Lotus
Mar, 2013Views
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Forrest_Imagery
April 03, 2019
Outstanding work !
The light, details and textures are fantastic.
This image is well-deserving of all the attention it has received ! Congrats !
The light, details and textures are fantastic.
This image is well-deserving of all the attention it has received ! Congrats !
Same photographer See allBehind The Lens
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Behind The Lens
Location
This photograph was taken at McKee Gardens in Vero Beach, Florida. The minute I stepped out of the car, I felt like I walked into a sauna. But then, that is the conditions that water lilies and Lotus plants like best. The results were worth the heat and humidityTime
I found this beauty mid-morning, around 10:30 on July 28th. Mid-summer is one of the best times to capture these beauties in the pools around the gardens.Lighting
Although this might look like a studio photograph, it was taken outside. The overcast sky make for a giant light box giving soft light that brings out the detail in the petals. It also made the water very dark, reflecting neighboring vegetation instead of a bright blue sky. When exposed for the white flower, it fell to black - no need to edit out distractions.Equipment
This was shot with a Conan EOS REBEL T2i (taken before I upgraded to the T6s I'm currently using), along with a Canon EF 100-400mm f/4.5-5.6L IS USM zoom lens. It was shot at 340mm, ISO 200, 1/320 sec at f/5.6 using a tripod. I decided on the low ISO to minimize noise and f-stop to control depth of field. Shutter speed fell where it needed to get the shot.Inspiration
So many photographers look at an overcast sky as a day lost, when in fact it can be a real blessing. I love taking floral photographs under an overcast sky with no more than a light breeze. The detail and lack of harsh shadows make it a photographers dream. Bright sunny days and harsh shadows won't let you get shots like this. Most of the best water lilies and Lotus blossoms are too far from the shore to have reflectors be of any use, and I don't care for the look of fill-flash. So, I wait for the cloudy days that are few and far between during the summer months in Florida for the opportunity to head to botanical gardens.Editing
I believe nature's beauty doesn't need a lot of post-processing. I shoot raw format and do most of my editing in Lightroom - tweaks to exposure, curves, whites, blacks, and clarity. I finish my fine-tuning and black and white conversion in Photoshop. Working with Lightroom, then smart layers in Photoshop allows me to go back to the original file and adjust editing at a later date as I did with this photo. Upgrades in the software and my own skills lets me revisit, revise, and improve those images worth a second look.In my camera bag
I can't carry a lot of equipment in a camera bag for a location shoot due to physical limitations. My primary camera body is a Canon T6s (lighter weight than the professional models) with my old T4i as back-up. When I'm on location but can't carry extra gear, I have a Sigma 18-250mm Macro that covers 90% of the types of photos I may wish to capture. Its a wonderful lens, but being all purpose, it doesn't perform as well as my other lens that are designed for a single purpose. If I'm photographing wildlife, then the Tamron 150-600 is my go-to lens. I really love places like botanical gardens with paved walkways where I can bring a rolling case to allow me a greater selection of lenses. Then I add my zoom telephoto (replaced the Canon 100-400 with a Tamron 150-600mm), Canon 100mm Macro lens, Canon 50mm, and Lens Baby. Depending on the location, and what is allowed, I usually have either a tripod or monopod with me as well. If I'm going strictly Macro, the tripod is a must, together with the 100mm Macro lens and Canon MT-24EX Macro Twin Lite Flash (used more in the studio than on location).Feedback
Again, I'd like to emphasize, go shoot when it is a grey, overcast day. You will be amazed at the petal detail (or feather detail on birds) that are possible on days like that. Let your subject be the story. I love the punch dramatic lighting can give to some subjects, especially landscapes. But, soft natural lighting provides excellent results with more intimate nature subjects like flowers, insects, birds, etc. where detail, tone, and texture are important. Look for bright overcast days for shooting - after all, we do need light to photograph. Dark, brooding skies are best left for landscapes and storm photography.
