Lady’s slipper orchid (Cypripedium calceolus), Bavaria, Germany, May. https://www.alamy.com/the-sunken-garden-at-chenies-buckinghamshire-on-a-sunny-evening-in-septemberthe-restored-pavilioncolourful-dahlia-varieties-and-bright-grassy-path-image329502429.html. 2nd Prize in the Melvita Nature Images Awards competition 2014. https://www.alamy.com/stock-photo-ladys-slipper-orchid-cypripedium-calceolus-bavaria-germany-may-2nd-86764830.html, https://www.alamy.com/stock-image-backlit-lupine-flowers-glacier-national-park-montana-168840890.html, https://www.alamy.com/stock-photo-single-hellebores-flower-against-a-green-background-47956475.html, Horse chestnut (Aesculus hippocastanum). Because continuous light works best for backlight, daylight-balanced LEDs or natural light from a window may work best. Mother Nature can sometimes use the help. Express yourself in various arrangements using the same bunch of flowers. An (Stapelia grandiflora) blooms in the cactus garden of the Jardín Botánico of Los Mochis, Mexico. Chiddingfold Forest, Surrey, England. I spent several minutes finding a suitable bunch of flowers and then spent several more minutes in making lot of different compositions. Shooting outside closer to midday is impractical for backlighting since the sun is shining directly above the subject, casting harsh light and rendering unpleasant shadows and unrecoverable highlights. My style lies somewhere in between these two. The Sunken garden at Chenies, Buckinghamshire on a sunny evening in September;the restored Pavilion.Colourful dahlia varieties and bright grassy path. Closeup with selective focus, Backlit White Clematis Montana Flower. The rest of this article covers three different techniques for introducing backlighting into your macro photography. Canon Explorers of Light Answer, How We Got That Shot - Matt and Agnes Hage, Best Vlogging Cameras 2020 for Beginners | Buying Guide, Get to know Featured Photographer—Derek Sturman, Introducing the Canon RF 50mm F1.8 & 70-200mm F4 lenses, DJI RS 2 & RSC 2: Smoother than Ever Before, Mid-Range Masterpiece: The Fujifilm X-S10, Nikon Announces Two New Powerhouse Cameras—the Nikon Z6 II and Z7 II, Level Up Your Content with the all-new Canon EOS M50 Mark II, Get Inspired: Introducing the New Panasonic LUMIX BGH1 4K Cinema Box Camera, Get to Know Featured Photographer—Chance Allred. The light box I use now is custom-built with daylight-balanced LED bulbs placed uniformly across the box. Nature Photography during Covid19 Pandemic, Common Post Processing Mistakes in Landscape Photography, How to use Backlight for creative Flower Photography, Hyperfocal Distance for Landscape Photography, The Ultimate Landscape Photography Course. Then sync the settings with the rest of your bracketed sequence. Backlit flower. Beautiful backlit white thistle flower in the meadow during the sunset in autumn, Backlit grass flower. https://www.alamy.com/stock-photo-phacilia-game-cover-crop-in-evening-sun-england-may-72035542.html. New photography competitions added daily, $4000 of prizes each month. So a debt of gratitude is in order for posting. Even if you don’t personally have a garden or sprinkler, a neighbor, friend, or family member could probably let you use theirs. BTW, don’t just stop at flowers, pay attention to leaves as well! White Balance Setting: "Cloudy", Stay connected to Tony's work: Website | Blog | Facebook | Twitter, How Do I Learn Photography? Unfortunately, such lighting can become a little one-note. Backlight is when the main source of light comes from behind your subject. This really motivates my appreciation for Macro Photography and the endless compositions one can derived from a static subject and some patience. Copyright complaints ~
Because of this, I recommend overexposing your photos in the field. But the more you practice, the more you develop the skills to see the quality and direction of the light and how to use it for creative flower photography. Happy shooting! But I found I was still limited by factors I couldn’t really control, such as weather. The Photographer's Digital Toolbox. Vertical, Hibiscus is pink. We would love to hear from you. If you are fortunate to come across dew around sunrise, I strongly recommend running out the door with your camera. Any DSLR or mirrorless camera would do. https://www.alamy.com/stock-photo-snowdrops-in-bloom-an-early-spring-flower-309837212.html, https://www.alamy.com/stock-photo-close-up-of-flower-petals-50346604.html, https://www.alamy.com/stock-photo-underside-of-flower-30709405.html, Eastern Cottontail (Sylvilagus floridanus), adult backlit among blooming Texas Sage (Leucophyllum frutescens), Dinero, Texas, https://www.alamy.com/stock-photo-eastern-cottontail-sylvilagus-floridanus-adult-backlit-among-blooming-48886574.html, Sun Backlit Flower in Orange Sunset Atmosphere, https://www.alamy.com/stock-photo-sun-backlit-flower-in-orange-sunset-atmosphere-78109973.html, A backlit flower border with poppies against a wall in an English country garden in summer, https://www.alamy.com/stock-photo-a-backlit-flower-border-with-poppies-against-a-wall-in-an-english-34834566.html, https://www.alamy.com/stock-photo-bee-near-flower-33437338.html, https://www.alamy.com/stock-photo-smiling-woman-wearing-flower-in-her-hair-43366904.html, https://www.alamy.com/stock-photo-chinese-woman-wearing-flower-in-her-hair-91334827.html, https://www.alamy.com/stock-photo-backlit-flower-94230276.html. It’s not that it’s impossible to capture good photos using point and shoot or smart phones, especially if the images are only going to be published on social media. Especially when shooting into light with wide-angle lenses, lens flare becomes unavoidable. Northern portuguese meadows, Backlit thistle flower in autumn. As an avid gardener, my first passion gave rise to my second: flower photography. In summer lake, Backlit wild white flower. Thanks! A backlit yellow flower against a black background in a studio setting, Backlit white bluebells flower. Use the sky as a light box – the bright light behind the flowers shines through, revealing the translucency that you wouldn’t otherwise see. Copyright © 2000-2020 Dreamstime. Since this technique creates images with high contrast, the camera does not evenly render details in both light and dark areas of the frame. Tony Sweet: "It’s a good idea, every so often, to have an idea of what you want to photograph when you go out to make pictures. Natural hibiscus backlit by the sun, Pink orchid closeup of flower. Close up of backlit purple Allium flower on a sunny spring day, Backlit violet flower. For this reason, I frequently keep the following items handy and use them as needed: Kenzen (also called a metal frog), museum gel/putty, tape or cable ties, and some paper clips. It ‘s extremely exceptionally decent and useful post. I love the simplicity of this composition with fantastic details in the bud and the halo effect. There’s sure to be something you don’t grow that catches your eye. A good thing about flowers is that they do not complain about color shifting if you change their petal colors! There’s not much you can do to fix lighting issues on a dreary, rainy day. Only use supplemental light if needed. When you are finished with the flowers, you can use the petals to come up with some interesting photography compositions such as these ones: Monochromatic backlit flower petals in photo light box, Backlit flower photography composition with petals in photo light box. https://www.alamy.com/stock-photo-an-stapelia-grandiflora-blooms-in-the-cactus-garden-of-the-jardn-botnico-114463287.html, https://www.alamy.com/poppy-flower-in-back-light-image344799671.html. Scientific name Bartlettina sordida, formerly known as Eupatorium megalophyllum, Sun Backlit Flower in Sunset Atmosphere. Slightly overexposing the image allows you to capture all the details of your subject. Interesting and informative! If your light source is the sun, which certainly makes sense when shooting outdoors, choosing the right time of day is crucial to making backlight photography work for you. Look out for my upcoming Visual Wilderness article about bokeh and how to use it! High resolution backlit dried up flower, Black and white backlit hairy flower. Tony has authored five books on the art of photography, including Fine Art Flower Photography (2005). https://www.alamy.com/backlit-flower-against-dirty-window-background-image223862753.html, https://www.alamy.com/stock-photo-smiling-woman-wearing-flower-in-her-hair-43366901.html, https://www.alamy.com/backlit-flower-image354558379.html, https://www.alamy.com/stock-photo-backlit-flower-92887854.html, https://www.alamy.com/stock-photo-a-backlit-flower-31207801.html, https://www.alamy.com/backlit-red-poppies-growing-in-a-uk-field-image365777924.html. Flash-lit flower close-up photography can be beautiful if you have the technique; now let’s look at the gear you’ll need to pull this off. Backlight photography can be challenging, and it’s easy to create unpleasant exposures if you are using auto mode. Your white background is rendered gray when you properly expose, so you must use exposure compensation.