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BlasTorillo

Away from danger

Bee on flowers

Bee on flowers
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Mexico, MX

upload_date

Dec, 2019

Views

686

Likes

Awards

Zenith Award

Top Shot Award 22

Spring 21 Award

9Teen Award

Absolute Masterpiece

Outstanding Creativity

Top Choice

Superb Composition

Peer Award

Top Ranks

Top 10 rank

Top 10 rank week 2

Top 10 rank week 1

Behind The Lens

Location

I visited with my family a science festival near my hometown. In a garden, there were many of these flowers and some bees hanging around them.

Time

It was more or less two in the afternoon when despite the fact that there were only a few clouds and at times the sunlight was full, I decided to try some photos of the flowers and the bees before we eat something and return to the conference room. I prepared my camera on the tripod, I chose any flower that was far enough to avoid getting close to the bees, but also that allowed me to blur the background, I framed and composed in a way that I liked, looking for a neutral and more or less homogeneous background and as dark as possible since the chosen flowers were more exposed to light, I adjusted the focus and the other parameters and waited. After a few minutes, 3 or 4, this bee came, and I made three shots. This is the best result.

Lighting

Sometimes the photos have to be decided in the time when we bring the camera to our faces and shoot, and sometimes we have to wait patiently for things to happen. Sometimes there is also nothing we can do about the light source and sometimes when we use natural light, we also have to look for frames that do not ruin the shot. After 42 years of making photos, pretty much always in natural or ambient light (I don't like using flashes at all; none of my photos in Viewbug was flash-lit), I've learned to see where a photo might appear, even if its elements are not there yet in their ideal position.

Equipment

Nikon D5200, AF-S DX VR Nikkor 55-300mm, tripod. f/5.6, 300mm, ISO 250, RAW, Manual focus. All parameters were set manually except white balance which was in automatic mode.

Inspiration

I like to think that I have not stayed in the technical aspects, that more and more have become automatic (like when we learn to drive a car), and that more and more I am aware of aesthetic issues. But most importantly, each photograph I take is a way of saying what is important to me. Photography, in the end, is for me, more a way to communicate how I see what I see, and how that reflects a part of who I am, think and feel, than a matter of technique, software, or aesthetic competencies. This photo clearly says, I think, that I love nature, that bees and flowers are beautiful, that life is always around us and that it is worth being alive and attentive to appreciate it.

Editing

I did the post-processing in Pixelmator Pro, slightly improving the focus on the bee and flowers, correcting some of the brighter areas, and increasing the vibrancy slightly. It is also important to know what are the qualities of the software we have because some things will not be possible with certain editing programs and others will. As in the days of analog photography, it is always better to "do your homework on camera" so you don't have to rely so heavily on software.

In my camera bag

Camera: Nikon D5200 AF-S DX VR Zoom-Nikkor 18-55mm AF-S DX VR Nikkor 55-300mm Tripod Two spare batteries for the camera. Two memory cards, in addition to the camera's: all 32G. The camera manual. Basic camera cleaning kit. Not in the bag, but always with me: Four reflectors (white, black, silver, gold, and diffuser): One 45cm radius, two 1.10m radii, and another 2m by 1.20m, rectangular.

Feedback

In summary, in this photo there are many years of learning, but also some aesthetic training. However, for practical purposes, it is not that difficult to achieve similar results to this particular photo either. As I have said for a long time, the tool is the light, not the camera. You have to understand what light does and how it behaves in each situation. If you understand what the light will do in the place, then inside the camera and in the end how we can correct any errors or improve some results using software BEFORE the shotting, I think It all comes down to studying (light, art, composition, and the manual of our camera, in addition to the technical things of photography), and practicing, practicing and practicing, with a self-critical sense.

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BlasTorillo

BlasTorillo

Away from danger

Bee on flowers

Behind The Lens

See more amazing photos, follow BlasTorillo

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