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51 Articles

Welcome to Tech yourself Macro Photography

Open up a whole new world of possibilities with the art of macro photography. Capture tiny things in huge detail and make everyday objects appear larger than life. Teach Yourself Macro Photography covers everything you need to embark on a journey of close-up photography – from the specialist kit required, to picking the perfect subject, shooting creatively and editing to absolute perfection. Inside you’ll find projects that will enable you to shoot artistically and gain inspiration from the talented image-makers that we’ve interviewed. If that wasn’t enough we took some readers on a series of miniature adventures with four professional photographers – they found tiny creatures in Cornwall, photographed with a unique field setup, captured artful water splashes and more. This brand new bookazine will help you get up-close and…

Welcome to Tech yourself Macro Photography

INTERNATIONAL GARDEN PHOTOGRAPHER OF THE YEAR: MACRO ART

MINGHUI YUAN LAST EMBRACE [2ND PLACE] WUHAN CITY, CHINA Dandelion seeds are destined to leave their mother, to fly away in the wind and grow somewhere new; such is their life cycle. There is much inspiration to be taken from this everyday scene: life is ordinary, but ordinary life is also emotional, and even though this depicts a transient event, I wanted keep that important moment of warmth. Canon EOS 70D, Tamron 90mm macro lens, 1/100sec at f9, ISO 400 LBERTO GHIZZI PANIZZA ADORNED BY THE DEW [FINALIST] LUZZARA, EMILIA, ROMAGNA, ITALY A portrait of a damselfly with drops of dew resting on his head. The dew is refracting a wild flower behind the subject. I often take long walks between the floodplains and the riverbanks near my town. Here…

INTERNATIONAL GARDEN PHOTOGRAPHER OF THE YEAR: MACRO ART

DISCOVER magical MACRO

Macro photography is an incredibly popular genre, most likely due to the vast potential that high magnifications bring to almost any subject. Even everyday objects can be shown in a new light when shot with a macro lens, as detail that is invisible to the human eye is revealed. There are many challenges associated with the area however, ranging from technical and practical issues to creative difficulties, when trying to capture unique shots that stand out from the competition. In terms of composition, it can be difficult to create an immersive experience for viewers of our images, as often we approach macro with a very technical mindset, which can produce very ‘sterile’ images that appear more like record shots than artistic works. In order for images to have real impact…

DISCOVER magical MACRO

SELECT THE PERFECT LENS

When working in such a specific genre, it is essential that you choose the correct tool that will enable you to capture the types of images you desire. If you are new to macro photography, you may choose to opt for a more general-purpose lens model, as these will allow you to get to know the field without making a large financial commitment. Ultimately however, the best results can only be reliably captured using dedicated equipment that has been specifically designed with pro macro shots in mind. Dedicated macro lenses can reproduce the subject at life-size on the camera’s sensor. These feature an optical design which permits very close focusing, while yielding the best possible sharpness and quality at these extreme distances. The focal length you choose will depend upon…

SELECT THE PERFECT LENS

PICK THE RIGHT SUBJECT

A common mistake new photographers can make in any genre is to let the enthusiasm and eagerness to capture a photo get in the way of a well-considered composition. To arrive on location, set up your tripod and immediately start shooting is often not an effective strategy for identifying the best possible viewpoint or subject for your images. By instantly selecting one example and focusing your attention on photographing it, you will likely miss a plethora of other opportunities for great shots – make sure you look around. By choosing the ‘wrong’ subject, you may find it suffers from insufficient colour separation from the background, resulting in an image that lacks dimension and contrast, where your intended focal point is indiscernible. Furthermore, there can be significant size variations among insects…

PICK THE RIGHT SUBJECT

RISE TO THE CHALLENGE

Due to the close working distances between the camera and subject, very shallow depth of field and often unpredictable shooting conditions, macro photographers experience one of the most comprehensive set of genre-specific challenges. The margin for error when focusing and selecting a shutter speed in this area is very limited, as only a very minor shift in camera position or misjudgement of exposure can greatly degrade image sharpness. This problem is amplified by the highly detailed nature of common macro subjects – viewers expect to see lots of fine detail, which makes it difficult to hide flaws in shooting technique. It is essential that a high-enough shutter speed is used, so that any movement introduced by wind is frozen. However, since depth of field is severely narrowed at high magnifications,…

RISE TO THE CHALLENGE

LOOK BEYOND THE OBVIOUS

Since macro photography is such a precise task, it is very easy to become so concerned with technical excellence that artistic opportunity is then overlooked. Focus, shutter speed and exposure are all vital, but should be seen as fundamental aspects on top of which a creative composition should be built. This restricted mindset is also partially due to the specific nature of the skills required for successful macro and the expected characteristics of the resulting images. There are far more artistic possibilities from macro subjects than the majority of photographers even attempt to explore – macro should be seen as a method of accessing challenging subjects, rather than being the subject of an image itself. The key ingredients in creative macro and close-up imagery can be broken down into a…

LOOK BEYOND THE OBVIOUS

TAKE YOUR LANDSCAPES TO THE NEXT LEVEL WITH THIS COMPREHENSIVE GUIDE

Whether it’s cloudless skies, unexpected weather or tricky light conditions, this book is full of guides and projects to help you to tackle every landscape. Explore shooting at the classic honeypot spots as well as navigating to more unique locations. Plus, get pro kit advice, composition tips and learn key shooting techniques. ON SALE NOW Ordering is easy. Go online at: magazinesdirect.com Or get it from selected supermarkets & newsagents…

TAKE YOUR LANDSCAPES TO THE NEXT LEVEL WITH THIS COMPREHENSIVE GUIDE

MACRO ON A BUDGET

Macro photography is a genre of great wonder, bringing to light the intricate and beautiful detail of our world that often goes unseen by the naked eye. There’s great excitement to be had in discovering flora and fauna up close, but in reality this added magnification can be pricey. All image making benefits from a little investment, and macro in particular is often accomplished with highly specialised lenses and accessories. Fortunately, though, there are plenty of alternative kit options that will enable you to tackle the genre on a budget. One simple way to magnify subjects is by using close-up filters; while a specialist lens might set you back hundreds, a set of these costs little more than £15/$20. Over the next few pages you’ll discover the differences between specialist…

MACRO ON A BUDGET

MAKE THE RIGHT KIT CHOICES

The most desirable macro lenses on the market have fairly long focal lengths, offering greater working distances as well as close focusing capabilities. This means that you’re less likely to disturb any flighty creatures you’re trying to photograph, and also makes it less likely for shadows to be cast over your subject. In short, such macro lenses are an expensive outlay, so you have to be sure that you truly need their benefits. Having bundles of specialist kit doesn’t guarantee better images though, and there are plenty of budget ways to get closer to your subjects if you don’t have a macro lens. For example, close-up filters screw on to the front of your lens and enable you to focus closer than usual. Like all the options we’ll explore in…

MAKE THE RIGHT KIT CHOICES

REVERSE YOUR LENS

You might be sceptical about using your lens backwards, but in fact reversing rings provide one of the cheapest ways to adapt an existing lens for macro magnifications. Starting at around £5/$7 each, they take the form of a small metal ring, with a standard filter thread on one side and a lens mount thread on the other. When screwed on, the lens can then be mounted onto your camera in reverse, causing subjects to become impressively enlarged on the sensor at shorter focal lengths. As a rule, wider angle lenses will provide greater magnification. For example, near life-size reproductions can be achieved with a kit lens such as an 18-55mm, or the popular 50mm, on a cropped-frame sensor. One of the main downsides of using a lens in reverse…

REVERSE YOUR LENS

USE EXTENSION TUBES

Extension tubes are light, tight cylinders that attach between your camera body and virtually any lens. Because they move the front element of your lens closer to the subject and therefore further away from the focal plane, they enable closer focusing and an even greater magnification. These hollow tubes are inexpensive when compared to a macro lens and they don’t introduce any additional glass elements, so there’s generally no significant loss in image quality. The main price difference between extension tubes comes from the fact that some maintain the connection between the camera and lens, whereas the cheaper versions don’t. For tubes without electrical contacts you’ll still be able to meter effectively, but autofocus will be disabled and you won’t be able to change the aperture unless your lens has…

USE EXTENSION TUBES

LEARN TO LIGHT EFFECTIVELY

Many lighting approaches exist for macro photography, and while natural light is a simple and affordable option, alone it can’t always be relied upon. Even in the brightest conditions such as broad daylight, the intimate working distances needed in the genre often cause shadows to be cast on your subjects. When you also factor in the use of narrow apertures to retain detail at such close proximity, boosting the exposure with artificial sources of light often becomes necessary. Fortunately, even lighting setups can be found to suit a modest budget, and the most common specialist macro options are ring lights and flashes. Circular ring flashes attach to the front of your lens, enabling the light to remain close to the subject. Starting at around £30/$40, they’re generally cheaper than off-camera…

LEARN TO LIGHT EFFECTIVELY

CLOSE-UP PHOTOGRAPHY

If you can make your camera focus really close on your subject, you can reveal texture and form the unaided eye simply doesn’t see. By magnifying detail that would otherwise go unnoticed, you create a whole new world for your viewer to enjoy. In this guide we’ll give you six cool creative projects that together teach the basics you need to make every macro shot you take spot-on, with plenty of shooting and settings tips along the way. But your first task is to make sure you have the lens you need to capture your images. You can actually make any type of lens focus closer by adding extension tubes or close-up filters – but the better solution is to invest in a dedicated macro lens. These lenses focus down…

CLOSE-UP PHOTOGRAPHY

MASTER CREATIVE MACRO

Although it is highly specialised, there is a wide-reaching appeal of the ability of creating close-up images to reveal previously unseen details, in a unlimited number of potential subjects. Even the most mundane of everyday objects can be shown in a new way, when it is explored with a macro lens; hidden colours and textures are magnified to frame-filling dimensions and placed in a novel context. The most popular subjects tend to be those from the natural world; insects and plant life make an appearance in the majority of photographer’s macro portfolios. This is most likely due to the sense of wonder created by freezing these often fast-moving subjects in a moment and allowing the viewer a glimpse of the world from their perspective. When you have mastered the basics…

MASTER CREATIVE MACRO

FOCUS ON TEXTURE

Textured surfaces can be fascinating subjects for your macro portfolio. Since the key attraction of macro as a genre is the ability to emphasise minute details, texture is a natural area on which to focus. Both artificial and natural materials have textures that can look stunning when thoughtfully captured up close, producing images that demand multiple views and careful consideration from the audience, in order to place them in a rather artistic context. The main job of any photographer is to produce a composition which holds the viewer’s attention, and so by using texture to your advantage, it is possible to present almost any subject as worthy of closer inspection. The main advantage of honing in on texture is that you can employ everyday objects to make images with the…

FOCUS ON TEXTURE

WORK WITH BACKGROUNDS

Backgrounds are an often overlooked, yet they’re vitally important component of a successful picture. While this is true for all genres, it is no more so than for macro photography. Due to the narrow framing conditions, objects are close together and therefore, at risk of jostling for attention. When shooting flowers or insects, you are also working with brightly coloured subjects, compounding the problem with considerations regarding colour contrasts and clashes. Natural backgrounds are often ‘busy’, especially when shooting in undergrowth or close to the ground. A potential solution is to introduce an artificial background, which’ll enable you the control to choose an ideal blend of colour and detail. To create eye-catching compositions, a popular technique is to utilise a seamless coloured background. This produces a highly stylised look, since…

WORK WITH BACKGROUNDS

EXPERIMENT WITH ABSTRACT

Many macro photographers strive for sharpness, since capture of detail is the reason they perceive for owning a macro lens. While it is true that we should aim for technical accuracy in our images, there are times when it’s difficult to achieve, or undesirable. When shooting outside, we have little control over the elements, which means we must adapt our shooting style to gain usable shots from the conditions available. However, images taken under controlled conditions can look ‘staged’ and lacking in creativity. Macro photography is a good candidate for a more abstract approach, since the close nature of objects within the frame make it easier to blend colours, shapes and light for fun effects. The unfamiliar nature of small structures, which are difficult to see with the naked eye,…

EXPERIMENT WITH ABSTRACT

PLAY WITH PERSPECTIVE

As stunning as well-executed macro images are, from the photographer’s position it is one of the most difficult genres in which to create unique, dramatic compositions. This is due mainly to the compact nature of the surrounding environment. In sports or wildlife photography, there is great scope for dynamic camera movement, to introduce creative effects and quickly make great changes in framing. When working with macro lenses, shooting very small subjects, the close working distances can prove prohibitive, when seeking novel and engaging camera angles. Additionally, since depth-of-field is so restricted, any alterations to composition must be conducted with care, to ensure the correct areas of the subject remain sharp. This can be problematic when trying artistic perspectives, as DOF is even more limited when shooting at oblique angles to…

PLAY WITH PERSPECTIVE

CREATE A MINIATURE WORLD

Miniature photography has become a popular genre and involves placing scale models of subject in an environment, to create a false scene. With careful subject placement, camera angle consideration, depth-of-field management and lighting, a situation should seem close to reality, at least on initial viewing. Ordinary subjects such as grass can take of the role of a dense jungle, or the inclusion of insects and other small creatures will add a surreal element, with great eye-catching properties. Being able to move around, above and below your subject gives you scope to create perspectives that are impossible in the real world, opening up opportunities for fun and playful photos. The challenges of the genre are often caused by the aspects which make it unique. Depth-of-field is limited, which produces the characteristic…

CREATE A MINIATURE WORLD

EDIT YOUR MACRO SHOTS LIKE A PRO

When photographers talk about taking images, terms that you will often hear include process and workflow. This is because simply pressing the shutter button is only the start of the image-making process; to get the very best from your photograpgs, there are additional considerations that must be made, and editing is next on the list, because this is where you can take a shot of moving from merely ‘great’ to ‘masterpiece’ in just a few short steps. Whether you’re a ‘get it right in-camera’ purist or a ‘shoot fast and worry in post’ type of photographer, editing is an indispensable element of the image-making process, especially if you shoot raw, because every single image you take will need to be processed in software, such as Lightroom or Adobe Camera Raw,…

EDIT YOUR MACRO SHOTS LIKE A PRO

ULTIMATE SHARPNESS

When you’re working at a 1:1 ratio subject, sharpness and depth-of-field become more critical. Depth-of-field in macro photography is a huge challenge, because when you’re working so close to the subject, a middle aperture such as f/8 will provide a relatively shallow depth-of-field. You could of course stop down the lens down to f/22, which would increase depth-of-field, but at this setting, diffraction – a softening of the image – would occur. The alternative and preferable technique is to focus stack. This is where you set the lens to its sharpest aperture – usually f/8 or f/11 – and then take a series of images with focus, starting at the front of the subject with the first shot, and ending at the back of the subject for the final image.…

ULTIMATE SHARPNESS

MAKE DETAIL POP OUT

Image processing should always be a way of enhancing images to make them look their best, rather than a process of fixing poor shooting technique. But even with the sharpest lenses focused perfectly on the subject, most if not all digital images can benefit from sharpening. If you shoot in Raw and process your files in Adobe Camera Raw or Lightroom, an amount of sharpening is applied automatically. This can be adjusted or even turned off, but for nine out of ten images this is the perfect amount of sharpening. Well done Adobe! So with this in mind you may be thinking that there’s no need for additional sharpening because it’s all been taken care of. But with certain macro subjects and those shot at a wide aperture and featuring…

MAKE DETAIL POP OUT

ACCENTUATE DETAIL

The idea that applying an effect that desaturates an image to increase detail may sound impossible, but by applying a bleach bypass effect to your images, you will quickly see how this effect is actually much more useful than simply applying a movie-style colour effect to your shots. It will, of course, change the colouring of your images slightly, but they will maintain a natural look, and the overall effect can be controlled with ease. The bleach bypass effect has been around for a long time, and was first used in the movie industry as a colouring effect. As the name suggests, when processing the transparency film the bleach step was missed out, resulting in increased contrast with desaturation and washed out-looking mid-tones. The effect has been replicated in Photoshop,…

ACCENTUATE DETAIL

When you’re working with images of tiny subjects at a 1:1 ratio, detail quickly becomes much more important than in other types of images. The most obvious way to enhance detail is to use sharpening techniques such as High Pass sharpening, but as always Photoshop provides more than just one way to enhance images, with each technique providing a different result from the next. Let’s assume that the image you’ve taken has a perfect histogram and you’ve maintained detail from the shadows through to the highlights. Even though we have detail here, we can still lighten the shadows further to reveal more detail and soften the highlights to the same end using Shadows/Highlights within Photoshop. These two elements can both be controlled in Adobe Camera Raw, Lightroom and other raw…

Macro photography is capable of revealing the natural world in an entirely new light, capturing detail invisible to the human eye. As popular as the genre is however, creating successfully engaging images is not easy. Experienced photographer Mike Tully (miketully.smugmug.com) combines his in-depth knowledge of his subject’s behaviour with artistic expertise, to produce intimate studies of spiders and insect life. How long have you been a photographer for and what initially got you interested in macro imaging? I got my first SLR 43 years ago. I was always fascinated by optical devices like microscopes and telescopes that allowed a look into otherwise unseen worlds. In 1977, when the original Star Wars movie was released, I read of how the film crew had chosen the 55mm f3.5 Micro Nikkor for its…

HELP ME SHOOT A BUG’S LIFE!

THE PRO NAME: ROSS HODDINOTT CAMERA: NIKON D810 Ross Hoddinott is one of the UK’s leading nature photographers. Best known for his evocative landscape images and intimate close-ups of nature, he is the author of several photography books, including Digital Macro & Close-up Photography. He has a lifelong passion for wildlife and conservation, and is a multi-award-winner in both the Wildlife Photographer of the Year competition and British Wildlife Photography Awards. He has been using Nikon cameras since his teens and was a Nikon UK Ambassador between 2013 and 2015. He is also an Ambassador for Manfrotto and a Global Icon for F-Stop gear. To see more of his images visit www.rosshoddinott.co.uk APPRENTICE NAME: ANDY STAFFORD CAMERA: NIKON D750 Andy is an IT analyst whose loves of fly fishing and photography keep him in…

HELP ME SHOOT A BUG’S LIFE!

David Maitland’s photography reveals weird and wonderful details of the natural world that are usually too small for us to see with the naked eye. Armed with plenty of photographic expertize and the scientific knowledge gained during his academic career, his photographs are a perfect combination of science and art. Colourful, intriguing and often quirky, his work ranges from detailed macro shots of reptiles, amphibians and insects to microscopic studies of organisms up to 1000x life size. However, as well as being visually striking, the tiny details they highlight also tell us something about individual species and their behaviour. Maitland, 58, has been fascinated by the close examination of natural subjects since his childhood in St Andrews in Scotland. As he explains, this coastal environment was the ideal catalyst for…

“This shot was taken in the forests of Belize, Central America,” says Maitland. “The snake is trying to swallow the frog head first, but the frog has opened its mouth at the moment the snake struck, so it’s a stalemate. I saw them in a bush about waist height. To get down to the right angle I had to bend my knees, and I held that stance for three hours, before we called it a day. All the time we watched, there was no change in the situation. I went back the next morning but they had gone. Above is the original vertical picture, with the snake hanging down, but I also flipped it 90 degrees and cropped to make it a horizontal picture that was easier on the eye.”…

DR DAVID MAITLAND

After an Honours degree in Zoology at St. Andrews University, Scotland, Maitland followed up with a PhD in Zoology at the University of New South Wales, Australia, then took up a lectureship in South Africa. He became a full-time photographer in 2006 and has won numerous awards, including European Wildlife POTY in 2008 and prizes in the Veolia Wildlife POTY and International Garden POTY competitions. He has worked in Australia, Central America, West Africa and Borneo, as well in the UK. His commissions include being a specialist and macro photographer on the BBC2 series Wonders of Life in 2013.…

DR DAVID MAITLAND

MEET YOUR NEIGHBOURS

APPRENTICE NAME: VANESSA LINDA CAMERA: CANON EOS 5D MK III Vanessa is semi-retired and an active Canon shooter from Dorset, England, with a passion for photography – landscape and nature in particular. Vanessa tries to shoot fully manually, but sometimes goes back to auto when she needs to snap something quickly before the subject has moved! She was keen to thrive and learn more macro tuition tips from our pro. THE PRO NAME: TIM HUNT CAMERA: CANON EOS 5DS R With a passion for documenting the natural world, Tim has won a number of awards, including the British Wildlife Photography Awards and GDT European Wildlife Photographer of the Year. With the aid of his field studio and trusty Canon, Tim’s latest ‘Meet Your Neighbours’ project is a diverse selection of images portraying the hidden…

MEET YOUR NEIGHBOURS

TOP TEN CONSISTENT RESULTS TIPS

1 HUNT AROUND… …for a nice specimen. Macro obviously enlarges every detail of the subject, so try to find the most aesthetically pleasing insect or plant you can. 2 COMPOSITION TOOLS Think about the direction your subject is travelling in through the frame, or whether you can use stems and blades of grass as leading lines. 3 CONSISTENT LIGHTING If you want to create composites of several subjects at the editing stage (see page 18) make sure your lighting of each subject is as similar as possible. 4 FIRE OFF QUICKLY Don’t be too picky about the framing – you can always crop out white space later on. 5 CHECK SCREEN BRIGHTNESS Turn off auto screen brightness, otherwise your results might become misleadingly bright or dark. 6 GET EVEN Shoot…

TIM’S WILD PORTFOLIO

SNOWY EGRETS These two took to the sky after a squabble. I wanted to capture the whites of their feathers against an overcast sky, so I had to overexpose by nearly three stops. JUMPING SPIDER Whilst editing on my computer, I saw this tiny jumping spider out of the corner of my eye. I wanted to reveal its size, so I included a pencil that was on my desk. BARRED OWL CHICK I heard strange sounds coming from a crack in a large tree trunk, and after an hour of waiting, this chick appeared. I used a 500mm lens, so that I didn’t disturb it.…

TIM’S WILD PORTFOLIO

MASTER of MACRO

For some, the appeal of macro photography lies in mastering the considerable technical challenges involved in capturing incredible close-up images, while for others their inspiration is the subject matter itself and the desire to get closer to it. Photographer Alessandro Zocchi is definitely an example of the latter. “When I was a child I was very attracted to nature,” he recalls. “I loved to go to parks and observe in detail the plants and animals. One day my father gave me a book. It was the only available book in macro photography. We had a reflex camera in the family and the first thing I did was to insert a cardboard tube between the body and a 50mm lens. That’s how I took my first macro shot, and I never…

MASTER of MACRO

Zocchi’s macro tips

1 Master your photo gear Its use must become second nature. Be aware that you do not need lots of equipment and accessories to achieve good results. The important thing is to know how to use what you have well. 2 Understand aperture Study the possibilities you can achieve using all stops of your aperture. Depth of field is not only a mere ‘wall’ of sharpness, it is also a powerful compositional tool, and contrary to what many believe, using wide apertures can help you take fantastic macro pictures. 3 Concentrate on composition It’s the number one characteristic to take excellent photos. Be prepared to not take a picture if you think the situation isn’t favourable. Being able to judge when it’s not a good moment to shoot will make…

LIFE IN MINIATURE

APPRENTICE NAME: SIMON BUNKER CAMERA: CANON EOS 7D MK II FROM Milton Keynes, Simon’s a 48-year-old maintenance engineer. He’s been a keen amateur photographer since his late teens, when he had a Minolta 35mm film camera. More recently he bought a 600D, then a 7D Mk II, to photograph butterflies, crickets and grasshoppers, and he hasn’t looked back. He asked for our help to take his macro photography to the next level. THE PRO NAME: ALEX HYDE CAMERA: CANON EOS 5D MK III BASED in the Peak District, 33-year-old Alex is a freelance natural history photographer. He’s had an interest in wildlife photography from an early age, getting his first Pentax SLR when he was 12. He went digital with an EOS 20D in 2005, and now uses an EOS 5D Mark III. He’s…

LIFE IN MINIATURE

TEN TIPS FOR BETTER CLOSE-UPS OF INSECTS

1 KNOW AND RESPECT YOUR NATURE The welfare of your subject always comes first, and a soft paintbrush is often the best way of moving insects as they can be very delicate. Different species also require different conditions, such as light, temperature and humidity. 2 SEARCHING FOR INVERTEBRATES Compost heaps and log piles are good places to find invertebrates. Even indoors there’s plenty to see; in autumn, house spiders come looking for mates, so super photographic opportunities await! 3 CONNECT WITH YOUR SUBJECT For intimate insect portraits, get right down to eye level. This often means getting down on the ground, so there won’t be room for a tripod. 4 KEY CAMERA SETTINGS Macro lenses allow you to get very close to your subject. However, as camera-to-subject distance decreases, so…

MAKING A SPLASH

FACTFILE PHOTOGRAPHY WORKSHOPS David Lund offers unique and bespoke teaching on a one-to-one basis or for small groups. He covers everything from still life to his stunning signature liquid imagery. To find out more, contact david@davidlund.co.uk and go to www.davidlund.co.uk. THE PRO NAME: DAVID LUND CAMERA: CANON EOS 5D MK III David’s background is in graphic design and marketing, but he always knew he could combine these skills with his passion for photography to push creative boundaries. David shoots liquids in motion: drinks, still-life scenes and aerial views, and is constantly being inspired to experiment. He’s currently working on a stunning 4K video commission for British Steel. APPRENTICE NAME: HELEN DAVIES CAMERA: CANON EOS 77D Helen isaretirednurse. She bought her own Canon DSLR last year after borrowing her husband’s (and him wanting it back).…

MAKING A SPLASH

TOP TEN TIPS FOR HAPPY SPLASHES

1 PRACTICE RUN On complex commercial shoots, a mini-rehearsal helps ease the pressure. It will also highlight any potential challenges before they crop up. 2 MAKE KIT LIST Studio shoots require extra accessories and bits. Make a list ahead, so you don’t forget anything. 3 TAKE OFF THE STABILIZERS When shooting with a tripod, turn off the Image Stabilization on your lens as it can cause blur. 4 CONTROL THE SPLASH Try using a syringe to inject water into the tank. This will create a more even spread of bubbles. 5 KEEP IT TIDY Clear the floor of gels and props as you go, or they’ll be a trip hazard. Clean up spills as you go, too. 6 HEAD-ON ANGLE When shooting through glass, always ensure that your camera is…

DAVID’S BEST LIQUID SHOTS

HIGH SPEED PAINT POWDER I love this image. I started by pouring paints onto a balloon and popped it using a high-speed sound trigger. That amazing moment was captured on camera. WATERFALLS RECORD ALBUM This was for a record label, who wanted a coloured waterfall shot. I didn’t want to use inks and paints, as I wanted an image with clarity and structure, so I used coloured gels to colour the water! COKE SPLASH I used a single Speedlite and silver reflectors. The ice cubes are acrylic and are glued together with a glue gun. I attached a thin acrylic rod from the top to suspend the cubes in mid-air.…

DAVID’S BEST LIQUID SHOTS

What you’ll need DSLR Macro lens Tripod or flash stand Speedlight Light table A flower A freezer A baking tray Photography is often about capturing beautiful, organic things in their natural environments, but it’s also about trying to present the everyday in a way that’s surprising, unusual or unique. Flowers are clearly a hugely popular subject matter for photographers, which is not surprising when you consider the abundant beauty, colour, texture and detail that they offer. However, it’s not always that easy to capture particularly original images of them. A fun, creative solution is to freeze a flower in ice before photographing it. This might sound like a bizarre concept at first, but it can result in some incredible images. The unpredictability of the freezing process and how different flowers…

CREATIVE MACRO PHOTOGRAPHY

What you’ll need High-magnification macro lens Rigid camera stand Lighting stand Super clamp Tripod head Macro focusing rail Two flashguns plus trigger Diffusion material Plane of glass Petri dish and pipette In this tutorial, you’ll discover how to take a tiny waterborne insect and photograph it suspended inside a drop of water. You’ll learn how precise camera control and lighting can have a big impact when photographing small subjects. Macro photography can be a challenge: very short working conditions, limited depth of field and the need to get critical focus are all obstacles between you and great images. That’s all before you take into account the challenges of working with a moving subject. In the next few pages, you will learn how the use of camera positioning alongside the use…

CREATIVE MACRO PHOTOGRAPHY

SHOOT BLACK AND WHITE FINE ART MACRO

What you’ll need Camera Tripod Grips Macro lens Photoshop Flash gun Remote triggers. With fine art photography being more of an expression of classical looking imagery in tone, pose and occasionally content, adding in the parameter of a macro lens to force your shot; and eye into looking at your subject differently is the perfect way of honing in your skills. By focusing on your subject, or at the very least, an interesting element of your subject, you will see very quickly how an everyday item can quickly transform into something very different and unique. By simply shifting your aperture from wide to narrow, you can force the viewers attention, however you can also affect the surrounding background and foreground, allowing you the chance to turn a potentially stagnant background…

SHOOT BLACK AND WHITE FINE ART MACRO

What you’ll need DSLR Macro lens Tripod Shutter release cable Still subject Photoshop CC/CS (or specialist photo stacking software) Focus stacking is a handy technique used to extend the depth of field in your images. This technique is commonly used in extreme close-up photography as depth of field is so limited. Depth of field is determined by three factors: focal length, distance to subject and aperture. Macro lenses tend to have long telephoto focal lengths – like the Sigma 105mm lens we’re using – and you have to get in close to your subject to achieve full-size magnification, both of which leave you with a very shallow plane of focus. This is why narrower apertures are typically used in macro photography to ensure the subject is sharp, while blowing out…

THINK INSIDE THE BOX

What you’ll need Tripod Close-up filter or macro lens Cereal box Greaseproof paper Tape Fairy lights Light boxes are designed to illuminate a subject from behind and are used for a variety of purposes in arts, crafts and design projects. They are also a great tool for photographers to have in their arsenal when shooting macro close-ups. When used with translucent subjects such as leaves, backlighting brings out textures and details that would normally go unnoticed. The results can be striking. In this project, we’ll show you how to illuminate a leaf from behind using your very own homemade light box. You can buy light tables from most craft shops, but it’s cheaper and more fun to make your own. It doesn’t take a fancy setup to get fancy backlit…

THINK INSIDE THE BOX

CHOOSE THE BEST CAMERA FOR MACRO PHOTOGRAPHY

Macro photography can be incredibly rewarding. There’s a world of opportunity for you to create frame-filling images, taking inspiration from all manner of different subjects. But before tackling this intriguing genre, you might want to consider purchasing a camera that is particularly well suited to the job in hand. This is especially the case if you intend to dedicate a large section of your portfolio to the subject of closeup photography. The good news is that there’s a lot of choice currently available on the market, and there are a few things that you might want to consider before going ahead with making your purchase. First of all, sensor size and resolution is worthy of your consideration. Generally speaking, a larger sensor with a higher resolution will be best placed…

CHOOSE THE BEST CAMERA FOR MACRO PHOTOGRAPHY

For the little things in life, you can’t beat a good macro lens. Unlike zoom lenses that carry a ‘macro’ badge, most macro prime lenses deliver full 1.0x or 1:1 magnification at their closest focus distance. This enables you to fill the camera’s whole image sensor with something the size of a postage stamp, gaining enormous magnification when you view the resulting shots on screen or in print. Indeed, with APS-C or Micro Four Thirds crop-sensor cameras, you’ll get an even greater ‘effective’ magnification ratio between 1.5x and 2.0x, compared with a full-frame body. Many manufacturers make APS-C format as well as full-frame compatible macro lenses. However, they often have a relatively short focal length, which also results in a short minimum focus distance. In some cases the ‘working distance’…

www.camranger.com 1 CamRanger £200/$300 CamRanger is a compact box of tricks that’s little larger than a credit card and 16mm thick. It feels solid and well-made, but there’s little on the exterior to give away the power that lies within. It connects via USB to almost all Canon and Nikon DSLRs from the 450D or D5000 upwards; then its Wi-Fi signal lets you wirelessly connect an Android or Apple smart device – or a laptop – to use as a remote camera control. Set-up is as easy as downloading the CamRanger app and connecting your smart device to the CamRanger’s Wi-Fi hotspot. You then get a remote range of up to 150 feet, and a typical battery life of five to six hours from the user-accessible rechargeable battery. Once connected,…

www.canon.com 1 Canon MR-14EX II Macro Ring Lite £549/$549 Where Nikon’s close-up macro light is rather unwieldy, Canon users get this compact ring flash. Despite its size, the unit packs E-TTL II metering, LED focussing lamps, and twin flash tubes with independent power adjustment that can offset their output by up to six stops. A guide number of 14 and a 5.5-second full-power recycle time are acceptable for close-range work. Build quality is second to none, while a large, clear display makes for effortless usability. We can’t fault the MR-14EX II’s performance, either: its light softness is superb, backed up by flawless colour rendition and accurate TTL metering. The only fly in the ointment is lens compatibility: it’s made for Canon macro lenses with 58mm threads, or larger L editions…

SENSOR CLEANERS

www.delkindevices.com 1 Delkin SensorScope £80/$90 Delkin’s kit is equipped to remove loose particles and more stubborn contaminants. The SensorBulb blower puffs dust away, albeit in the same uncontrolled manner as any blower, meaning dust can just be blown around the sensor, not necessarily off it. Should this happen, you can switch to the included cleaning swabs and solution. You get 15 double-ended wands and a decent supply of streak-free fluid, but the results are mixed. The wands have a tendency to move some particles across the sensor, rather than picking them up. An LED loupe included in the kit shines brightly into the chamber, but we found the sensor surface to be slightly out of focus compared with the LensPen loupe. VERDICT www.cameraclean.co.uk 2 Dust-Wand Combo Dust-Aid Platinum & £48/$70…

SENSOR CLEANERS

HOW TO USE FileSilo

To access FileSilo, please visit www.filesilo.co.uk/bks-2012 01 Follow the on-screen instructions. You can then access the content for free at any time. To watch the video tutorials for this bookazine, simply hit the Download button and they will begin to play in a browser window. 02 Once you have logged in, you are free to explore the wealth of content available on FileSilo, from great video tutorials and exclusive online guides to superb downloadable resources. And the more bookazines you purchase, the more your instantly accessible collection of digital content will grow. 03 You can access FileSilo on any desktop, tablet or smartphone device using any popular browser (such as Safari, Firefox or Google Chrome). However, we recommend that you use a desktop to download content, as you may not…

HOW TO USE FileSilo

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