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CP amateur photography tips tutorial....

  • Thread starter amphirion
  • Start date
Hello all,
i decided to compile a tutorial geared to help CP enthusiasts take better aesthetic photographs of their plants. if you're wanting to learn how to take better pics of your plants, this might help you a lot :) just click on the image to take a look.
cp_photos_by_amphirion-d48osl2.jpg


peace.
 
Oh, lulz...:lol: This is why you're fantastic.
You make learning fun! :awesome:

But no seriously, bravo :clap:
I will try to take note >.>
 
glad that you found it helpful...the tutorial is pretty much most of my tips and tricks that i've discovered over time, i thought others would benefit---and possibly even give better advice. :)
 
Gorgeous pic of the paradoxa..
 
Excellent tutorial, Amphirion! Photography is awesome, though it is often extremely frustrating for newbies, which can make them give up on trying to improve their technique. Your tutorial keeps things simple enough that the info is usable to everyone, whether they have a DSLR or are just starting out with their first compact camera.

One aspect I differ on is the use of flash... When a flash is used correctly, you won't be able to tell if the shot was done in natural or artificial lighting, which is my personal goal when shooting. IMO, flash is helpful or even necessary in many situations in order to get a satisfactory shot. For example, if you are shooting an outdoor plant in bright sunlight, it is usually better to use flash. Although this seems paradoxical, bright sunlight creates ugly, extremely harsh shadows, and the flash will help fill those in a bit, like here:



Also, using a flash for macro photography (namely true macro photography with a 1:1 scale) is imperative in order to be able to use an aperture small enough to get a significant portion of the subject in focus. Yeah, f/2.8 can look cool when you want to get all artsy fartsy, but when you really want to show off the subject, you need a better depth of field:



Flash is also useful for crappy indoor lighting too, especially if it's someplace where you can't control the amount of ambient light (like an orchid exposition):



In short: Don't fear the flash! It can really help out when used in conjunction with other sources of light. Also ISO... Don't be afraid of bumping up the ISO if it means you can get a much better shot lighting- and composition-wise. Unless you're going to be making large prints of your photos, no one will notice that you're shooting with 800 ISO instead of 200.
 
Thanks for the tips! I've been meaning to learn how to take better photos, and I think this will get me in the right direction.
 
YOU DON'T LIKE MY CYCLOSECTA TAG?!?!?! :angry:
 
Excellent!! I love how you added the "rage" faces. :awesome:
 
@brokken: i love your cyclosecta tag! i just dont love tags in my pictures in general! :lol:

@natalie: oh for sure...i will admit that i am no where near the caliber you are at. thanks for expanding on the
flash subject. im sure a bunch of peeps will find it useful!
 
  • #10
I'll have to explore this light box concept. I have a mediocre camera and have to take a bazillion pictures, from a variety of angles, distances, settings, background, and lighting.... and sometimes I just can't get what I want out of the subject.

I took a picture of this Dana's Delight this morning - 8 shots with macros, high light, and a couple other settings. I'm sure someone else could get this better than I did.

006-4.jpg
 
  • #12
Awesome presentation and graphic, very well put together as well! Not to mention it was quite helpful . . .
 
  • #13
That was an awesome tutorial XD
 
  • #14
How exactly do you set up a light box? <----NEWB
 
  • #15
The black background and reflecting white card has worked well for me with flowers..wish I could find a way to easily set it up with backlight dews.

expman.pl


expman.pl


sometimes white works well but doesn't hide the shadows the way a black background can.
expman.pl
 
  • #16
Those orchid pictures are absolutely awesome!

---------- Post added at 04:19 PM ---------- Previous post was at 04:18 PM ----------

How exactly do you set up a light box? <----NEWB

I wanna, too!
 
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