Flower Photography Tips
– What type of Camera is best?
– What kind of Lens should be used?
– Is a tripod necessary?
– Where can I take pictures of flowers?
Should you use an SLR or a Point and Shoot Camera for Flower Photography?
With budget constraints considered, one must choose the best camera for their flower photography project or hobby while staying within practical limits of cost and expense. An SLR camera will certainly provide exceptional results. This is not due in part that SLR bodies are always a better camera body than a point and shoot body, because I have used some really good point and shoot cameras. But an SLR has the capability to allow the lens to be changed and this fosters the concept of utilizing the perfect lens for the specific subject. In other words you can use the right lens for the job. Whereas with a point and shoot camera you are stuck with using one specific lens.
What is the best lens for your SLR CAMERA?
I have found that macro lenses are great for flower photography. The ability to zoom into the details of a flower bloom provides a surreal effect of another world that is often overlooked by the naked eye. Some of the most intricate parts of a flower seem like an ephemeral experience that would only happen in a dream. But attempting to capture these details with a normal lens does not always work best. Also a lens that offers fast aperture speeds will certainly make it easier to get these types of pictures in low light conditions. Often the wind is your biggest enemy when you are taking macro flower pictures so the faster the shutter speed the better off you are.
A fast lens does not refer to how fast a shutter can open and close on a camera body; but specifically refers to the aperture capability of the lens itself. The aperture is typically measured by the F factor. One such example would be a lens that has a 28mm fixed focal length and a f/1.8 aperture speed. This is a pretty good lens for landscape and wide angle flower photography and with a aperture number this low can offer fast shutter speeds in low light conditions. A slower lens would be a 70-300mm macro zoom lens that offers a f/4.5-6.3 aperture. Because the lens has many more elements to provide the zoom capability and has a much longer focal length without increasing the diameter of the lens then it must compensate for low light levels by increasing the shutter time to allow enough light to reach the cameras sensor.
Have you ever looked into the tube of a roll of paper towels or a roll from wrapping paper? Well, if you notice it is dark in there; but the shorter you make the roll the brighter it is inside the tube, also the larger in diameter the tube is the more light there is in the tube. For this cause lenses that have fast apertures and offer long telephoto focal lengths (i.e. 500mm) are generally pretty big and heavy, because they have a lot of glass. These types of lenses are not only large and heavy but are very expensive, some can reach up to 6, 7, 8 or $ 10,000. So it is important to balance your lens cost with practicality. Generally you can get a good SLR macro flower lens for around $ 300 – $ 500.
Should you use a tripod for flower photography?
Well, there could be two answers to this question and the ultimate outcome is how sharp do you want your flower pictures to be? Handholding a camera and attempting to take flower pictures is well and good if you are in a field and you are focusing on general landscape flower photography. But if you are taking close up pictures of fine details (macro) the shutter speed and aperture become to play a big part in the quality of your images.
Image Stabilization or Optical Stabilization does help some to compensate for camera shake. But many are often mislead by advertisements and the manufactures stating that this will allow for 1 or 2 stops faster speeds. Yes, this feature will compensate in that manner for camera shake, but it does not compensate for low light conditions combined with a slow lens. Image stabilization can help some but the image quality does suffer from this feature. Typically the image will suffer somewhat from slight softness when using image stabilization. This slight reduction in sharpness is not very noticeable and can be ignored by the average novice or amateur photographer. But if you are a stickler for detail then you had better make certain that you have a tripod handy for that perfect shot that you wish you had brought your tripod.
Where can you take Pictures of Flowers?
Park Trails
Spring and Summer time are the best seasons to find wild flowers growing in the forest and along park trails. Make certain that you plan ahead and get a good map of the local parks and recreation areas. Some local parks have entire rose gardens just waiting to be photographed.
Mountain Forests
It is best to wait until late summer to visit the mountains, if you are hunting for pictures of mountain laurel, rhododendrons or wild azaleas. Mountain flowers often do not bloom until it is warmer in the mountainous areas. This may be as late as July in some regions. Make sure you know the best times for blooms in your region or else you may be disappointed.
Local Green House
A local green house is a great place to take pictures of flowers, but I highly recommend that you get permissions first; a little respect will go a long way. Also, while visiting a greenhouse make sure that you stay out of any customers way. Remember that they are doing you a favor letting you photograph in their place of business.
Your Neighborhood
Many local neighborhoods have wonderful flower displays. If you simply ask your neighbors if you can take pictures of their flowers many will welcome you into their yard and often they are very proud of their work and will tell you all that you want to know about their flowers. And who knows you may make new friends.
Flower Photography is a very rewarding hobby, and one of the best things about it is you never run out of subjects to photograph. So get your batteries charged and your flash memory cards ready and take a walk through your local park, forest or even the local greenhouse and you will be amazed at the results you find. Framed pictures of flowers are a wonderful reward to any flower photographer, amateur or professional alike.
Free Pictures of Flowers from ForestWander Nature Photography. Flowery Forest Flower Photography from the Mountains and Forests. ForestWander Nature Photography Fine Art Photography Gallery.
