These images were taken in my mum's garden one afternoon a few weeks ago and basically I wanted to experiment in close up images like those of the photographer from the Heligan book.
To take these images I used a Canon Powershot A560 with a 4x optical zoom lens and I used a manual setting throughout. I didn't have a tripod at this stage which I found difficult when trying to get a steady shot, especially as it was a windy day.
However, I have selected a few of the images taken of the plants in the garden. None of which I think will be used towards my final images but I wanted to document what I had done so far and what I have learnt from the session.
ISO - 100, F2.6, Shutter - 1/20
ISO - 200, F2.6, Shutter - 1/40
These first two images were taken of a dragon plant that we had brought as a house warming gift for some friends and I decided to take some photographs of it because it has some nice detail on it. I like the way the different colours of green blend into each other and I like the stripe detail of the paler green tone on the leaves. Also, the way the light shines off the leaves shows off its silky texture. I like the composition of these two images and I feel that 'portrait' works well for the first image because it allows me to capture the taller leaves moving upwards and 'landscape' works well with the second image to capture the leaves coming towards the lens to the side.
I like that the above image is busy and that it is sharper at the front to the back but there is too much light being let into the lens, therefore this image needs to be re-created using different 'f stops' and shutter speeds so that less light bounces off the flowers into the lens. This makes the flowers look a little lost amongst the greenery and doesn't show off the vibrant colours of the flowers like it does naturally.
Here I wanted to create a similar feel as to the images of the dragon plant. I do like this image but I feel that it doesn't work as well in this composition as it did for the dragon plant and I will have to re-think on how it is best to capture the leaves of the palm. Maybe a more lighter or darker background is needed behind the palm to bring out the sharpness of the leaves and to make the green stand out more.
ISO - 200, F2.6, Shutter - 1/160
I wanted to take more of an angled image here and not just taken a 'straight on' approach as I have for other images and I am glad I did as this makes it appear less flat. I think also having the one main flower as the subject against the green leaves in the hanging basket and purple flowers works well and the image as a main focal point. The colours work really well too as the white really stands out against the darker background.
ISO - 200, F2.6, Shutter - 1/80
With this image I wanted to keep it very simple and by concentrating on this composition I was able to do this with the main colours being the white of the flower buds and the green of the leaves surrounding it. I decided on this positioning so that I could capture the flowers moving sideways and curving upwards and your eyes follow this as you look at the photograph.
ISO - 200, F3.2, Shutter - 1/60
I like the colours in this image and also the contrast between the soft texture of the flowers against the harshness of the brick in the background. Also the detail on the flowers is really interesting and that is something I wanted to capture. I do feel though that it does appear a little flat and lighting would have helped here to create more shadows to give it more depth.
ISO - 200, F2.6, Shutter - 1/15
This image was taken of herbs in the garden and I think the composition and subject work well but because I didn't have a tripod it was very difficult to keep the camera steady and to get the sharpness that I required which has made it quite blurry. I think using a tripod and playing with the shutter speed would make this shot alot better.
ISO - 200, F5.0, Shutter - 1/50
This is the same type of flower which I talked about earlier but this time I captured more than one white flower in the image. It wasn't intentional for the front flower at the bottom to be blurry, which I believe happened because of not having a tripod to work with, but looking at the image I think it looks ok in this composition. This is because we still have the main focus on one flower towards the top of the image.
ISO - 200, F5.0, Shutter - 1/15
With this final image I wanted to create a blurry effect at the front and make the back of the image more focused and make this the focal point and I think this is what I achieved. It is normally done the other way around but as this session was to experiment with the camera I thought it would be interesting to see the outcome. For me I don't think it really works that well and I prefer it being the other way around. Saying that though I do like the colours and the shapes in this image and the actual bud of the flower has some beautiful detail on it.
Reflecting back after this session I have learnt alot about close up imagery and how the light, positioning and use of a tripod really does effect the final outcome. Not having a tripod really effected how sharp my images were and how steady the camera was so in the future I will try and use a tripod to make the images the best they can be. Also, creating my own light outdoors may help to create an image with more depth and life.
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