How to Improve Your Flower Photography

Now is the perfect season to go outdoors, explore natural beauty and improve your flower photography skills. Make sure you capture some stunning shots before spring is over. Here are some aspects to consider before planning your adventurous day out there.

1.      Find the Ideal Location

Be it a park, garden or remote areas away from the city, finding the ideal location for best flower shooting goes hand in hand with keeping an eye on the weather forecast. Ensure there’s no wind to ruin your day and have some fun along the process.

2.      Useful Equipment

Make some space in your backpack as there are plenty of things to take with you.

  • Needless to say it is essential to take your digital camera. Joking aside, you could use some macro lenses to help you achieve amazing close-up shots. Concerning the focal lengths to choose, the 90 – 105 mm ones are perfect for macro flower photography.
  • Tripods are also useful tools, helping you to control the composition of your photos, especially if what you have in mind is a long exposure flower shot. Get a sturdy one, with legs that can extend so that you can take close-to-the-ground shots.
  • I know you are a photographer and not a gardener, but you could also use some gardening tools. For best results you might need to remove distracting elements from the scene and your hands might not be enough to do that.
  • A reflector can save your flower shooting by maximizing detail and reducing contrast. If the light is extremely bright, you can position it so that it shades the flowers that are of interest for your ideas. Conversely, you can use the reflector to direct light in areas that are not exposed to the sun.

3.      Make the Sun Your Best Friend

The sun can be either your best friend or your worse enemy. Best shots can be taken early in the morning, when there is still dew on the flowers and the light will help you set a soft, glowy mood to the scenery. Close to sunset is another good time for shooting outdoors. Why not profit from the golden hour and add some drama to your flower photography? Try to play with the sun and with shadows as well by placing you’re your subject into and out of light.

sun shining flower photography

4.      Camera Setting Tips for Flower Photography

For stunning results it is desirable to use manual settings. Here’s what you should take into account:

  • Set a low ISO, ISO 100 preferable.
  • As regards White Balance, choose the Daylight option.
  • Set aperture according to how many details you want to include in your photograph. For in depth results, use a small aperture, but if you want to achieve sharp photos focused on the subject while leaving the background blurred, wide apertures are recommended.
  • You can also set your autofocus for macro photography and see how it works this way.

5.      Change Perspectives

Now that you’ve set everything, the next step is to find the ideal perspective. Is there such a perspective for flower photography? Experts say shots are best taken from the subject’s level. Most likely when you shoot flowers you need to kneel down. But why not experiment? Shoot from the ground level, try twisting your camera, shoot from above. You are free to improvise.

 close up flower photography

6.      Tell the Story of Flowers

If you enjoy the outdoors and dedicate the entire day to photo shooting, be attentive to the way flowers come to life early in the morning and capture their rhythms over the day by creating a time-lapse video. For more inspiration, check out this impressive video by Beautiful Nature HD. Storytelling is the key to a unique photo project. Inspire your viewers! Let your imagination blossom.

7.      Do Some Research

You probably wonder what research is needed for when all you want is to go out there and enjoy your nature photography shooting. But have you ever considered sending your shots to specialized magazines? Why not benefit from expert feedback? Find a magazine looking to publish flower photos, have a look at how they work and how other photographers have performed.  Don’t forget to name your photos after each species of flowers you’ve captured and try out different formats so you can be prepared for anything they might ask.

8.      Flower Portraits

Flowers will be the main characters of your project. As each of them is unique you can try to emphasize their specific features and beauty. Close-up details will make your shots spectacular. If you find tiny insects or dust, make them part of the story.

flower portrait 2

9.      Search for Ideas

Flowers are everywhere and so are photography ideas. If you are looking for inspiration, there are so many resources you can access. As we spend so much time on social media channels, simply check a few amazing flower photography boards on Pinterest while having a nice cup of coffee and get ready to enjoy a beautiful day outdoors.

10. Be Ready for Anything

Shooting outdoors can be tricky as there are so many factors you cannot control. Keep your enthusiasm high and if a sunny, warm day turns out to be a little more cloudy than expected, change the plot and make the most of what nature gives to you.

Image Source: 1,2,3

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About Geta Movila

With a background in Theater and Literary Studies, Geta is a photography enthusiast taking great pleasure in writing on photographic art related subjects. She is an active contributor for Virtual Photography Studio, always looking for inspirational ideas and creative tips on how to develop skills and gain valuable experience in the field.