
Red Flower / John Gough / Canon 6D
Yesterday I attended a flower photography workshop at Kathy Brown’s Garden in north Bedfordshire. The garden is gorgeous especially this time of year, with endless blooms to photograph. We were led by Sue Bishop, author, renowned photographer and founder of Light and Land.
Flower Photography
Sue demonstrated how she would set up a flower shot. What impressed me, was that she usually spent twenty minutes looking for the ideal bloom. She used a 100mm macro lens mounted on a Nikon DSLR on a Gitzo (I think) tripod and triggered the exposure with a remote.
She recommended:
- Focussing on either the front edge petals or the stamens of the flower.
- Approaching the flower from the side rather than flat and head on.
- A big aperture to create a dreamy out of focus background.
- Watch the background for highlights and colours that would detract from the subject.
It was a windy day and that is my excuse, but thank you to Bruce Deacon for setting up the day.
Where I Buy
I buy my equipment from Wex because I have genuinely found that they offer great advice and customer service.