Garden Photography

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Turn your garden into a perfect outdoor photography studio.

As the seasons change the colour of your garden will change with it. Most gardens are a rich source of great colours, patterns and vivid textures and can make for a perfect setting to practice all different kinds of photography - especially close-up nature photography.

Your garden can be one of the most wonderful places to take images of flowers, insects and a variety of small birds - and if you are lucky, occasionally other types of wildlife might wander into your garden.

You don't need great sunshine to go out into the garden - overcast days are always great days to get into the garden and capture the majestic colours of flowers.

Flower photography can be challenging, but when done right is most rewarding. The key to getting good flower pictures is pretty straightforward - get in close. You don't need to buy a macro lens to achieve this, a good telephoto lens on a tripod should do.

Use a large aperture (low f/number) to isolate your flower. This will get rid of any unwanted background, which sometimes focus attention away from your flower portrait.

Don't be afraid to use your flash - even on a bright day. This will get rid of any unwanted blur and help make your flower picture sharp.

These are simple tips to follow and should help to make your garden images better.

Photographing insects in many ways is similar to taking pictures of flowers. You need to get in close; your focusing has to be perfect and you also must minimize motion. If you are having trouble photographing insects try the following.

Pick a single flower on which you focus. Place a light fabric around any other flowers to isolate your shot. Now its time to place the bait - perfume is ideal to attract bees, butterflies and other insects into your outdoor studio. Use your strobe unit to freeze any motion with fast moving insects. This should be used in the brightest conditions and will stop any movement in your nature portrait. Now it is time to sit and wait until your bait attracts your prey.

Your garden is also full of all kinds of other creatures. Garden birds will make an attractive image; they will be up and out at an early hour so it's best to join them. Try building a hide in the garden and get up before sunrise - you will be surprised what creatures will wander in front of you at an early hour. Lay some bait around the garden to attract them in.

Use the elements of the weather to create more impact in your garden images. Early morning mist will leave droplets of water on leaves and flower petals. Use garden statues and other garden objects to create attractive silhouette images at dusk.

One of the biggest attributes of nature, wildlife and garden photography is patience. Even though you are at home great patience is required to get the best results from your garden photography...happy shooting.

TJ Tierney is an award winning Irish Landscape photographer and a freelance writer. To view or buy some of his images visit his on line gallery @ http://www.goldenirishlight.com

He frequently writes for the photography directory http://www.goldprints.com and the shopping directory http://www.shop-4us.com