Sunflower
Sunflowers always make me happy
Sunflowers always make me happy
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May, 2016Views
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patrickkulwicki
June 29, 2016
Wonderful contrast of color and love that the sunflower is poking out of frame here as the composition really works well.
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Behind The Lens
Location
I took this shot in a sunflower field close to my home (Gan Ner, Israel). Besides being a photographer, I am also a Biologist. I try to capture the beauty of nature in my images. I like to show that you can enjoy nature not only in Natural Parks but also near home.Time
I went to the sunflower field in the afternoon with my husband. He likes photography too, and joins me often. We took photos until sunset. However, I was not happy with the results, because of the position of the sun, the flowers were in the shadow. I ended up with either too dark flowers or well exposed flowers with a burnt sky. I didn't achieve the summer mood I wanted. Guess what happened next. 6:30am of the next day we were there again with the cameras in our hands and sleep in our eyes. This time the flowers were facing the sun without dark shadows. The golden light at that time added to the sunflower colors. We were able to get bright colors that represent for me the summer time. Waking up so early was totally worth it!Lighting
Lighting was extremely important in this image. I wanted to show the summer colors. I wanted the yellows to be bright and clean from shadows. This means that I needed a soft light coming towards the flower (and not from behind it). The early hours of the morning provided this soft golden light almost perpendicular to the flower. The sun's position was also good to capture a blue sky (instead of the burnt sky you get when you shoot with back-light). I wouldn't have been able to get the same light effect at any other time of the day.Equipment
This photo was taken with very little equipment, just my Nikon D3100 and a 18-140mm lens.Inspiration
My husband and I have been driving near the fields almost each weekend for weeks. We know from previous years that they usually grow sunflowers there and they are one of my favorite flowers. There is something about them that makes me feel happy. I guess the combination of colors and their sun-like shape set my mind on summer mood. We've been waiting for the sunflowers since the moment they were planted and we watched them grow week by week. During this waiting time my excitement about going to the sunflower field increased. When the day arrived I was so happy!! I enjoyed a lot taking photos in that field. I wanted to show the joy that a simple flower can bring. I printed this photo and I gave it as a present to a couple of friends. They recently told me that looking at this sunflower makes them feel better. Mission accomplished!! :)Editing
With nature photography, I try to do my best on site for not doing a lot of post-processing. For this particular photo I removed dust spots and I cropped it a little. I opened the shadows, I adjusted exposure and saturation and I added a bit of light in the center of the flower by adding a circular filter.In my camera bag
I usually have 2 lenses: a 18-140mm and a prime 35mm. I like to carry a light back because this allows me to enjoy my surroundings better. The combination of these two lenses gives me a lot of flexibility. I use the 18-140mm for landscape and nature photography because I can go from a relatively wide angle to decent close-ups. I use the prime lens in low light situations or when I want to get a really blurry background or a nice bokeh effect. I love this lens quality! In certain times I also carry neutral density filters for long exposure photography. On those occasions I take my tripod too. I always have a cleaning pen for the lenses.Feedback
Look for the light that will help you to express what you want. With nature photography this means that you have to study your locations and how the light affects your subject. Maybe you will need to come to the location at several times of the day to check things out. Maybe these times are not going to be the most comfortable for you (waking up extremely early is not always fun). But believe me. All your effort will pay off. Using the right light will make your photos outstanding.
