In the news... IGPOTY Portfolio finalist, CUPOTY results and Amateur photographer article.

  Happy news today, on my second year of entering the Portfolio section of the International garden photographer of the year ( IGPOTY), I have managed to get a finalist position. I am thrilled with this, even more so as it is judged by the esteemed Royal photographic society ( RPS). Totally over the moon. What is also lovely is that it is a still life portfolio, a subject which I put a lot of time and effort into trying to improve and learn this last couple of years and hours pondering which to enter. 

 I also managed to get an image placed in the new Fungi category, which is very pleasing as its yet another subject which I have endeavoured to improve upon recently

So here is my fungi image, a strange one as I added textures to it. The mushroom shapes in the background bokeh were created by a tiny mushroom between the lens and the main mushroom. I added my own textures and edited it using Exposure 5 software for a bit of a different feel. Lovely to see fellow photographers Tony North and Barry Webb ( Barry produces the most fascinating macro shots of slime moulds) doing so well in this category too, check them out here -Fungi results

So I can now finally share my still life portfolio with you all. It was a project I embarked on partially in a bid to focus on learning how to light still life images better and also on bringing the beauty of wild flowers indoors - quite a personal one for me as I find it too exhausting photographing outdoors due to having M.E., so adapted to creating something indoors where I can take my time and sit down as much as I need. This is another example for all those who say  that they cannot get out to take floral photos, all the flowers were obtained very near our home ( literally in our garden and our street for some)

I wanted to showcase the beauty of wildflowers in still life settings. These days it is more common to see vases full of flowers bought at florists, but I prefer to enjoy wildflowers in a style similar to the Old Masters’ paintings, with light cascading across them. So, I set out to produce a collection of still life floral photographs, using my own interpretation of the classic still life style.

All plants used were local to me, mostly growing in my garden, a nearby garden, or wasteland. They include; rosebay willowherb, purple loosestrife, salsify, chamomile, dill, and buttercups.

 

This first one is Rosebay willow herb which has fabulous shapes, like tentacles reaching out.

Purple Loosestrife from a wild garden at the end of our street provided a bright splash of purple spikes to contrast against the greens of the vegetables from our local farm shop in this image.

These incredible Salsify seed heads from our garden were screaming out to be photographed, I felt they complimented the wildness of a mini faux birds nest and look quite special adorning  this decorative pewter vase. With subtle colours and creative lighting they pop nicely.

This lovely bunch of Chamomile is a sight I will not see in the same spot again as it is now been used to build houses upon, so it is quite fitting that they have a special place in my local wild flower project.

Wild Carrot or Dill? I am still not sure -  reply with your answers :) Nice vibrant flowers with intricate shapes.

The much over looked humble Buttercups with more Salsify feature with a kind of farmhouse table look.

 I hope you all enjoy my still life portfolio as much as I enjoyed creating it. The lighting was quite tricky in a small room and mostly featured 3 or 4 lights, with reflectors and home made Gobos. Quite time consuming to get it all just how I wanted it as even a slight shift of an inch or two made massive differences to how the light fell.

Do check out the other truly jaw droppingly beautiful portfolios that were placed and the other wonderful images from so many talented photographers in the rest of the categories. I absolutely adore the 1st place image. IGPOTY winning portfolios

In more good news, this week saw the publication of an excellent article ( in Amateur Photographer magazine ) written by the very innovative photographer, Tracy Calder, about mindfulness and photography, an approach I whole heartedly believe can help many people. Tracy kindly put my name forward for inclusion in the subsequent article which was superbly written by the lovely Geoff Harris. Geoff rang me for a little chat about the part photography has taken in my life, my struggles to actually manage photography with the symptoms of M.E. and benefits of using photography as a coping strategy. Its a great read with eye opening interviews from others who have employed photography as a tool to help themselves, its a sensitive subject and handled so well with Geoff's thoughtful and compassionate writing. Worth a read.

Today also saw the results of Close up photographer of the year's Two of a kind challenge. I was lucky enough to have two images make the stunning shortlist. Very chuffed to say that my image of the two Cyclamen made it to the gorgeous finalist selection. CUPOTY TWO OF A KIND WINNERS

This is one of my favourite images taken last year, sadly I can no longer reach this spot on my mobility scooter as it has been devastated by two storms within 2 months, with trees uprooted and hanging precariously. The paths are blocked for the second time in 2 months and I am told that the park is in a much worse state now. So this image is even more special to me, capturing a treasured spot where I practiced mindfulness for the last 2 years during the pandemic. Its a happy image, but tinged with loss of a much cherished woodland habitat.

Above "The Kiss" exquisite, delicate form and shape mixed with romantic pink ethereal haze in this portrait of winter Cyclamen.

A selection of images and tips from winners is to be published in Amateur photographer magazine next week, which could be interesting for those who enjoy a bit of close up imagery. ( I think I should get a commission for plugging a certain magazine this week! :D )

Now I have a question to ask you all, what would you like me to blog about on here?

The multiple personalities of plants

When you first start observing plants in all their intricate glory regularly and close up, a whole new world begins to emerge.  From their fragile beginnings with tiny seedlings reaching for the light, to buds hiding the beauty within, the bursts of colours and patterns displayed by flowers, fruit, berries and leaves ending in colour changes and peculiar but often attractive seed heads. The life cycles of flora can be fascinating, opening up a whole new world for photographers which can last all year round. Whether producing images on location, in nature or gardens or  capturing blooms from a florist, or getting creative with dried pressed flowers and seed heads on a light box, putting together a still life setting or maybe using sections of a plant as a prop, the possibilities are endless.

Conditions for shooting and useful bits of kit

It can be worth looking ahead at weather conditions if you are planning to photograph your botanicals on location. I tend to choose a day with very little wind where possible, preferably a nice light day with cloud cover, as sunshine can cause some harsh, unwanted highlights and shadows. Taking a collapsible reflector that strips down to a white diffuser could help when the sunlight is  harsh, this can be held in place with a tripod or stand and clamp/plamp, or by a friend. The reflector can come in handy for bouncing light into shadows too, but if you do not own one a piece of foil folded in your bag can be an alternative solution.

Useful items to take with you if you choose to shoot outside could include a roll up or folding mat of some description so that you can kneel or lie on the ground and stay clean as well as dry, even a bin bag can suffice if space and weight are issues. Another item I often take along is a tiny fine misting spray bottle, sometimes a gentle misting of water can give extra interest, adding a new dimension.

There are times when a very low tripod can come in handy, especially if light is low and conditions suitable for a longer exposure. Or maybe on a windy day it can be interesting to capture movement in the plats/grasses etc with your long exposure. A remote shutter control is handy too.

Buds and shoots

Whilst its nice to capture plants in situ it can be inconvenient, particularly when you need to get down low and its muddy or its windy and blowing your subject all over, don't feel you have to photograph your subjects as they are in the garden, with a little fore thought and planning you can get using them for the most creative props. I had the idea of using the spiral shoots from a Passion flower climber as a prop for an insect years ago, so planted one in my next garden and waited for the spirals  to grow. The orchid mantis is a whole other story but also required planning.

You don't need an insect to show off your chosen section of vegetation, try an abstract approach  or adding water.

If you don't mind cutting a section of your plant off then you can position it somewhere more pleasing using a vase, plamp, etc. Here I placed an out of focus photograph ( many available via my website) behind this Freesia in bud plus poppy bud and let a Ladybird explore prior to evicting it from our house.

 Its a good idea to get to know which plants grow where in your local area/garden and which month they are due to produce buds, flowers, berries, fruit. unfurl leaves, and seed heads. You could scour  floral photography groups on social media or browse the winning galleries displayed on International garden photographer of the year or RHS POTY etc for some inspiration and take it from there.

Flowers

 Often when photographing flowers I seek a fully intact specimen with no brown spots, holes, half eaten petals and leaves. I do use a very small fine brush (000) in my kit bag to sweep away any offending pieces of dirt or to gently move along any undesirable insects etc without harming them. I'm not going to cover shooting flowers here as they deserve a whole separate blog, I mostly wanted to draw attention to the often over looked parts of plants in this blog.

Fruit, Berries and vegetables

We have such a wonderful array of fruit, berries and vegetables so don't forget about the fruit bearing offerings of our botanical subjects. Not only do they look appealing in situ but they make wonderful still life subjects.

The berries below were captured using a Helios lens giving a fabulous circular bokeh, quite similar to the berries themselves.

Use your fruit/veg in still life or food photography ( see separate blog on both)

Seed heads

I find seed heads and seeds intriguing, with plants having so many unique looking and often quite magical dispersion methods. This last couple of months I have delighted in capturing Dandelion seed heads in one of my last blogs and then found my Pasque flowers ( Pulsatilla vulgaris)  developing fluffy seed heads lending them selves to almost whimsical arty depictions. below are just a few different seed heads to whet your appetite - I would love to see a few that you enjoy capturing. ( not sure if you can them in the comments)

 Sometimes old leaves, old seedheads etc can have hidden details such as the Physallis below - if you have fresh ones you can try boiling them for 30 minutes with bicarbonate of soda added, then gently removing the leaf pulp to show the leaf skeletons.

Leaves and grasses

The leaves on plants and trees can be quite fascinating subjects too, often lending themselves to more abstract compositions. Even the silhouettes can produce food for the imagination. I frequently make use of leaves as props with insects, reptiles or amphibians too - the leaf skeletons are another interesting component to make use of - these are reasonably easy to make yourself ( I managed to obtain the leaf skeletons out of the Chinese lantern plants in the above image by boiling them), or they can be purchased online.
I have started preserving a few leaves and flowers by pressing in books for future use in lightbox images such as the one below using ferns, where Ive added pressed daisies, dandelion seeds and salsify seeds.

I find each season brings new delights with foliage. Spring gives unfurling leaves, shoots and flowers with the promise of life and colour, summer gives us a wider variety of flourishing vibrant, lush foliage everywhere we look, whilst autumn draws me with its beautiful array of colours and dying leaves, then winter offers new opportunities in shapes and frost covered old leaves, stems, seed heads etc. Its not always about capturing the subject but sometimes I just want to capture a feeling - such as below I wanted to capture the essence of a summers evening and used the grasses plus sunshine.

Weeds

Don't overlook weeds, they can make worthy subjects too - I find such beauty in weeds and when out you often find interesting insects inhabiting them such as caterpillars. Many butterflies and moths use weeds to lay their eggs so they can be useful to let grow if you don't mind them in a patch of your garden - this might help attract more wildlife in time. Below are just a few weeds from recent months. I hope I have helped you look at plants a little more and hope look forward to seeing your botanical creations whatever the time of year.

Extension tubes, Raynox or dedicated macro lens, decision decisions

Welcome to my first photography blog 

After being encouraged, cajoulled, persuaded and nagged to start either a blog or online tuition during lock down I've finally succumbed to pressure. Please note that whilst I have 14 years experience, mostly at enthusiast level I do not consider myself an expert, I still have a lot to learn, but I am experienced in many genres, over the years I have chosen subjects to throw myself into and have pushed myself to produce the best work I could in each genre I have tried. I always learn new things from each genre which I can put into practice with my favourites - macro or portraiture. I do receive frequent requests for help with various photography projects so maybe this blog will offer a half way measure, demonstrating techniques, results, discussing an array of topics, maybe even  a sprinkling of inspiration. I wasn't sure what to start with, I have added a little background story all about me in a separate post prior to this. I love getting creative and do so mostly from home so hopefully a few of you will find some of my blogs useful or interesting whilst stuck at home during the pandemic, after that, well we will see...

I'm kicking off with some easy macro stuff, prepare to become addicted rapidly and end up with countless strange looks or embarrassing photos of yourself on the ground with your butt in the air trying to focus on weird and wonderful insects or plants and fungi.  I've lost count of the amount of times people have seen me lying on the ground near to my mobility scooter and they have thought I'd had a stroke :)

 I've been drawn to close up and macro photography since I was given my first DSLR, a Canon 300D as a Christmas present about 13 years ago . I had recently been diagnosed with M.E. and wasn't managing to leave home so my initial chosen subjects were the many plants in our vast garden and the exotic frogs and reptiles from my partners pet shop ( I also kept a few frogs as pets). I loved gardening ( pre M.E.) and also had a passion for herpetology ( reptiles and amphibians) so photographing both subjects was a natural choice for me, allowing me to really zoom in on the details and even discovering more about both topics. Lacking a macro lens to start with and I ended up buying a set of screw on macro filters to add to my 18-55 mm kit lens and this option certainly fuelled my growing interest. As a newby I was not in possession of specialist lighting and having no teaching I simply chose to use cheap table lamps to take my snaps at our dining table. I stuck my settings fully on manual within two weeks and threw myself into the deep end. So whilst many people are in a difficult position of being stuck at home during lock down I thought I would cover the topic of close up photography without a dedicated macro lens to start with. 

  I am using a Sony A7ii mirrorless camera and have chosen a lens that most photographers possess, a nifty fifty, you can try your kit lens if you don't own one. One of the cheapest and most widely available options to get up close in your subject is to use macro extension tubes which move the lens further away from the camera and closer to the subject. They connect as a lens does between the camera and lens and you can add several at once for extra magnification. There are calculations widely available on the internet and in books estimating just how much extra magnification your extension tubes will give you with each lens or explaining the minimal focal distance ( MFD), but I tend not to get keyed up about calculations and focal distances. However pairing extension tubes with different lenses will give you differing amounts of magnification. This is just a simple demonstration of what  I can achieve with a 50mm lens, compared against a Sony 90mm macro lens triggered by questions from my peers, many of whom are new to macro. I thought it might help them to decide whether to try out extension tubes, Raynox or aim for a dedicated macro lens. I will touch on macro filters as well. Note that all these options  when applied to your lens will stop your lenses ability to focus to infinity, you will only be able to focus on something close up - worth mentioning so that you dont assume your camera is broken when first using these.

All lenses are built to give optimal sharpness around certain focal distances that they are created to use most,  a macro lens will give its best results focusing close up at its minimal focusing distance, a telephoto lens can give optimum sharpness focusing a long way off. So applying a macro filter, extension tube or Raynox may result in images being less sharp than your lens produces when photographing what it is designed to photograph. They can produce some distortion and loss of fine detail even with the most expensive of lenses.

When choosing your extension tubes it is worth doing your research as some can result in you losing control over functions such as auto focus, meaning you have no choice than to manually focus. Look for tubes that will work with your lens. Some 3rd party tubes dont have any electric contacts so you wont even be able to change your aperture once mounted on your camera, so choose wisely.

When using your lens with extension tubes added you will notice a significant light loss, this is because by increasing the distance between sensor and lens you are effectively increasing the aperture. So your image gets darker and effective depth of field increases, although does not change on your cameras settings. See https://shuttermuse.com/what-is-aperture-in-photography/   for more details. Having said that you also lose depth of field when working in macro, getting closer to your subject can mean hardly any of it is actually in focus. So you may find yourself needing to increase ISO or decrease shutter speed to compensate for light loss.

The Raynox is a universal macro filter/adapter that snaps onto the end of your lens, unlike extension tubes it contains glass, which is how it achieves magnification. I will be using a Raynox 250. The Raynox gives higher magnification when used on a longer zoom lens, when coupled with a shorter lens such as a 50mm like I am doing initially it can result in a very shallow depth of field. I do not own a zoom lens to demonstrate this, although I may borrow one and add to this with a part 2. But you can tell a difference in the magnification between the 50 and 90mm lenses when the Raynox is applied ( see further down in comparison images )

Macro filters are screw on filters ( like a UV filter) with glass that is slightly curved, effectively bending the light, enlarging what you see, acting much like a magnifying glass. You can often buy these in sets of different sizes and they can be stacked, allowing you to use several at once. These filters can be quite  cheap, so they are useful in helping you decide if you enjoy macro photography.  The filters work by altering your minimal focal distance (MFD) - all lenses have an MFD - this is the closest distance your camera can focus on. If your lens normally has a MFD of 1 meter and you add a +2 macro filter you change the MFD of this lens to 0.3. There are complicated calculations which help you determine MFDs but I dont get worked up about these. The higher the number on your filter the closer it will allow your lenses MFD, stack them and they get you closer. However there comes a point, especially on a longer lens where adding macro filters can  adjust your MFD to literally immediately in front of your lens which blocks most of your light, or even adjusting it to inside your lens!!! I have not used macro filters in my comparison images here as I no longer own a set that fits my camera, but felt it important to include a bit about them.

There are down sides to macro filters and some of these also apply to the Raynox to some degree. A dedicated macro lens is expensive for a reason, it has specially developed  glass and modifications to help reduce any optical imperfections, giving you a lovely sharp result. Filters can give you a less  image sharpness and you can experience softness around the edges of your image. Filters are  known to produce problems like chromatic aberration, this happens more around the edges and can be more prominent when working with high contrast light. Look for filters made from metal and glass, not plastic. You will need to buy filters to fit each individual lens, based upon the thread size of your lens ( often printed on the end of your lens). Good points re the filters - they're cheap, convenient, pocket sized and allow closer shots of your subject for a fraction of the price of a macro lens and you can auto focus with them unlike some extension tubes.

The images above are of a common subject that is available right now in May in the UK anyway, even if you are self isolating you can probably find a dandelion on a grass verge nearby outside. ( Beware legislation on picking wildflowers though, whilst dandelions are considered weeds by most of us it can be illegal to pick particular flowers from the wild or even grass verges, such as council planted flowers).  Doing macro work makes you notice little things that you never would normally as shown in these images. I didn't know the seeds push the dying yellow petals out of the way, it seems to happen over just a couple of days, or it has in my home. I've found it quite fascinating. I have a tendency to collect various seed heads for macro photography purposes. Dandelion seed heads are incredible photogenic - look our for Salsify seed heads in a few months - like a huge dandelion.

This set of images below are all set at F18 on the same subject, starting with just the 50mm lens and no macro options, adding in 26mm of extension tubes,  then comparing against the Raynox 250 on the 50mm lens and finally using the lens with both extension tubes and Raynox. After this I followed the same sequence using a Sony 90mm lens and placed them side by side to give you an idea of the differences. 

I will let you draw your own conclusions on which combination of the above that you prefer. Personally I find the Raynox has given less clarity away from the focal point which is the centre of the flower, and it can also cause some vignetting, which is seen when using the Raynox alone with both lenses - but only when wide open at F2.8, it does not occur at F18.

Pros and cons  of Macro filters
Pros 
-Cheaper than a macro lens
Lightweight & compact
Can be used with most lenses
Stackable providing extra magnification
No need to remove lens when adding or removing

Cons
Sometimes loss of quality or sharpness
Possible chromatic aberration & other distortions
Your lens cannot focus to infinity with macro filters added
Lets less light into your sensor

Pros and Cons of macro extension tubes
Pros
Cheaper than a macro lens
Lightweight & compact
Can be used with most lenses
Usually minimal loss in quality due to no  optical elements
Stackable providing more magnification


Cons
Your lens cannot focus to infinity with the extension tubes added
Can  result in vignetting
Can reduce light / increase effective F stop requiring compensatory actions
Having to remove your lens each time you wish to add or remove a tube on location can increase the chances of introducing sensor dust especially on location

 A few things to keep in mind if you are new to macro photography. The closer you are to your subject the more light you might block from reaching your subject. So whilst using a 50 mm lens the flower was nicely lit, when I added extension tubes or Raynox I ended up closer to the flower and had to increase my light or my ISO to achieve the same light exposure. Again when I added both I was even closer so again had to adjust light, however its not just about adjusting the power of any lights, you may need to adjust the positioning too as it can be hard placing lights in front of your subject if that's where you are and there is little room.  This is why many macro photographers use on camera flash, flash rings or other specialist macro lighting. I favour off camera flash, which is conveniently permanently set up in our dining room to save me energy. 

With macro photography you will soon start to notice that you lose a lot of depth of field when you are close up to your subject, so you may find yourself shooting up to F 18 and still getting only a slither of your subject in focus. I find using lighting to kind of model your subject ( where possible) can sort of enhance your depth of field, making it appear better than it is, especially with a little side lighting or back lighting. 

Losing depth of field can even enhance your imagery if used creatively, sometimes offering an abstract view. I found that by  opening up my aperture to F 1.8 or F 2 with both the Raynox and extension tubes on with my 50 mm or Macro 90 mm lens gives me a wonderful ethereal dreamy effect with some flowers. As seen with this tulip and the following Anemone images. 

I hope to cover image stacking macro images at some point which can help with ensuring you do not lose depth of field when it is important that more of your subject remains in focus.

Another thing to consider when starting out with macro is keeping yourself still whilst taking your photo. You will find yourself balanced in silly, precarious positions whilst attempting to capture masterpieces, with utterly dreadful light at, which you make worse by blocking light. Your ISO can end up high, tempting you to use a slower shutter speed, so that you can retain a better depth of field. Using a tripod can be awkward, they're big and bulky, often too tall etc. There are mini tripods available to help you keep your settings as you prefer, also tripods whose legs can change directions and go almost flat allowing you to get close to the ground. I find a bean bag to lean in can help too.

You will find yourself holding your breath so that you don't move that millimetre, some suggest that you exhale slowly as you press the shutter rather than holding your breath. Pressing the shutter gently can be preferable to  a rapid press jarring and moving your camera. I will add more little tips to help your photography with other blogs.

Please feel free to comment on the blog and add any requests for future topics.