All Things Small
Some of nature's most exquisite handiwork is on a miniature scale, as anyone knows who has applied a magnifying glass to a snowflake."
- Rachel Carson
Engaged in our day-to-day activities we often don't take the time to really look close at the world around us. Macro Photography, with its endless possibilities, provides us with window into this exotic world. The subject matter with macro photography is endless.
Macro photography is more than just focusing close with your camera lens. Most photographers agree that macro-photography requires a 1:1 reproduction ratio. In other words, the image that is falling on your camera's digital sensor or film is life-size. (a 1:2 ratio would make the image 1/2 life-size). Getting this close poses new challenges for the photographer. At this distance the amount of light available diminishes, requiring either a slower shutter speed or larger aperture - or both. Moving in close also results in a very shallow depth of field (this is the space in front of and behind the focus point of your picture that objects are in "acceptable" focus). This shallow focus range can be compensated somewhat by using a smaller aperture but this of course requires a longer exposure due to even less light entering the lens. Lastly, as the image is magnified, any movement is magnified as well. Working in the macro realm it becomes obvious that the earth is alive. The gentle breeze previously unnoticed is suddenly magnified. The breath of the wind has it's own rhythm.
One of my favorite places to capture macro images is while walking the woods. It is awe inspiring to gain a view of nature so up close. I enjoy creating images where the subject is illuminated only by the available natural light. Taking pictures in this way will often require extraordinary patience on the photographer's part. A sunlit scene that catches the eye quickly changes as the sun goes behind a cloud leaving a dark and flat scene.
Along a dimly lit path, I spotted a few of these beautiful flowers. They were intermittently lit by the sun filtering through the canopy. This image was captured when a shaft of light fell directly inside the front bloom, filling it with light and allowing the flower to glow from within. The light lasted only a few moments as once again the leaves above moved and the sun changed positions.
These bright orange mushrooms were perfectly back-lit. The tallest of these mushrooms in the image is about 1.5 inches in height. I wanted to create an image from an insect's point of view and capture the drama of the mushrooms illuminated from behind - like a forest of trees welcoming a weary traveler. I used a 135mm with closeup attachments to capture this image.
Though the light was very low, I laid nearly flat on the ground to bring myself parallel with these flowers. This enabled me to capture this image of an ant walking along the stem of the wildflower. Taking the picture of the ant from the side, minimized the issue of the shallow depth of field keeping the entire ant in focus.
While subject movement is a great issue when shooting macro, it is not always the enemy when creating an image. In this picture I use the motion of both the bee and the flower to artistic advantage. Shooting at a slower shutter speed allowed me to capture the frenetic activity of the bee as it moved from bloom to bloom.
It is not necessary to venture into the woods to explore exciting possibilities, Below is an image created "in studio" while enjoying a cup of tea. This picture is a closeup of a sunflower. The strong back-lighting allows the yellow leaves to glow in an almost sun-like manner. Mounting the camera on a sturdy tripod and using a 105mmm micro Nikkor lens, allowed me to visualize and capture this image. Note that in this case the exposure time was 2 seconds.
There is a beautiful world to explore just outside our normal view. Taking the time to stop and observe the macro world will reward the observer with a glimpse of the breath of creation.