Dahlia Explosion
From Children's Park, Bremerton, Washington.
From Children's Park, Bremerton, Washington.
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Aug, 2017Views
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Behind The Lens
Location
This was taken at J.A. & Anna Smith Children's Garden, in Bremerton, Washington. This garden is definitely my go-to for all sorts of spring, summer and fall flower photography, such as this Dahlia. I'm like a kid on Christmas every time I get the chance to shoot there.Time
This was taken in the late morning. Children's Garden sits down in a natural bowl on a slope overlooking Dye's Inlet of the Puget Sound. Because of the trees that surround the bowl, lighting can sometimes be a challenge. I usually have a flash with me to use as fill but in this instance it wasn't necessary. Solar lighting was sufficient. Taken at 11:04 on August 23rd.Lighting
The lighting was pretty straight forward, being late morning. I was lucky in that there were several of this particular variety of Dahlia and I was able to find one that had the sunlight directly upon the blossom.Equipment
This day I had my Canon 1D Mk II, with a Canon F2.8L 100mm Macro lens. I shot this at f4, ISO 400, no exposure compensation, 1/200th of a second. I wanted to both capture the brilliance of the petals and the deepness of the purple, which is why I chose these settings.Inspiration
How can you not be inspired by beautiful flowers? The challenge, quite apart from the inspiration, is seeing them in a way that perhaps isn't typical. Dahlias, to me, are infinitely intricate and interesting and I love the opportunity to share their glory with everyone.Editing
I use Photoshop and Lightroom like an oil painter uses their palette. In this particular instance, however, the PS was easy...crop, contrast and levels...done.In my camera bag
My walking around combo is one of the three Canon bodies I own, with either a Canon 70-200L telephoto or the 100mm prime macro I used in this shot. I'll also have 28-70L, a speedlite, various filters, a small gobo and a monopod.Feedback
Flowers are challenging both by their nature and the fact that everyone shoots them. So to create a memorable image I usually look for something that has unique color, textures or shape. The way light is used to create the image is very important...and flowers have much more to offer than just the standard "shoot the face of it." And then sometimes the face is the thing and you just have to capture that...as in this one.
