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04/04/2003 12:57:56 PM · #1 |
If you came here to see one, I certainly haven't taken it! I actually want to know your thoughts on taking the "perfect" flower photo. What are the special elements involved with this type of photography?
Here are a few of my favorites from the site:
//www.dpchallenge.com/image.php/i/15994
//www.dpchallenge.com/image.php?IMAGE_ID=14142
//www.dpchallenge.com/image.php/i/13682
//www.dpchallenge.com/image.php?IMAGE_ID=14141
//www.dpchallenge.com/image.php/i/15591
//www.dpchallenge.com/image.php/i/12003
That may be a few too many, but I couldn't choose! Anyway, I'd love to know your thoughts on this subject.
Message edited by author 2003-04-04 12:58:12.
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04/04/2003 01:03:05 PM · #2 |
| First, note that none of the flower shots you listed are mine. Also, note that digital photography is a brand new hobby for me. Then, take this with a grain of salt. In my opinion, pretty much any flower that isn't wilted and brown (and sometimes even then, in the right context) can make a beautiful photo. 90% of the quality of the photo lies in choosing the right background. Looking at the examples you posted links to, you see that some have, appropriately, a fuzzy green background (obviously leaves, or more of the plant). Some are all white, some are all black. The background completely determines the mood of the photo. Black, with a soft focus, shows a more melancholy mood than a white background with a bright purple orchid in perfect sharp focus. To sum up, background is everything. |
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04/04/2003 01:22:36 PM · #3 |
David,
First of all I would like to say thank you for liking my photos.
Go to your local grocery store or flower shop. I go to Albertsons to get my flowers. Buy a bundle and find some good backgrounds. You could use white, black, wood or really anything that either has alot of texture of none at all. You will have to mess with your aperture settings to get the focus just right. The lighting is important to. To me flowers tend to be a bit dull or grainy when taken with little light.
I would love to see what you come up with when you are done.
Good luck and just have fun with it.
Sonja
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04/04/2003 03:00:56 PM · #4 |
If you are interested in this sort of thing, there are entire courses devoted to getting good flower pictures:
Betterphoto.com do this course. I haven't tried it, but I did do the Learning to See Creatively course and it was excellent. I learned loads of stuff that I haven't gotten from books.
One thing worth paying a lot of attention to when shooting flowers is the background - there is certainly a tendency to not notice it when you are taking it, but it can really detract from the final result. Carrying fabric with you and holding it behind the flower in the wild can help a great deal to give a pleasing, OOF background. Also worth having a reflector/ shade to control and even out the lighting.
Message edited by author 2003-04-04 15:03:02. |
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04/04/2003 03:34:17 PM · #5 |
I don't know if the 707 will go this fast but this technique was recently mentioned on the Fuji Talk forum.
For outdoor flower shots in bright sunlight, set the shutter to 1/10,000s and use the onboard flash - anything outside the range of the flash (ie. the background) will appear black.
I expect it would work with a range of shutter/aperture combinations. |
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04/04/2003 03:50:27 PM · #6 |
| We should have a gallery just for flowers. Where are they now? In nature and macro? |
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04/04/2003 04:34:08 PM · #7 |
Originally posted by bod:
I don't know if the 707 will go this fast but this technique was recently mentioned on the Fuji Talk forum.
For outdoor flower shots in bright sunlight, set the shutter to 1/10,000s and use the onboard flash - anything outside the range of the flash (ie. the background) will appear black.
I expect it would work with a range of shutter/aperture combinations. |
That sounds neat! Have you tried it? Any examples?
BTW, how's your IR filter working out?
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04/04/2003 04:50:06 PM · #8 |
Originally posted by mariomel:
That sounds neat! Have you tried it? Any examples? |
Not yet, but here's the thread I saw the idea in with an example, though the background isn't as black as it looked on my work monitor!
Originally posted by mariomel:
BTW, how's your IR filter working out? |
I haven't had the time for an outdoor shoot recently :-/, plus the closeup set I bought appears to be stuck to my camera ... honest ... it won't come off ; ) |
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04/04/2003 05:01:34 PM · #9 |
Originally posted by mariomelBTW, how's your IR filter working out?[/quote:
][quote=bod]
I haven't had the time for an outdoor shoot recently :-/, plus the closeup set I bought appears to be stuck to my camera ... honest ... it won't come off ; ) |
Bummer! I hope you get it off without damaging the cam. Let me know once you get some pics with the IR filter. I am interrested in seeing what results are possible with our camera.
Good luck!
Message edited by author 2003-04-04 17:03:03.
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04/04/2003 05:31:25 PM · #10 |
Originally posted by bod:
I don't know if the 707 will go this fast but this technique was recently mentioned on the Fuji Talk forum.
For outdoor flower shots in bright sunlight, set the shutter to 1/10,000s and use the onboard flash - anything outside the range of the flash (ie. the background) will appear black.
I expect it would work with a range of shutter/aperture combinations. |
The other way to get shots like that is by good timing. You want a subject in bright sunlight, with a background that is in the shade - you can then get a really dark background just by setting the correct exposure for the subject - as long as the background is more than a couple of stops darker than the subject and you expose correctly, the background will be black. I think sometimes those shots look like they were taken with flash, when it is just good exposure control. |
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04/04/2003 05:32:31 PM · #11 |
Not perfect, but odd...
Two-Headed Bird  |
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04/04/2003 05:39:17 PM · #12 |
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04/04/2003 05:41:12 PM · #13 |
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04/04/2003 05:42:22 PM · #14 |
This is one I like.
//www.justineo.com/htm/daiseyellow.htm
Message edited by author 2003-04-04 17:42:51.
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04/04/2003 05:42:50 PM · #15 |
Originally posted by Gordon:
Originally posted by GeneralE:
More floral humor... |
The similarity is eerie. |
I'm thinking of "doctoring" it up with some earrings...
Message edited by author 2003-04-04 17:44:06. |
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04/04/2003 05:49:14 PM · #16 |
lol earrings or pink heels. :)
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04/04/2003 05:52:02 PM · #17 |
I also notice that none of my flowers photos are in your list of favorites and I have an etire portfolio of them - LOL. Anyhoo, I feel my best shots were taken with soft light and selective DOF.
Just a few flowers
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04/04/2003 06:10:52 PM · #18 |
Gladiola in Sepia super lighting.
Originally posted by joanns:
I also notice that none of my flowers photos are in your list of favorites and I have an etire portfolio of them - LOL. Anyhoo, I feel my best shots were taken with soft light and selective DOF.
Just a few flowers |
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04/04/2003 06:51:28 PM · #19 |
This isn't quite perfect, but it is different..... ;)
//www.dpchallenge.com/image.php?IMAGE_ID=17231 |
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04/04/2003 06:58:48 PM · #20 |
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04/04/2003 06:59:40 PM · #21 |
Stunning shot Shwash! The blue makes that pop.
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04/04/2003 07:00:59 PM · #22 |
Swash, that is different, and I like it a lot! I think it is difficult to take a flower photo with so much light and still have detail. It doesn't look like the natural background but it goes well with the composition.
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04/04/2003 07:07:20 PM · #23 |
Stunning shot Shwash! The blue makes that pop.
Thanks Justine and Joanns, too!
I cheated a bit on the poor side. I used a flashlight (terrible light source!!) to get the flower lite up and took the shot just at sunset with a bit of long exposure, camera sitting on the ground (a dry day, finally). Joanns, the background was natural, I was going for an eirie, but pretty look/feel. |
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04/04/2003 07:14:18 PM · #24 |
Originally posted by Swashbuckler:
(a dry day, finally). Joanns, the background was natural, I was going for an eirie, but pretty look/feel. |
That's super, the way you lit it. I did some photos last night of some heather and used my car headlights - they didn't turn out. I'm glad to know that the background was natural. Great DOF control, I must say!
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04/04/2003 07:37:53 PM · #25 |
Originally posted by joanns:
Originally posted by Swashbuckler:
(a dry day, finally). Joanns, the background was natural, I was going for an eirie, but pretty look/feel. |
That's super, the way you lit it. I did some photos last night of some heather and used my car headlights - they didn't turn out. I'm glad to know that the background was natural. Great DOF control, I must say! |
LOLROTF...car headlights! That's a classic.lol
Great!! Photographers too kool. Amazing idea.
Message edited by author 2003-04-04 19:38:43.
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