Cactus Flower
My cactus flowers once every year but it only lasts about two or three days.
I took about six shots of the flower and focus-stacked them in Photoshop. Now...
Read more
My cactus flowers once every year but it only lasts about two or three days.
I took about six shots of the flower and focus-stacked them in Photoshop. Now I can appreciate its beauty whenever I want but still look forward to the annual flowering.
Read less
I took about six shots of the flower and focus-stacked them in Photoshop. Now I can appreciate its beauty whenever I want but still look forward to the annual flowering.
Read less
Jul, 2016Views
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Behind The Lens
Location
I took this photo on a table top in my conservatory with good overhead light. I normally use a reflector to fill in shadow detail but the light was diffused from above so I didn't need to.Time
I took this on a sunny day in the early afternoon when the lighting was good.Lighting
Although the day was sunny, it wasn't direct sunlight as this can produce harsh shadows. The light was diffused through the plastic roof which gave an even light distribution.Equipment
I used a Manfrotto tripod and a remote control to limit any possibility of camera shake. My tripod is a Manfrotto tripod. Camera is a Pentax K5 and the lens is a Venus Laowa super macro which gives a 2:1 enlargement.Inspiration
I was inspired to take this photo by the beautiful flower which appears on my cactus every year and only lives for about three days so I wanted to capture it for posterity.Editing
Using such a narrow depth of field (f2:8) only leaves a millimetre or two where the focus is sharp so I took about seven shots of this flower and then focus-stacked them in Photoshop and blended them together.In my camera bag
I always carry my Pentax K5 along with my three main lenses. Sigma 10-20mm, Tamron 18-55mm, and Tamron 70-300 zoom.Feedback
Always use a good sturdy tripod when shooting macro and a remote trigger. The camera's self-timer will do if don't have a remote. Even with a tripod, the camera can still move slightly if you fire the shutter manually and with macro shots especially, the slightest movement will be noticeable in the finished shot. When shooting a subject such as this flower, always try out several shooting angles. Finally, don't be tempted to use a larger depth of field to cram in more detail as this can have an effect on your background making it too distracting. A good blurry background allows the viewer to focus on the subject matter
