weakley http://ow.ly/1zGG4 Great #photos & Super nice web #design too! #horses #equine

I love your website design.
.-= Joni´s last blog ..horse-logo-web-site-athc [Flickr] =-.

Cheri ThomasApril 22 - 8:13 am

Thank you so much for sharing your knowledge & tips. I felt a bit “inspired” to go out & attempt some shots of our new spring flowers. I have limited equipment, but am enjoying finding ways to work with what I have.

Trying to find time to go through more of your blog & tips – would love to find tips on ‘action’ shots. My oldest 2 are in sports & marching & concert band, my youngest in orchestra.
.-= Cheri Thomas´s last blog ..Herscher High School Marching Band =-.

Deborah LeeAugust 24 - 6:47 am

Great article! I love macro photography; I think it offers endless opportunities to be creative

Debbie LattugaDecember 6 - 7:37 pm

Yipee, I have a new macro lens. Can’t wait to try some of your suggestions.

PegaMarch 8 - 8:01 am

Very nice post and interesting info.
Cool work, keep on sharing.
Ciao from Italy.

PiaMarch 15 - 4:10 am

I love it! I wish I would have macro. I just love photographing flowers.

ResaApril 8 - 3:15 pm

excellent stuff really liked this post, i’m going to read more on your website soon after i’m done with my work! =)

Smallwood Photo Class » This Week Info & MacroSeptember 19 - 3:32 am

[...] Hopefully you brought your camera today. We’ll be going over Macro photography. You will get days to shoot pictures on Thursday and Friday. And incidentally came across this site just today: How to Photograph Flowers Up Close [...]