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Sharpness – Relative vs Absolute

August 30, 2017 by Steve Berardi 9 Comments

ManzanitaThe more I photograph nature, the less I’ve been concerned about sharpness. It’s not out of laziness, but from the realization that relative sharpness is much more important than absolute sharpness.

Absolute sharpness is about making your subject as sharp as possible, within the limits of your camera and lens.

On the other hand, relative sharpness is about making your subject as sharp as possible relative to other elements in that image.

This also applies to depth of field, and in this article when I mention sharpness I also mean depth of field/focus.

For example, here’s a photo with a lot of absolute sharpness: [Read more…] about Sharpness – Relative vs Absolute

Filed Under: Close-Up, Macro, Tips, Wildflowers, Wildlife Tagged With: butterfly, depth of field, dragonfly, focus, sharp, sharpness, wildflowers

7 Tips For Photographing Butterflies

July 1, 2013 by Steve Berardi 9 Comments

Variable Checkerspot / Photo by Steve Berardi
Variable Checkerspot / Photo by Steve Berardi
Butterflies are amazing little creatures, aren’t they?

They start out as a hungry slow-moving blob and through the process of metamorphosis, they transform themselves into a winged insect exhibiting a wonderful array of contrasting colors. Some species migrate thousands of miles for the winter, and many species have remarkable features like eyespots that help protect them from predators.

Naturally, you’ve probably wanted to photograph these amazing little creatures, so here are some tips on how to do it: [Read more…] about 7 Tips For Photographing Butterflies

Filed Under: Tips Tagged With: butterflies, butterfly, butterfly photo, butterfly photographs, how to photograph butterflies, how to photograph insects, photographing butterflies, Tips, tutorial

Three Quick Tips For Close-Ups

April 8, 2013 by Steve Berardi 2 Comments

California Wild Rose / Photo by Steve Berardi
California Wild Rose / Photo by Steve Berardi
Now that spring has arrived here in the Northern Hemisphere, it’s time to start thinking about photographing all those wonderful wildflowers and insects. It’s the perfect season for close-up photography.

So, here are three quick tips to get you started:

#1 – Get down to your subject’s level

Many of the plants and insects that come out in the spring live very low to the ground, so your first reaction may be to photograph them from where you first spot them (standing up and looking down at them). But, many times it’s better to get down to your subject’s level and photograph them from there because it captures a more friendly point of view (almost as if you’re seeing eye-to-eye with your subject). [Read more…] about Three Quick Tips For Close-Ups

Filed Under: Macro, Tips, Wildflowers Tagged With: butterfly, close, close up, dragonfly, extension, flower, insect, Macro, nature, photography, telephoto, tube, up, wildflower

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