Photo Walk at a Rose Garden | Close-up and Macro Flower Photography
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- เผยแพร่เมื่อ 2 ต.ค. 2024
- Generally I use my histogram to get an accurate exposure, if I have to take photos in bright sunlight, I sometimes change my settings for the peaks to move slightly to the left toward the shadow area. You will notice in the video footage, the colors are a bit pale or washed out by the light even though my light meter showed an even exposure. But when I took the photographs, I was able to get richer colors by underexposing just a little and then I could easily brighten some areas up again when editing the photos. I like to use a vignette when I edit as well, I’ll explain this more in my next video.
I hope you will enjoy this return to the garden where it all began, just a couple of years ago my first photography video took place at this garden and here we are again just after some restrictions have been lifted for places to open once again.
♫ Music Licensed through Musicbed
❦ Instagram:
/ lieslhuddleston
📷 Camera Gear in this Video:
Canon 5D Mark III | amzn.to/2rTBEA4
Canon EF 100mm f/2.8L Macro IS USM Lens | amzn.to/32M5pRu
Canon G7X II (Used for video) | amzn.to/39xsLwY
iPhone XS Max
Olloclip (Macro Lens set, requires a separate clip, must match the model of your phone).
🔗 Regarding Amazon links: As an Amazon Associate I earn a small amount from qualifying purchases. I would like to suggest you do research before making a purchase and read the reviews for each product and seller.
#flower #photography #macro
what a beautiful photo...i like it... and the roses are fascinating. A new friend from indonesia
Thank you! I'm glad you're enjoying the videos :)
I am fortunate enough to also own the Canon 100mm macro, which is a superb lens, but must admit I have yet to produce images I am happy with. Your approach of using a wide aperture (F2.8), selective focus and lots of negative space is inspiring and I can't wait to get out there and apply these techniques. Greetings from the Nama Karoo, South Africa.
Hi Rodney! I grew up in South Africa (JHB area) from age 6 to 21 and miss it very much :) Before this 100mm lens I tried a 60mm macro lens and I just could not get the images I wanted either. I thought it had to be the lens because I tried and tried and was rarely happy with anything I shot. Then I got this one and wouldn't you know it, the same problem. It is then that I realized I was doing something wrong, I was expecting something to just magically happen and it wasn't working. I can't really put my finger on it and give a definitive answer as to what changed, except that I know now to expect that it is not always easy and I won't always get exactly what I want.
I think it helped that I did not change lenses for a long time and only shot with this one exclusively for a while, I don't always do "macro" and rather pull back on a scene most of the time, every now and then I try to get really close. There are so many factors that will influence the outcome, sometimes it is the size of the subject, the color of the subject, the available light, my own mood etc., but perhaps one thing that has made all the difference is my expectations and how much patience and time I'm willing to give. Also, understanding the depth of field (the area that is in focus) which is so small and the biggest challenge of all. The trick is to make sure you get the most important area in focus, (sometimes that is a teeny tiny area) so once I have decided what the area is, I will take a shot then move slightly focus again and take a shot and do that a few times and then decide when I'm looking on the computer which one looks best. I am still learning, every single time I go out and I hope that someday I can exclaim, "I've got it!" LOL
Just keep at it, as much as you can get out and play with the lens, try everything -- look at photos by other macro/close-up style photographers and examine what you like about an image and then try to achieve that yourself with whatever subject you find interesting. It may look nothing like the photo that attracted you, but you will learn something with each try. It is the same as when an artist learning to draw and paint will study old-masters and try to replicate what they do, it's not that they are trying to copy a master, it is just a learning technique and it makes you practice.
I hope this helps :)
@@LieslHuddleston Hi Liesl, thank you so much for the sound advice and I definitely do agree that making images you're happy with has less to do with equipment and is more about perseverance and constant practice. South Africa is indeed a special place and as you know we are blessed with an abundance of fauna, flora and landscapes to photograph, so no excuse not to get out there and practice.. Thanks again for your inspiring videos.
Very good channel. Congratulations and thanks for sharing your videos. Regards
What a soothing video! Beautiful images - are you using a tripod or handheld for most.
Thank you! Handheld. I use my tripod maybe once a year LOL I just like the freedom of being able to move around and just try to keep steady when I'm taking photos, I usually try 2 or 3 times for each photo just in case I miss focus.
Verry nice. Thank you!
I love your videos and presentation style. I am always looking forward to your new content. Do you have any start to finish photo shoots I.e. including the editing? The only editing I could find was the ant and bee video.
Hi! Thanks you for the nice comment. I actually just finished editing a video tonight that shows how I edit photos, it will include some video footage of the garden, and the settings I used for the photos will be shown in text. I'm having some technical problems, but if all goes well the video should be released in the morning (Sunday).
Nice photos like always dear Liesl
I like the small details at 1:45 and 4:05
I agree with you about underexposing the photos in conditions like these ✌👏
Thanks! Yes, it brings out the colors and helps separate the background. Nice to see you :) I actually noticed on this day that I tended to underexpose just slightly on some shots in the shade as well. It just shows you that you shouldn't always do what people tell you to do, just do whatever you want haha! (In photography that is!)
Thank you once again, Lisle, for another awesome video tutorial. Thanks for sharing your knowledge and your love of nature with us. I always learn a lot from watching your videos. You are so inspiring!
Such beautiful images and relaxing video! I always love your voice overs with the music, so calming!
Thanks, Paul! :)
Hi Liesl, it's allways nice to shoot in a rose garden. Today i shot a few flowers in a vase thou. Thank you sharing these nice pictures.
We have missed so much over the spring, here where I live not much grows in the garden from now until September so we have to go to botanical gardens, but they still have so many restrictions. I might be doing flowers in vases soon too :D How did it go? Did you get some photos you liked?
Stunning pictures & beautiful explanation. Loved watching the Video !
Glad you liked it, thanks!
Excellent
Nice video. I do miss my macro lens!
Thanks! What happened to your macro lens?
@@LieslHuddleston I had one before I switched brands and I haven't bought a new one yet. :)
@@desertoo23 , I see! If I did not have a macro lens yet, I would consider "Laowa 25mm f/2.8 2.5-5X Ultra Macro" perhaps, it's not very expensive and I've seen some amazing photos with it, including by Thomas Shahan - love his pictures! I'd like to rent that lens and try it out some time.
Liesl Huddleston I'll definitely have a look at this one. I hope it's available for e-mount.
I am a new convert to flower photography and love your videos. Your great skills are good communication and artistic compositions. I love your gentle presentation and subtle photographs. You have inspired me to try harder too!
That's awesome! I hope you're still able to enjoy some spring-time before it's over. Our spring is over here in Texas because from here on it will be hot and we will have few flowers until around September for a brief time. We're also expecting thunderstorms every day for the next 2 weeks. I may have to buy some flowers and do some photography indoors LOL
Thank you for your kind comment and I'm happy to hear you are enjoying photography, have a great time out there!
A light vignette? Thank you for this tip. Sometimes one gets stuck on repeating the ole “tried and true” method instead of thinking outside the box. 😃👌🏼🙏🏼💐
Sometimes a photo is just so perfect you don’t need it, and some people don’t like vignettes but I’ve always loved that look from day one, so I can’t get away from it and almost always add a vignette, sometimes I’ve gone overboard but I do like to try and make it look natural too. I’m going to show on my next video how I edit my pictures. :)
Beautiful photos and another excellent video!!
Thanks, Mike!
Wow, some of those photos are outstanding. Your photography is coming on so strong now. I'm so happy for you.
Thanks John! I still make idiotic decisions every time I go out though, I hope to shake that off at some point haha!
@@LieslHuddleston I make idiotic decisions all the time. It didn't do me much harm.
Beautiful as ever Liesl, stunning images and beautifully presented 🙂 The video looked great with no pixelation👍 Thanks for sharing your wonderful creations with us 🤗. Cliff
Thanks very much Cliff! And that's good to know, it's weird, I can see a degradation of image quality (noise and a kind of blurred pixelation) with all of the stills in this video and in my previous video it happened with some of the video footage. Glad to know it's not like that for everyone, I hope it clears up altogether soon.
We're going to have heavy rain for the next 2 weeks here, I hope the weather is great where you are! :D
Thanks for that; top pictures and easy on the ear audio. It was also pleasing to hear you comment that after three years you are still learning with your macro lens. I've hired one for six months and I can tell it's going to be a challenge.
Mike in Oz
Indeed! And I learned on this outing that I forgot a lot of things that I had already learned before, (that's what a 2 month break will do to you!) just little nuances of information that you collectively store with lots of practice. I made some mistakes that I only noticed when looking at the body of work on computer.
You will learn to use the lens quickly if you play with it every day or at least a few times a week. Good luck, let me know how things go for you :)
I've been eagerly waiting for video. Thanks for the very informative photo walk and the lovely captures. There's always something to take away in every of your video.
Thanks, Kenny! I'm working on a new one now, they just take me a long time to make. In this next one, I will show some of what I do to edit my pictures. Thanks for watching!
Beautiful. So soft and peaceful. (Soft, as in gentle) Really love your work. Shared your channel with my bride.
Thank you so much, James! I've had a wonderful time making these videos and taking the pictures over the years and it makes it extra special to share them with others. I appreciate your kind comments. If you have time, join me during my first video premiere today on TH-cam at 12:15pm (CT) the video is mainly about mobile phone macro, but also close-up photography in general :D
Beautiful
I love watching your videos, they are so calming and your shots are stunning.
Thank you, Mark! I felt a little defeated when the weather was unexpectedly sunny and hot, but it was good to practice a little bit in the sunshine. Have a great weekend!
Excellent.
Peaceful video...beautiful captures, Liesl
Thanks so much Lauriel! Have a great weekend!
Very nice photos!
Thank you!
It has been a pleasure for me to discover you. Beautiful macro images. Regards from Spain.
Thank you!
Beautifull images, so soft and so made with care and love. I really love how you photograph and take us into your world. Thank you so much. You are so inspiring. Love from Holland, Esmiralda.
Thank you!
To deal with the wind, get yourself a Wimberley Plamp. It will stabilize the plant without damaging it.
Hi Robert :) I've seen those in action and it would be great to have one in my kit. Spring is a very windy month for us here, I should look into getting one, thanks!
heavenly with roses
Wonderful photos at a time (bright sun) when it can be so hard to photograph. I got a wonderful tip from this one - the idea of making not just a dark vignette but one made from a color gradient to match the image
I'm astonished that you can get these details in sharp focus without a tripod. What's your secret?
Hi, Loretta :) I think it helps that the lens has image stabilization and that my hands are steady, patience and practice, etc. I know that if I use a tripod I would come away with very few images because the tripod slows me down.
I have so many plans and ideas in my head, one would be to make a video explaining how I focus -- it takes me a long time to make videos, but that one is definitely on the list.
Do you shoot with auto focus or manual focus on Flower Macro photography?
Hi, Michael. Almost always, I shoot with auto focus. Sometimes I'll use auto focus and then move slightly forward or back to fine tune the focus to where I want it. I rarely ever set the lens to manual focus. I guess it depends on the lens and how accurate the auto focus is for a particular lens, I've had great luck with mine so far.
Thank you so much for this lovely video and the tips on shooting in bright sunshine. I enjoy your videos very much and appreciate that you share exactly how you achieved your lovely images, the problems you had to solve, post processing techniques used, and your thought processes throughout. Your shooting style is similar to mine, and I am learning a lot from you. I have seen much improvement in my own work. You have inspired me so much!
awesome
Great
😍
Beautiful pictures Liesl!
Thanks! :D TH-cam is messing up lately though, so much compression/pixelation, I don't know why since it's all fine before I upload. I'll post some on Instagram later today.
Love the Tyler rose gardens
Yes! Such a nice place, I enjoyed some of the other gardens there too and will show a little of that in my next video. I didn't even go into the garden that is closest to the entry-gate, I'll try to do that next time we go.
Lovely! Do you have a video on vignetting?
Hi, Alex! I am planning on showing this on my next video - hopefully I can have it ready by next week. I do this with just about every image I take, so I would love to show how I do it. Thanks for watching!
@@LieslHuddleston Great! Last week I watched many of your videos and I simply couldn't understand why the bokeh in your photography was so extra soft and fluffy. It never occurred to me that it's because of 'vignetting'. I thought it had to be the Canon 100mm macro lens that you're using. Mystery solved! Looking forward to your videos!
The added vignette is very subtle because I want it to still look natural. A lot of the work must be done while you're taking the photo. So, for the most part, the video "Create Dreamy Photography with a Macro Lens" is what I do with respect to making sure whatever is in the background is far away enough that everything is faded out in the background and also sometimes things that are close to the lens also blur out. (I don't typically use a plastic bag as I showed in the video, I've only done that a few times in the past just to try it out, but that can help if it's the look you're going for.) But yes, an added vignette can help to even things out in the background and also helps to focus your eye on the center or best parts of the image. I'll see if I can try to explain it and show it in the next video. Have a great weekend :)
@@LieslHuddleston Thanks!
Gosh you are great!
Aw, that's kind - thanks, honestly I'm still learning and I'm so thankful for the flowers - it's a beautiful world!
Not using a diffuser?
No, I have tried once or twice to use a diffuser but just like with a tripod it feels like something extra in my way, perhaps I am stubborn, but I kind of like the freedom of just doing what I can with only the camera in my hand. Usually, when I'm taking pictures I am moving around a lot and don't stay in one place long.
Excellent work
Thank you!