Have you ever been confused by all the different modes on your camera? Maybe you understand what each one does, but you’re not sure which mode is best for what. Well, here’s a summary of the most commonly used modes for nature photography: [Read more…] about What mode should you shoot in?
Wildflowers
How to get a closer focus with your lens
Every lens has a minimum focusing distance: the closest point where the lens can get a sharp focus. Generally, the longer the focal length of the lens, the greater the minimum focusing distance.
Most of the time, this distance isn’t too important: with longer lenses you’ll generally be photographing a distant subject, because you just can’t get close to it.
But, sometimes you can get close to your subject and you’ll want to use a long lens to get that great bokeh (a result of the narrower angle of view). Good examples of this include wildflowers and butterflies. In these cases, to fill the frame with your subject, you’ll usually need to focus closer than that minimum focusing distance.
So, how do you make your lens focus closer? [Read more…] about How to get a closer focus with your lens
How to fix underexposed areas of your wildflower photos (using Photoshop)
There are times, however, when that perfect exposure doesn’t exist. We’ve already explained how to fix blown-out highlights, but what if your flower photo suffers from shadows or underexposed areas?
You may think of taking two exposures in this case, but flowers bounce so much through the air that aligning these two exposures later will not be fun.
Fortunately, there’s a simple way to fix these underexposed areas of your photos, using Photoshop. Here’s how: [Read more…] about How to fix underexposed areas of your wildflower photos (using Photoshop)
How to fix blown-out highlights in your wildflower photos (using Photoshop)
Well, sometimes there just isn’t a perfect exposure, and no matter what shutter speed you choose, you’ll either get a wildflower that is way too underexposed, or you’ll get tiny overexposed “patches” on your wildflower.
Fortunately, if these “patches” are small enough, there’s an easy way to fix them in Photoshop. Here’s how: [Read more…] about How to fix blown-out highlights in your wildflower photos (using Photoshop)
FREE eBook: 13 tips for better wildflower photography
In anticipation of a great spring wildflower season, we decided to put together a FREE 20-page eBook, 13 tips for better wildflower photography. It contains some of our existing articles, but also includes SIX brand new articles!
Here’s what you’ll learn in this free 20-page eBook: [Read more…] about FREE eBook: 13 tips for better wildflower photography
How a shower curtain and an old wire clothes hanger can get you better wildflower photos
In a previous article, I revealed the secret to getting perfect light for your wildflower photos–shoot on an overcast day. The thick clouds act as a natural diffuser, helping to balance the light.
But, what if you can’t wait for an overcast day? Or worse, what if overcast days rarely occur in your area?
In the article, I briefly mentioned how you can build a box, covered with a shower curtain, and use this as a sort of artificial light diffuser.
I never liked the idea of building a box, because it would just add too much more for me to carry. So, this past weekend when I saw a bright sunny day in the desert forecast (surprise surprise), I decided to try and build a more lightweight solution. All I used was a small cutout from a shower curtain, and an old wire clothes hanger. Total cost: $5 and 5 minutes.
Here’s how you can build your own lightweight diffuser (in two easy steps): [Read more…] about How a shower curtain and an old wire clothes hanger can get you better wildflower photos