Moving in close - Architecture


	Though four flower heads are included in this well framed close-up composition, only the foreground petals are rendered sharply as depth-of-field is limited.

Impact - that's what a tightly-framed shot of a flower head should have in spades. But how do you go about taking top horticultural close-ups? There's more to it than you'd think, so let's take a look at some of the skills, techniques and equipment involved.

Framing the image is the first aspect to consider, and depends on how close you want to get to the subject. A typical close-up of a single or multiple flower head will reveal the full shape and size of the subject, leaving space around the image for a contrasting background so the main element stands out. Or you can move in tighter still on a single flower for a more graphic image, even filling the frame with colour and details that often aren't obvious to the human eye.

The standard zoom fitted to most SLRs will comfortably handle the first type of shot mentioned above, using the longest telephoto setting of around 80mm on 35mm format and focusing down to a subject distance of anywhere between a foot and six inches or so. To achieve the tighter close-ups, however, you will need to obtain a close-focusing device of some description. This can be an inexpensive close-up filter that screws onto the front of your normal lens, or a telezoom with good close-focusing ability.


Biting sharpness at the spiky apex of this tall plant gives way to softer focus further down the stem. A darker defocused backdrop makes the main subject stand out even further.

The most expensive route is to purchase a special macro lens, which unlike the telezoom is specifically designed to perform optimally at close subject distances. Pukka macro optics are produced both by the camera makers in the lens line ups and at slightly lower cost by independent manufacturers such as Tamron, Tokina and Sigma.

When framing your close-ups, pay as much attention to the background as to the main subject. There's no point in having a beautifully composed close-up of a lovely flower head if the picture is spoiled by a distracting backdrop. Though background elements are often way out of focus, you can still make out shapes and recognisable subjects if you are not careful, so the best thing to do is check in the viewfinder how both the subject and the background appear simultaneously.

One of the great things about close-ups is that you can have great fun controlling and adjusting how the image appears - much more so than with a normal distance type of garden scene picture. When setting up your camera for a close-up, you will notice that even slight movements of the camera position have a great effect on both the main subject and the background. Moving just a millimetre or two to one side or in a vertical plane can conceal something distracting you definitely want to hide, or produce a better rendition of blurred background elements.


	In some cases the close-up will be so tight that the subject fills the frame and no background can be seen. It's a recipe for shallow zones of focus but striking graphic images.

So play around with those close-ups, experiment a bit, keep your eye on that viewfinder and you'll have a whale of a time. Flowers are all about colour, light, shape and form, and nowhere is this more glaringly obvious than in dazzling close-ups. This is a great opportunity to really let your creative side rip, tear up the rule book and produce some eye-popping pictures. Half the fun in my book is balancing these vast artistic possibilities with technical necessities that could ruin your handiwork if you're not on the case.

One of the prerequisites for a good close-up image is total lack of movement, either in the subject or the camera for that matter. I always use a good, solid tripod for this purpose, but only introduce it after I've explored various angles and options with the camera in hand-held guise. Once you know roughly where you want the came to be placed, then attach the camera to it and start shooting, otherwise you'll spend more time adjusting the tripod than taking pictures.


Take close-ups from different angles, such as this directly overhead shot, to ring the changes and create a fresh look for small-scale pots and plants.

Why not introduce your own background scheme such as this coloured card - here it adds colour contrast and sets off the shape of this exotic leaf.

In addition to a tripod, a cable release or self-timer mechanism is important to reduce vibration to a minimum at the moment of exposure. Patience is also a great virtue, so wait until any breeze drops and the plant is motionless before pressing the shutter - even the slightest movement of your subject will be greatly magnified in close-up and spoil the shot. I wish I had a pound for every minute I've waited for a plant to settle during gardening shoots for magazines - I'd be a very rich man by now. The point is, if the shot is worth taking, bide your time and only shoot when everything is motionless.

You can even set up a windbreak to try to stop small currents of air unsettling your subject. I've sometimes used a couple of canes stuck into the ground with a piece of translucent material stretched between them so that no light is lost from the windbreak side. Or a fold-out reflector is often just as good, with the added benefit of bouncing further light into the subject.

Speaking of light, most of my close-ups have been taken in softer lighting conditions such as diffused cloud, as I find sunlight too harsh and it casts too many shadows making the image look too fussy. Then again, there's nothing to stop you shooting in bright sun, especially if light is passing through a translucent petal or leaf.

One other factor is critical when shooting close-ups - depth-of-field. This simply means the amount of subject which is sharply focused, which in broader garden shots isn't a problem as you can usually obtain front to back sharpness. At closer subject distances, however, depth-of-field is dramatically reduced and you have to juggle the artistic and technical aspects of each shot.

Clearly setting an aperture of f/22 or f/32 will give more depth-of-field in a close-up than using the lens at f/3.5 or f/4, for example. If you have an SLR camera that allows you to stop down the lens to see the image at the taking aperture rather than just wide open, you have a major advantage. It's a bit of a juggling act balancing the conflicting needs of setting a faster shutter speed to avoid subject motion, as this automatically means a wider aperture and a smaller zone of sharpness. A smaller aperture is useful as the depth-of-field is greater, but the shutter speed is often prohibitively long. So you often end up somewhere in the middle.


A great demonstration of how not to do it. First the main subject is too small and doesn't fill the frame enough. Also the bright rectangle of a rooflight is far too distracting for this pale yellow flowerhead, as it cuts right behind the main subject and is still too sharp.		By contrast, here's how to do it properly. This lovely flowerhead fills the frame, has gabs of detail and is bathed in a lovely glow. The broadly dark background features pools of random lighter tone that sets off the main subject perfectly.


Start exploring with a powerful close-up lens and you'll discover wonderful details and compositions that the naked eye simply doesn't register.		By venturing out in the early morning, your close-ups can exhibit the benefits that mother nature brings to the world of plants such as this leaf heavy with dew.