Last month I talked about what we can do in the summer months when gruelling early mornings or tiring late evening photography is simply one step too far for some. One of the alternatives I discussed was macro photography as this doesn't (necessarily) rely on photographing at these times of day. Summer is the time of year when wildflowers are in abundance and garden flowers are at their peak of perfection - as are grasses and ferns. All these make great subjects and you probably won't need to travel too far to find them.

Macro photography is a fascinating subject and often feels 'otherworldly'. In fact, some photographers choose only to photographic in this genre such is their fascination with the subject. It's also a creative way to work and allows you to play with ideas, light, mood, atmosphere, colour, focus, etc., without having to wait for the right conditions to present themselves like you would find with landscape photography. Instead, you have the option to create all these things yourself by manipulating the environment you're working in. For instance, a carefully composed image of a flower with your camera facing into the light can produce beautiful bokeh (the Japanese name for light circles) adding to the images' delicacy or drama.

Using a shallow depth of field by keeping the aperture quite wide softens the look of the image - as does 'shooting through' foliage or grasses, creating a more ethereal look to the image. A lot of cameras now have the ability to produce multiple exposures in-camera allowing you to create features such as the Orton effect (the blending of one sharp and one soft-focussed image) for a more dreamy look.

If you don't mind spending a bit of money on the subject, devices such as Wimberley Plamps are useful for holding flower-stems when breezy, external lights from companies such as Smallrig and Aputure can elevate or even change the colour of your subject for more creativity, and a tripod dedicated to working low to the floor (i.e. no centre column) all help to make this fascinating subject even more enjoyable.

Macro photography is such a creative artform that some struggle with. If you feel you need a helping hand or inspiration then consider attending one of my macro workshops I run each summer. These multi-day residential workshops are packed with useful tips, tricks and techniques and you also have access to many props so you can 'try before your buy'. Check out the Workshops Page for my latest workshop program. These are always very popular so if they're fully booked please ask to be added to my waiting list. Alternatively, consider a bespoke 1-2-1 workshop where I can tailor your needs specifically.

Macro photography is a great way to not only be more creative but it also helps hone your compositional skills, too - a real win, win for your photographic journey overall!