Flower in Black and White
Details of the petals of a flower
Details of the petals of a flower
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May, 2016Views
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Same photographer See allBehind The Lens
Behind The Lens
Location
I took this picture in a nursery near my home. It was on May 25th 2016. I remember it clearly because I just bought a canon macro lens and I wanted to try it. I decided to take close up shots of flowers....and what a better place than our local nursery. I am an amateur photographer and I wanted to try something new, my first non standard lens.Time
This picture was taken on a sunny, warm late afternoon at 5pm to be exactly. I was walking through what it seemed to be endless rows of flowers stopping from time to time to take a look at them. The air was filled with the sweet fragrant scent of hundreds of different types flowers, all beautiful and colorful. Then one of them caught my eye, it was a soft colored purple flower with a darker cluster of tight petals in its center, a Chrysanthemum. I took some close up pictures in color then I thought about how would this flower look like in black and white, so I set up the picture style to monochrome on my old always reliable rebel T1i camera and I took this picture.Lighting
The nursery is located outdoors on a structure that mimics a greenhouse with no walls and an almost transparent high roof so there was a great amount of natural soft light coming in. I knew that the light is warmer and less harsh later in the day so I think it created the perfect conditions to take a good close up photograph of a beautiful flower specially if you shoot in black and white.Equipment
I used a Canon Rebel T1i camera with a Canon macro lens EF 100mm f/2.8. No flash was used, and no tripod. I only needed a steady hand since the lens doesn't have a stabilizer.Inspiration
I was inspired by the details I saw in this flower. I was trained as a physician , so I learned to focus and pay attention to details... I was able to center my attention on the small elements I saw (in this case was the flower head located at the center of the flower) and creatively tried to integrate it with the rest of my picture. I wanted to capture the details...this is what photography is all about, isn't it?....details...you want to capture the essence of the subject.Editing
There was no post-processing at all. The picture is unedited.In my camera bag
The equipment I own grew a lot since may...so did the weight of my backpack! I left aside my Rebel T1i and the standard lenses it came with. Now own a Canon EOS 7D Mark II. As a gift from y husband I got an incredible camera, a 50.6 megapixel Canon EOS 5DS R DSLR (I haven't used it yet). I always carry all my Canon lenses: a 24-70mm F/2.8, a 18-135mm f/3.5-5.6, a macro lens EF 100mm f/2.8, and a 100-400mm telephoto lens. I also carry a 500 D close up lens that I sometimes attach to my macro lens (I prefer using the macro by itself), and a 2x III extender for my telephoto lens which I don't use too often either. I carry filters, extra batteries, and SD cards, and never forget the cleaning supplies!Feedback
The first advice I could give to others is to "zoom in" as close as possible with a macro lens to get most of the details. Close-ups make all those little details pop up. Identify first what you want to be in focus and then you have to ensure that it is as sharp as possible. For this particular shot I chose an ISO of 400 and a shallow depth of field: 4.5. I didn't have a tripod with me at the time but I highly recommend to use one to avoid camera shake. If you are shooting outdoors do it early in the morning or late in the afternoon when the light is not too harsh. You can also use a polarized filter to soften the light. Don't shoot in windy conditions...you won't get a clear picture. The last piece of advice I would give to anyone who wants to use a macro lens to photograph the details of a flower, is to be patient....Yes, be patient. Look for the right subject and the right moment, also try different things, be creative. You can shoot straight down at the flower, or shoot from the same height. In addition, try different angles. I am sure you will find the best options that will work for you.
