Jeff Wignall's "The Joy of Digital Photography"

Macro Photography Tip: Shoot Up at Flowers (and weeds!)

One way to put an interesting twist on macro subjects--particularly low-growing flowers--is to lay down on the grass and shoot up at them. Often looking at flowers (or in this case a "weed") from underneath provides an entirely new perspective and appreciation for the flower. I had no idea, for example, that a dandelion had such interesting details until I was laying on the back lawn looking up at them through the viewfinder of my Olympus C5050 (which, incidentally, has incredible close-up capabilities and a very fast f/1.8 lens--a great camera to pick up used if you can find one). I used this shot in my new book Exposure Photo Workshop and have it posted on my Flickr account.

We're so used to looking down at flowers--it can be a lot of fun to see how low you can get and look up at them. Keep an old blanket handy and you can even keep your clothes clean while you're shooting.

Quick Composition Tip: Get Closer & Fill the Frame

You've probably read this before in how-to books, but it's true: the closer you get to your subject and the larger your main elments are in the frame, the more dynamic your compositions will be. There are two ways to get closer to your subject: one is to simply walk a few steps closer, the other is to use your zoom lens to fill up the frame. (In this case, of course, one more step and I would have walked off the dock and into the drink, so zooming was the better option.) One of the nice things about digital is that you can see your results instantly on the LCD and if you're not filling the frame, get closer.

The key thing is to try and elminate anything that doesn't help carry the theme of the shot. If someone has to ask what it was you were shooting, you've probably included too much distracting information. In composing this shot I was careful to exclude anything but the boats and one small corner of dock. The shot was pretty tight as it was taken, but I also cropped a tiny bit more during editing. Move close, fill the frame--you'll love the results.

Quick Shooting Tip: Use Black Backgrounds with Flowers

If you're photographing flowers this spring or summer and you're having trouble toning down the background, try using a black background to completely hide the background. I've used scrap pieces of black fabric, sheets of black Foamcore and even the side of my house (which is dark brown) to help isolate flowers against a striking black background. For this shot I used a piece of black fabric that I tacked up on the side of my house with pushpins. I took my meter reading (in the center weighted mode) directly from the flower and then used +.7 stops of exposure compensation to keep the colors of the flowers nice and bright. Fabric is good because you can fold it up and put it in a camera bag or backpack, but I like to keep a sheet of black Foamcore in the car because it's much faster to set up--I can just lean it against a rock or tree.