The Complete Guide For Photographing Live Insects At Home

Share

Tweet

by Udi Tirosh 

I started toying around with insect macro photography about 18 months ago. And to be honest, those first few months produced some amazingly bad photographs. But as scientists say, there is no such thing as a failed experiment – as long as it yields data. Well, I’ve managed to amass quite a lot of “data”. And I am grateful that I am able to share some of that knowledge with the DIY community.
As bad as they were, those first few macro shots opened my eyes to the amazing detail and intricacies that lay just beyond the capabilities of our vision. Watching the insects move through the viewfinder was – and still is – a fascinating experience. So, from my earliest attempts, I decided I was going to only shoot live insects.

Of course, the advantage of shooting dead insects is that they hold really still for you. The downside is that – well – they’re dead – and often, a keen observer can tell. You also miss out on watching the bugs in action – and sometimes capturing that action in stunning detail.
For starters, I’ll walk you through the gear I am shooting with and some basic technical tips, then I’ll wrap this up by sharing some ideas on working with the insects and most importantly “containment” during the shoot.
Until recently, I was shooting with a Canon 10D, but this Spring I treated myself to a “major” upgrade … a used Canon 20D bought off ebay for $325. So, it’s safe to say that just about any DSLR will be adequate for this.

Lenses

For lenses, I typically shoot with one of two set ups.
1. Extension Tubes
Canon 50mm f/1.8 (it can be bought for about $95) mounted in front of some Kenko extension tubes. The multiplier effect gained from the extension tubes allows me to count the hairs on an ant’s head.

2. Reverse Lenses setup
The standard “kit lens” that came in the box with the 10D (28-105mm f/3.5-4.5) mounted in front of the extension tubes. Then, using a macro coupler ring, I mount an old Minolta 50mm f/1.7 BACKWARDS in front of the 28-105 lens.
The first time I heard about this reversed lens technique, I was sure it was voodoo. But if you think about what goes on inside a lens when you mount it correctly – it takes a large scene and reduces it down to fit on the camera’s sensor. So, when you mount it backwards, the opposite is true. Tiny objects suddenly appear rather large. Add to that the multiplier effect gained from the extension tubes and suddenly, you can count the cells in a fly’s eye.

I won’t bore you with a lot of math, but basically, if you divide the focal length of the main lens by the focal length of the reversed lens that is the degree of magnification you are getting. So w/ a 50mm lens reversed in front of a 100mm lens, an object that measures 12 x 8mm will completely fill a 24 x 16 mm CMOS sensor. By stacking extension tubes between the main lens and the camera body the magnification factor is further increased. Now, go reverse mount that same 50mm lens in front of a 300 mm lens and you are bordering on the microscopic.

Below you can see a typical setup: Canon EOS 20D with 3 Kenko extension tubes (12mm, 20mm & 36mm), Canon 28-105mm lens and Minolta 50mm f/1.7 reverse mounted via macro coupler ring. Also depicted are 2 LumoPro 120 flashes.

But all this magnification comes at a cost

It’s going to cost you three ways actually…

1. Less light hits the sensor. When I add the reversed lens, I know I’ve just given up 2 stops of light. For each 20mm of extension tubes I add, I give up roughly another stop. I’ve got a couple of standard lighting setups that produce consistently good results for me, but I’ll cover those later on. For now, just know that you’re going to want to get a hold of 1-2 strobes that you can adjust manually. I use LumoPro 120s from mpex.com (the new 160s are available!) These lights cost about $125 apiece and are adjustable in 1-stop increments down to 1/32 power.

2. Depth of field. Trust me, you want to ease into this. Start with a 12m extension tube, then gradually work your way up. I am regularly working with a depth of field that is less than 1mm – even at f/29. That’s hard enough to deal with when your subject is inanimate – but live insects tend to be quite active. As a result, I have to shoot these things handheld. Now, I can already hear you saying, “Wait a minute, Scott! Everybody who writes about macro photography says you’ve got to use a sturdy tripod.” If I were shooting an inanimate object, I would absolutely agree – but when your subject is running around and you’ve got a 1mm DOF, you learn to ditch the tripod in a hurry.

3. Forget that your camera has an auto-focus feature. Extension tube manufacturers will tell you that their tubes work with your camera’s auto-focus system. While the tubes may allow the auto-focus system to communicate with the camera, there is little chance that you will actually be able to acquire focus at these close distances. In fact, I don’t even use the focus ring – I switch to manual focus, set the lens to its “macro” setting and I acquire focus by moving the camera closer to or further from the subject. This is only possible because I am not bolted to a tripod.

A big disadvantage of shooting handheld is, of course, camera shake. But, welcome to the world of small off-camera flashes. Those cheap little LumoPro 120s fire at 1/30,000 of a second when they are set to 1/32 power. Even though my 20D may only syncs at 1/250 sec., the flash duration is what is exposing the scene and when you get into exposure times less than 1/5,000 sec. even a moderate hand tremor can be imperceptible.

Lighting set ups

Because of the tremendous loss of f-stops and the fact that I want my lights firing as quickly as possible to reduce the negative effects of hand holding the camera, I usually want to get my lights in fairly tight to the subject. This allows me to fire the lights at a low setting (low power = faster flash duration). But of course, there is a downside to this (there is always a downside to everything in macro photography it seems).
The downside is that if the key light is 2 inches away from the subject, and the subject scurries 3/4 of an inch away from the light, I’ve just lost another stop of light. So I have had to find ways to restrict the insect’s movements to a small surface area, and then light that surface area as evenly as possible.
Since I typically try to shoot my insects isolated on white, I like to start out with one light coming almost straight down, but just a little bit behind the subject and angled towards the camera slightly. The second light will usually sit approximately 60° off camera axis. Both flash heads are usually within 3-5 inches of the subject area and each flash head is oriented horizontally so as to spread the beam evenly over as wide an area as possible. I usually place the insect inside a white ceramic bowl or casserole dish. Casserol dishes have the extra added benefit of having a glass lid which can come in handy when working with live insects.
Refer to the set up photo above to see how these lights are arranged.

Restricting the insect’s movements

Each type of insect offers its own unique set of challenges with respect to restricting its motion. I have discovered that earwigs and several types of spiders absolutely refuse to step into Vicks® Vap-O-Rub™. These creatures can be held in place simply by smearing the greasy, stinky goo in a circle around the spot you want the action to take place. However, other insects – ants, for instance – will just walk right through Vicks like it’s not even there.


I have discovered that ants love to swim in water. Swimming in vinegar, however is not high on their list of “likes”. They don’t like swimming in bleach either, but I’d rather not use that if it can be avoided. So, for ants, I build a little suspension bridge out of a couple paperclips and some clear tape.

The bridge then gets placed into a bowl of vinegar. The ants will scurry all over the surface, even climbing down the paperclips to the vinegar. Most often, the ants will try to swim away once, but instead of swimming they just end up twitching a lot instead. I simply lower a tooth pick which the ant will invariably grasp gratefully, and I lift the ant back onto the bridge. Most ants don’t go back for a second dip after that.

After an ant has taken a vinegar bath, it will spend a few minutes grooming itself to remove the droplets of vinegar from the antennae and legs – so be ready with the camera!
Flying insect present a whole different set of challenges. Since I do most of these shots on my kitchen counter, I clearly don’t want to let dragonflies loose in the house. Even if I was working outside, I wouldn’t want the insects to be flying away constantly, either. That was problematic until I ran across some information that indicated insects need the air temperature to be at least 52°F in order to achieve flight.

Shooting on the kitchen counter is one thing … shooting inside the refrigerator is an entirely different matter, however. And I am not THAT committed. By refrigerating a flying insect for 20 minutes prior to shooting, I can usually get 2-3 minutes of shooting before the insect will exhibit signs that it is considering flight. I then recapture and stuff it back in the fridge for another few minutes.
I have also discovered that by placing the ceramic bowl inside of a larger bowl filled with ice, the ambient air temperature around the insect is much lower while I am shooting and this can greatly extend the length of time I can work with an insect before it starts thinking about taking off.
There is so much more that I would like to share, but I’m afraid this post has already gone on too long. I just want to close by encouraging you to experiment and explore.
I’d love to hear of any insect photography tips you may know. Share them on the comments.

Photographing Young Children with Low-Key Lighting – Tutorial

Tips for Photographing Children

There is no doubt that photographing young children can be a challenge, and never more so than when using a low-key lighting setup.  So why bother?  Because the drama and richness inherent in this type of lighting is SO worth it and because it’s unexpected for high energy children’s photography. For the purposes of this post, young and active will be defined as children between the ages of one and four (toddlers).

The good news about this type of lighting is the comfort and ease with which it can be set up.  You only need one light and a dark background.  Most of the time I use black seamless paper or dark gray seamless paper. To provide the widest possible latitude for movement on the child’s part, the light should be positioned as close to the center as possible.  See diagram:

I prefer a soft box for this particular situation, as it provides a more directional, slightly ‘harder’ light than that bounced out of an umbrella.  This does not mean you cannot use an umbrella.  As a matter of fact, you could use a white, translucent shoot-through umbrella to great effect.
Okay, let’s say you’ve got your victim…er subject lined up.  So now what?  Well, just tell that two-year to go on out there to the ‘middle’ of the background and do something interesting while you photograph them.  Sure thing Mz Photog, but…what’s a background and where’s the middle and what am I supposed to do out there all by my lonesome?  I am about to introduce you to the very best friend you will ever have.  Meet Mister Smiley Face:

Draw him on the ‘sweet spot’, your pre-determined perfect lighting zone.  Might as well go ahead and draw him in with a sharpie marker, so toddlers can find it easily, and make him at least one inch in diameter.
This next step is very important.  Make sure the child knows about Mister Smiley.  Get down on their level and show them ‘their’ smiley face.  Make a big deal out of it.  If you have a fresh roll of paper, you might even wait until they are in the camera room and draw it in front of them.  In any event, make a big production of Mister Smiley Face, emphasizing it is just for them.  You now have a way to direct the toddler.
This may seem overly simple, but trust me.  I have been photographing toddlers for almost 20 years.  They don’t know from backgrounds and lighting zones, nor do they care to learn.  They have other things to do.  Like moving around.  A lot.  All over the place.  You will save yourself and the child an enormous amount of unnecessary stress if you have a non-combative, non-confrontational way to direct them.  It allows you to remain in position to shoot and allows them a certain amount of freedom and distance from you. If you’re very clever, you can get some killer shots of them looking for ‘their’ smiley face.

Mister Smiley Face works well for slightly older children, in the four, five and six year old range, as they love having a ‘mark’ to hit.  It’s a wonderful, stress free device that can easily be erased via Photoshop. Another great device for keeping busy toddlers in place is anything they can climb into, such as THE BOX.

I found this box at Pier One and knew immediately it was a great prop.  It’s heavy, well made and has a lid that will stay open and won’t fall and chop off little fingers.  The great thing about the box is, if they won’t get inside it, they’ll get on top of it.  Either way, they’re in your lighting sweet spot and all’s right in the world.

If you don’t have a box, try a simple stool, like this one I purchased at IKEA for under $20.  The plain, simple lines and blond wood make it an unobtrusive prop.  Don’t assume the possibilities are limited with this type of prop either.  I’ve had kids turn it over and sit in between the ‘legs’ or even try to crawl through it, which affords a great opportunity to photograph them peaking out.  Just make sure you and your light source are closer to the ground when photographing this way.

If you would like to read more, check out these articles:
High Key Studio Lighting – Tutorial
Low Key Lighting – Tutorial
Studio Lighting for Headshots – Tutorial
Photographing Babies, Birth to One Year – Tips and Techniques
How to Set Up a Photo Booth in Your Home
How to Photograph Large Groups in the Studio
Using Bold Color in Portraiture – Tips and Techniques

Courtesy of: Studio on a Shoestring
http://www.photography-jobs.net/?hop=darryl54

Low Key Portrait Lighting Tutorial

Studio Lighting for Small Spaces

In my last post I discussed a classic four light, high key on white, lighting setup.
“But Deborah,” you say, “I don’t have four lights.  Or three.  Or really, even two.  I just have the one.”  No problem.  You’re perfectly outfitted to do a beautiful, classic low-key lighting setup.  Your camera’s dedicated flash unit could even be set up off-camera to achieve this result.

What is low key lighting? According to Wikipedia, it attempts to create a chiaroscuro effect. In traditional photographic lighting, three-point lighting uses a key light, a fill light, and a back light for even illumination. Low-key lighting requires only one key light, optionally controlled with a fill light or a simple reflector. This type of setup is usually shot against a dark background.
The image above of my oldest daughter was taken using a single light inside a very large soft box that was positioned directly to one side and approximately 2 feet away from her.
See diagram:

Generally speaking, this is a less ‘forgiving’ lighting setup than other options in two different ways.

• The lighting zone is much more narrow than high key lighting, meaning the subject has to be more carefully placed in relation to the light.  This would NOT be the lighting setup of choice for a busy two-year old (unless you have a trick or two up your sleeve, like my super secret weapon MR. SMILEY FACE).

• Severe side lighting will highlight any natural flaws in the skin.

Therefore, this is lighting best reserved for the very young, those with flawless skin or ruggedly good looking men where you want to emphasize their facial ‘character’.
However, that last drawback can be overcome if:

• you simply back farther away from your subject, shooting full body, rather than tight facial close-ups and you
• angle the light more towards the front of the subject and use a reflector directly opposite it (see diagram below), which is not only more flattering, but allows light to spill onto the background, providing a level of separation between subject and background.

This image is a good example of the natural drama of this type of lighting and the unexpected scenarios you can use it in.

I used one light and a reflector on an arm and stand for the shot above.  The key light was placed to one side and slightly in front of the subjects.  The reflector was positioned on the opposite side to bounce light back onto the subjects.  Whereas the first photograph of my daughter was against seamless black paper, this one was shot against a dark cloth backdrop.  The side lighting emphasizes the texture in the background to nice effect.  If I had not used a reflector opposite the key light, the young man’s face would have been completely in dark shadow with no visible expression.

Best results with this lighting setup are achieved with the use of a soft box.  The larger the soft box, the more ‘window-like’ the lighting will be.  In another post I will illustrate this lighting technique using natural window lighting, which, while it requires NO lights, does require knowledge of how to get a properly exposed image.
If you would like to read more, check out these articles:
High Key Studio Lighting – Tutorial
Photographing Young Children With Low Key Lighting – Tutorial
Studio Lighting for Headshots – Tutorial
How to Set Up a Photo Booth in Your Home
How to Photograph Large Groups in the Studio
Photographing Babies, Birth to One Year – Tips and Techniques
Using Bold Color in Portraiture – Tips and Techniques

Courtesy of: Studio On a Shoestring 

DIY Lighting Hacks for Digital Photographers

By: Darren Rowse

Lighting can be the difference between a good shot and a great one.
Walk into most professional photographer’s studios and you’ll be confronted with truckloads of lighting equipment. To the average hobby photographer it’s enough to make your mind boggle – and for your stomach to turn as you think about the cost of it all.
Most of us can’t afford a full lighting rig – however what if there was a way to experiment with the type of lighting gear that pro photographers use without spending too much money? What if you could make it yourself.
In this post I’ve found 10 DIY Flash and Lighting Hacks that put some of these lighting techniques within the grasp of the rest of us. Some are more involved than others but all are fun and will provide you with some new lighting gear to experiment with.

1. Multi-Super-SB-Ring Light

What can you make with six speedlight flashes, a coffee can and a little spare time?
You get a multi-super-sb-ring-light! (pictured left).
You could probably also blind a small village if you’re not careful!
Find out what it is, how to make one and what the results are like here.
This one looks like a lot of fun to play with – even if it’s just for the challenge of it and the looks you’d get when you pull it out next time you do a shoot..

2. Poor Mans Ring Flash

All you need for this one (pictured left) is a used milk bottle/jug and some scissors.
The result is that you’ll have a Poor Mans Ring Flash.
A ring flash is one that fits around the lens – it creates a wonderfully unique lighting effect. They will usually lighten your wallet by a couple of hundred dollars.
It’s so simple that I whipped one up for myself today in 5 minutes.
It worked out pretty good too – not bad for the cost of a couple of liters of milk!
If you want to experiment with other methods of making DIY ring flashes you also might want to check out this post for another method. This one is a little more involved, but I think will probably get better results.

Subscribe to our newsletter to get more weekly Digital Photography tips like this

3. Inexpensive Light Tent

Have you ever wanted to replicate the crisp clean product images that you see in catalogs with the products seemingly floating on a white background?
If you do – you need some kind of light tent/light box.
As usual, light boxes can cost you quite a bit – but thanks to DPS reader Jeffrey Bail you might be able to achieve the results without having to spend much at all.
In our Inexpensive Light Tent tutorial Jeffrey shows you how to turn a box, fabric, tape, glue board and light into a great little light tent.

4. Party Bouncer Card

Another cool DIY Hack is this Party Bouncer Card (pictured left) which is so simple yet promises to be so useful and effective.
This one is for those of you with a camera which doesn’t have the capability for an off camera flash.
It allows you to bounce some light off the ceiling while also diffusing the light going forward – this will enable you to get a less harsh flash effect that many flashes leave images with. I like this one as it pushes the light out from your flash in two directions which can lead to a more even light rather than just diffusing it – a little more sophisticated.
Another quick DIY on diffusing a flash is to put a little translucent magic tape over a flash (or a piece of white tissue paper can do it too).
Any of these methods will decrease the amount of light getting out from the flash onto your subject – hopefully resulting in a more subtle light and a less blown out image.

5. Turkey Pan Beauty Dish

Beauty dishes are wonderful pieces of photographic equipment to experiment with – but they can be very expensive.
Not any more (at lest if you use this DIY trick).
In this hack learn how to use a simple Turkey Pan to get some pretty amazing beauty dish results! The comparison examples in this tutorial between the turkey pan version and the real thing are pretty convincing.
I must remember to add Turkey Pans to this week’s shopping list.
Check out this tutorial here.

6. DIY Ghetto Flash Extender

I’d not heard of this type of device before – but since I found this tutorial I’ve discovered a number of photographers who for one reason or another want to be able to extend the reach of their flash.
This is particularly useful for wildlife photographers who want to supplement natural light in tricky lighting with fill flash. Of course sometimes it’s difficult to get close to that animal and a normal flash would have no impact.
Enter the Flash Extender (one popular one is the ‘better beamer’).
Want to make one for yourself? This tutorial for the DIY Ghetto Flash Extender will tell you how.

7. Disposable Camera Flash Slave

Lately I’ve had more and more questions from readers about how to set up shots with multiple flash units to light a subject from more than one angle.
It’s not difficult to do if you have the budget to buy yourself an extra speedlight flash or two (or more) but if you don’t have the budget is there a way?
In this tutorial and author shows you how to use a disposable camera to act as a remote slave flash.
OK – this tutorial isn’t for anyone looking for a quick simple solution – but it is a challenge that I’m sure some of you will be up for!

8. Flash Mounted DIY Softbox

Another way that professional photographers diffuse the light that comes from a flash and gets a nice subtle and even light on their subject is to use a softbox
A softbox sits over a light (it’s a big box with white walls) which ensures the light is spread out evenly.
This DIY Softbox tutorial is great – it requires card, a white sheet (silk if you can), velcro, scissors, glue and the template that the tutorial provides you with.
The results look pretty good – but if you want more DIY softboxes the same site also has another tutorial for an alternative softbox.
Again – this one looks pretty good.

9. Flash Bouncers

There are a lot of DIY flash diffuser hacks and tutorials around but this one from our friend Chris at DSLRBlog is pretty cool.
It costs £1, takes 5 minutes, requires craft foam, a little elastic and some scissors.
The tutorial even includes a template for you to print out on your printer and then cut out – what more do you need?
Even the technologically challenge could make this one (speaking of myself of course).
Nice work from Chris with that one.
Another similar Flash Bouncer/Diffuser can be found over at DPReview here. This one is foam also.
Lastly – another card/paper version of the flash bouncer.

10. Full Budget DIY Lighting Studio

It’s time for one last DIY lighting hack – this one attempts to bring it all together with a full DIY Budget Studio setup.
The author of it takes up the challenge of creating a full studio lighting system for under $75.
It includes lights, reflectors, diffusers and flash diffusers – all using items that you could pick up at hardware and craft stores.
It also shows you a few test shots at the end of the tutorial that compare different lighting options.
You will need your own flash unit to use the flash diffusers on – but the rest is all included in the tutorial.
I particularly light the suggestions around globes for the lights. I know a couple of DPS forum members have had similar success with these sorts of lights.

11. UPDATE: The Fring – a DIY Flash Ring

I saw this one recently and I think it makes a worthy addition to this post.
It is a DIY Fibre-Optic flash extension for your DSLR’s popup flash!
It uses the light from your camera’s flash to light your subject using fibre optics arranged around your lens to give a more even light.
Of course it’s not the easiest to make (there are 37 steps) but it’s an ingenious idea and the example images taken with the setup are pretty cool considering it cost just a few dollars to make.

Photography Tutorial: Get the Right Light

by Ben Long

5 Comments

It’s been raining a lot here in San Francisco, and the fact that we need the moisture offsets only so much grey-sky depression. However, in addition to being annoying, persistent cloud cover is also a good reminder that, when it comes to lighting people, less is often more.
If you’re shooting portraits, lighting has more of an impact on your final result than anything else. Yes, it’s important to get subtle skin tones the right color, and sure, you might want to consider whether you want more or less depth of field, but it’s lighting that will do the most to make a person look more pleasing.
Of course, you can buy expensive lighting rigs or multiple flash units and concoct carefully constructed three-point lighting schemes. Using studio lighting (or multiple handheld strobes) definitely gives you the greatest control and flexibility. Or you can save yourself a lot of money and use available light.
The sun is a very good source of illumination for portrait shoots (as well as for agriculture and the general survival of life on the planet). What’s more, it’s a type of light that our visual system is attuned to. The only real problem with it as a portrait lighting source is that there’s too much of it.
Shot in direct sunlight, this image suffers from deep shadows and harsh highlights. Her eyes are lost in shadow, and every contour of her face casts a shadow. Click on the image to see a larger version.

Because she’s standing in direct sunlight, her eyebrows, cheekbones, and nose are casting dark shadows onto her face. This is usually the case when you shoot in direct sunlight. In addition to making eyes look sunken, noses bigger, and wrinkles and skin texture more pronounced, these shadows also make the image generally more contrasty, which can make it a little harder to read.
You can, of course, wait for cloud cover, but this isn’t always practical, and often comes with the risk of rain. What’s more, cloud cover can be too thick.
A better approach is to employ your own portable cloud in the form of a piece of diffusion material. Most camera stores carry collapsible diffusers. They’re a lightweight, easy way to reduce the contrast in a portrait.
To use them, place one between your light source and your subject — just as if a cloud had floated in front of the sun.
A diffuser serves the same function as cloud cover. With it, you can reduce the harsh shadows and highlights in a shot. Click on the image to see a larger version.

In the image above, I’ve mounted the diffuser on a pole. If you don’t have an assistant available, you can use a stand, which you should also be able to find at your local photo store.
To further reduce the darkness of shadows, you can bounce sunlight back up into the subject’s face with a reflector. You can buy disks that have solid white surfaces (or gold or silver) or get covers that go over a standard diffuser disk. In a pinch, you can use a sheet of white cardboard or foamcore as a reflector. Even plain paper will do if it’s not too windy.
With the model’s help, a diffuser and reflector control the too-harsh sunlight. Click on the image to see a larger version.

Now shadows are much less pronounced and highlights are toned down, so the image has a less-distracting contrast ratio overall.
The modified sunlight eliminates deep shadows, cuts harsh highlights, and gives the image a nicer contrast. Click on the image to see a larger version.

Reflectors are handy even without a diffuser. “Don’t shoot into the sun” is an oft-repeated photo tip, but shooting into the sun can be a good choice when shooting portraits. If you position subjects with their backs to the sun, you’ll get a nice halo of light around their heads. This is a flattering accent and separates them from the background.
Here I’m using the sun to advantage by placing it behind the model to create a halo around her head. Click on the image to see a larger version.

What’s more, because your subjects won’t be looking into the sun, you won’t have to worry about them squinting.
If you have a white reflector handy, you can bounce a little bit of light back into their faces to fill out the shadows.
Here I’m combining rear sunlight with a reflector. Click on the image to see a larger version.

A silver or gold reflector gives you a different color of light and usually bounces more than a white reflector. With it, you can cast a warm tint on an image and deliver a lot more light. These warmer reflectors are mostly too warm for me. I prefer to shoot in the raw format and adjust white balance to warm up an image. Also, you have to be careful with very bright reflectors, since they can make your subject squint.
Colored reflectors can add a bit of tint to an image, but don’t overdue it. Click on the image to see a larger version.

http://www.photography-jobs.net/?hop=darryl54

How to Create Sunshine Effect with Artificial Sunlight

10 Top Photography Composition Rules

It may sound clichéd, but the only rule in photography is that there are no rules. However, there are are number of established composition guidelines which can be applied in almost any situation, to enhance the impact of a scene.
These guidelines will help you take more compelling photographs, lending them a natural balance, drawing attention to the important parts of the scene, or leading the viewer's eye through the image.
Once you are familiar with these composition tips, you'll be surprised at just how universal most of them are. You'll spot them everywhere, and you'll find it easy to see why some photos "work" while others feel like simple snapshots.

Rule of Thirds

Imagine that your image is divided into 9 equal segments by 2 vertical and 2 horizontal lines. The rule of thirds says that you should position the most important elements in your scene along these lines, or at the points where they intersect.
Doing so will add balance and interest to your photo. Some cameras even offer an option to superimpose a rule of thirds grid over the LCD screen, making it even easier to use.

Notice how the building and horizon are aligned along rule-of-thirds lines. Image by Trey Ratcliff.

Balancing Elements

Placing your main subject off-centre, as with the rule of thirds, creates a more interesting photo, but it can leave a void in the scene which can make it feel empty. You can achieve a balanced composition and even out the main subject's "visual weight" by including another object of lesser importance to fill the space.

Here, the visual "weight" of the road sign is balanced by the building on the other side of the shot. Image by Shannon Kokoska.

Leading Lines

When we look at a photo our eye is naturally drawn along lines. By thinking about how you place these leading lines in your composition, you can affect the way we view the image, pulling us into the picture, towards the subject, or on a journey "through" the scene.
There are many different types of line - straight, diagonal, curvy, zigzag, radial etc - and each can be used to enhance our photo's composition.

The road in this photo draws your eye through the scene. Image by Pierre Metivier.

Symmetry and Patterns

We are surrounded by symmetry and patterns, both natural and man-made. They can make for very eye-catching compositions, particularly in situations where they are not expected. Another great way to use them is to break the symmetry or pattern in some way, introducing tension and a focal point to the scene.

The symmetry of this chapel is broken by the bucket in the bottom right corner. Image by Fabio Montalto.

Viewpoint

Before photographing your subject, take time to think about where you will shoot it from. Our viewpoint has a massive impact on the composition of our photo, and as a result it can greatly affect the message that the shot conveys. Rather than just shooting from eye level, consider photographing from high above, down at ground level, from the side, from the back, from a long way away, from very close up, and so on.

The unusual viewpoint chosen here creates an intriguing and slightly abstract photo. Image by ronsho.

Background

How many times have you taken what you thought would be a great shot, only to find that the final image lacks impact because the subject blends into a busy background? The human eye is excellent at distinguishing between different elements in a scene, whereas a camera has a tendency to flatten the foreground and background, and this can often ruin an otherwise great photo. Thankfully this problem is usually easy to overcome at the time of shooting - look around for a plain and unobtrusive background and compose your shot so that it doesn't distract or detract from the subject.

The plain background in this composition ensures nothing distracts from the subject. Image by Philipp Naderer.

Depth

Because photography is a two-dimensional medium, we have to choose our composition carefully to conveys the sense of depth that was present in the actual scene. You can create depth in a photo by including objects in the foreground, middle ground and background. Another useful composition technique is overlapping, where you deliberately partially obscure one object with another. The human eye naturally recognises these layers and mentally separates them out, creating an image with more depth.

Emphasise your scene's depth by including interesting subjects at varying distances from the camera. Image by Jule Berlin.

Framing

The world is full of objects which make perfect natural frames, such as trees, archways and holes. By placing these around the edge of the composition you help to isolate the main subject from the outside world. The result is a more focused image which draws your eye naturally to the main point of interest.

Here, the surrounding hills form a natural frame, and the piece of wood provides a focal point. Image by Sally Crossthwaite.

Cropping

Often a photo will lack impact because the main subject is so small it becomes lost among the clutter of its surroundings. By cropping tight around the subject you eliminate the background "noise", ensuring the subject gets the viewer's undivided attention.

Cut out all unnecessary details to keep keep the viewer's attention focused on the subject. Image by Hien Nguyen.

Experimentation

With the dawn of the digital age in photography we no longer have to worry about film processing costs or running out of shots. As a result, experimenting with our photos' composition has become a real possibility; we can fire off tons of shots and delete the unwanted ones later at absolutely no extra cost. Take advantage of this fact and experiment with your composition - you never know whether an idea will work until you try it.

Digital photography allows us to experiment with different compositions until we find the perfect one. Image by Jule Berlin.

Composition in photography is far from a science, and as a result all of the "rules" above should be taken with a pinch of salt. If they don't work in your scene, ignore them; if you find a great composition that contradicts them, then go ahead and shoot it anyway. But they can often prove to be spot on, and are worth at least considering whenever you are out and about with your camera.
Did you enjoy this article? Please share it!

by: Josh Johnson

 

Nature Photography for Beginners

By Filip Tkaczyk

Nature Photography for Beginners

Nature photography for beginners is an exciting and very rewarding pastime. It seems only natural that when you see something exciting or interesting in the natural world, you want to capture it or record it in some way. Cameras are a great way to do just that!
I will focus here on digital cameras, since currently a majority of photographers (especially beginners) start with digital cameras - though many of the ideas and techniques mentioned are transferable to film cameras as well.
So, let's look at some things you can do to practice nature photography for beginners…

What Do You Want to Capture?

So you want to try your hand at nature photography? Even before you purchase a new camera or start using one, ask yourself what is it that you want to capture? Here are some questions to ask yourself:

• Do I want to capture close ups of small plants, flowers, insects and other small things in nature?
• Do you want to photography larger, faster moving animals such as birds, deer, bears and so on?
• Do you want to take spectacular photos of sunsets, mountains, lakes and the like?
• Do you want to use your camera to record events or things you find in nature like bones, tracks, weather patterns and things like that?
• Do you want to make abstract photos of the natural world, just focusing on things such as patterns, textures, colors and so on?
• Maybe you want to do all of the above?

If you start with a simple digital point-and-shoot camera, you may find (depending on its quality) that many if not most of your needs in nature photography are met. Though, you may also want to look into getting a better camera. Either way if you are looking to purchase a camera, you will be faced with the…

Megapixel Madness

If you are interested in purchasing a new digital camera, you are might be familiar with all the talk about megapixels. With high quality cameras now available to the general public in the 12+ megapixel and above range, it might seem crazy to get anything less. But these cameras are mostly specialty tools for advanced photographers with very specific needs. For nature photography for beginners, starting with a camera of between 6 and 8 megapixels is actually more ideal and produces excellent images.
Also, the quality of the image produced by the camera is not necessarily equivalent to the number of megapixels it uses to record an image. All the physical components of a camera are equally important to the quality of an image. Therefore, one camera with 6 megapixels can have much lower image quality compared to another camera with better parts and the exact same number of megapixels.
Knowing how to use your camera and technique is also very important in creating quality images.

TAKING PHOTOS PART I: Nature Photography for Beginners

Knowing Your Machine

Today's digital cameras are set up to take successful photos under many different conditions and of many different subjects. It can be a great aid to you while working on nature photography for beginners to learn to use the preset buttons and settings on your digital camera.
Most digital cameras come with options to shoot macro (usually shown as a flower icon), landscape (usually shown as a mountain), portrait (a face or person), nighttime (stars or stars and the moon), high speed (a person running) and possibly several other settings. Though you may want to shoot everything in full manual mode someday, these basic functions are an excellent place to start.
Playing with your camera will help you learn all of its functions and all the possibilities available to you. It is also important to learn your cameras limitations, which generally comes from research and time spent with the camera. You might find with time that limitations can be used to work for you, and not just against you.
If you are working with a point-and-shoot camera, which has a single lens that is built into the camera it you will likely soon notice that when shooting something in the distance, you have a limitation as to how close you can zoom in on a subject. This same limitation can be overcome with a digital SLR (single-lens reflex) camera by simply changing to a longer zoom lens. Buying separate lenses for a digital SLR camera can quickly become an investment, however, so it is best to really think about what your needs are and how much you are willing to spend.
All cameras can be used much more effectively with the additional support of a tripod, monopod, or beanbag. Though sometimes camera support can be improvised in the field, it can be very helpful to have these additional tools for support. Tripods and monopods can give dramatically sharper images under a variety of conditions.

Train to Become a Wilderness Skills Expert
Earn a Certificate in Wilderness Skills Education.
Apply to Our Wilderness Certification Course Today!

Learn More

TAKING PHOTOS PART II: Nature Photography for Beginners

Knowing Your Subject

In the art of nature photography for beginners, knowing your subject is of great importance. Whether you are intending to shoot pictures of flowers or frogs, ants or elephants, it is vital you know some basic information about them.

• For instance, with flowers you will want to seek them out when they are in bloom and look for them where they like to grow.
• If animals are more your interest, know where they might live, what they like to eat and what time of day they are likely to be active is a good starting point.
• If you are intending to photograph more dangerous animals in the wild, such as bears, moose, alligators, rhinos or lions it is better if you do so with an experienced woodsman or wildlife guide.

It might be a surprise to you, but good photographers might actually spend a great deal of time reading about their intended subjects before they go out and try to photograph them. Some spend more time at their local library or online doing research, than they do in the field actually taking pictures.

TAKING PHOTOS PART III: Nature Photography for Beginners

Reading the Light

Photography really comes down to the simple act of capturing light. Seeing and understanding how that light can used and captured photographically is really an art form in itself. Some of the most masterful photographers of all time, such as Edward E. Curtis or Ansel Adams, were extremely skilled in using light to make their subjects stand out clearly. Here are just some of the many ways of looking at the use of light in nature photography for beginners:

• Light and shadow: when you look at a subject, notice only the light and shadow. What shapes do you see?
• Light behind the subject: is the background behind the subject dark or light? What about if you change your angle relative to the subject?
• If the subject is an animal, is there light in the eye? Or shadow?
• Does the light in the image add to or take away from the subject?
• Come back to the most basic questions, like: what do you want to capture in this photo?

Composition

The art of composition is another essential part of photography. How the elements in the photo are arranged and where the subjects falls in them is of immense importance. There are many aspects to composition, so let us focus on just a few here. Though beauty is certainly in the eye of the beholder, some photos are seen as beautiful by more people than other photos.
What is it that makes a photo great?
How can I make my photos stand out, and express beauty to others?
Are there secrets out there that I can use to make my photos better?
These are some questions you are bound to ask yourself when you work on creating or improving composition. The truth is, there are some techniques that can help get you on the right track with photo composition as you practice nature photography for beginners.

• Rule of Thirds: Draw 4 sets of lines across the photo so that the image is divided into 9 equally sized rectangles. Notice where the lines intersect, and when taking a photo, trying placing your subject at one of these intersecting points.
• Centering the subject: This technique is used by most people naturally. Simply put your subject in the center of the frame. Try to take several variations of the same subject using centering and the rule of thirds.
  
  The eye of the viewer of a photo tends to follow certain paths while looking at the image. The eyes tend to come in and to exit along certain pathways. Find some photos you really enjoy and notice where and how your eyes travel through the frame.
• Attracting or distracting the eye: Remember to focus on elements that attract the eye to the subject, and try to exclude those that distract the eye from the main subject.
• Balance: Does the image feel balanced to you? You can frame your subject so that the overall image feels balanced. For instance, if you put your subject on the right, vertical 1/3 line then try to put another subject on the vertical 1/3 line on the left as well. Compare that with a photo where you have a single subject only on one of these lines. See which you like better.
• Horizontal vs Vertical: Try experimenting with shooting both horizontal and vertical versions of the same subjects. There are certainly times when you will find one looks better than the other.
• Using color: Focusing on color is a great way to attract the eye of a viewer. Experiment with similar color themes in your images. Also, try using color for the opposite effect, making something stand out against a starkly different background or foreground.

Nature photography for beginners is an incredibly rewarding and fun craft that can be honed to mastery with time. There are many more details and techniques to work on in the study of nature photography.