SHOOT THE SPRING!

SPRING

As the natural world comes back to life, it’s time to reap the abundant visual rewards that the new season has to offer, says

James Abbott

Manually focus on your subject and use a wide aperture such as f/2.8 to blur the background – this will make the flower really stand out.

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Every season brings something unique to the photographic table, but as the natural world begins to awaken from its winter slumber, it’s always spring that reignites our motivation. The landscape once again becomes bathed in lush greens, and our gardens start to fill with colour and play host to birds and insects.

So whether you’re a landscape, macro, wildlife or even still-life photographer, spring has something to offer everyone. Photographic opportunities are almost everywhere, and you don’t even have to travel far to enjoy them. From birds feasting on the feeders in your garden and colourful flowers to indoor projects when the weather isn’t on your side, spring is the season we’ve all been waiting for – and that’s why the next 12 pages are full of ideas and inspiration for picking up your camera and going on a springtime photo adventure…

Here, after focusing on the stamen, using an aperture of f/4 has maintained sharpness in most of the flower, with the background being captured as a seamless blur. James Abbott

1 Capture a classic

Use your macro lens to focus on the intricate details of garden and woodland flowers

1 Shoot from the ground

Get low to the ground using either a tripod with an articulating centre column for maximum support, or a beanbag to help keep the camera steady as you lay on the ground to shoot flowers. An alternative option is to use a mini tripod such as a Manfrotto Pixi or Vanguard Vesta Mini.

2 Focus on the right place

Manual focus is often the most reliable focusing method when shooting close-up, so switch to manual focus and rotate the focus ring to focus on the flower’s stamen. Having focus peaking set to red is a great way to quickly and easily see whether the desired part of the flower is in focus.

3 Dial in camera settings

To isolate the flower from the background, use an aperture of f/2.8-f/4. Select ISO 100 and check the histogram to ensure highlights aren’t blowing if you’re applying exposure compensation. If you’re using a beanbag, watch the shutter speed. If it’s slow then use image stabilisation.

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CONTENTS

Capture a classic spring view page 50

Shoot still life with a twist 52

Work with the weather 54

Shoot waterfalls and streams 55

Flora with a macro lens 56

Capture dynamic blur 56

Wonderful woodlands 57

Bag bird photos at home 58

Coastal long exposures 59

Shoot a dynamic spring time-lapse 60

2 Add a wintery twist to your still life

Freeze springtime flowers to create a unique indoor photo