ROSE PHOTOGRAPHY by Charles W. Prince
Easy Does It
Color Magic
Dunn Formal Rose Garden
Spice Twice
Cornelia
Tuscan Sun
Little Tommy Tucker
When Martha Eskew asked me to write this column, I agreed because, well, who can say “No” to such a kind, sweet person? My approach may not be the most technically sound, but it (sometimes) yields good results. So, that’s my first suggestion – find an approach to photography that yields photos that you like and develop it through trial and error, which is my second suggestion – take many hundreds or thousands of photos…you’ll only get better at it. The three most important variables that I consider when photographing a rose are subject, lighting, and depth of field. Subject: Pick a great looking rose – a good photo of a crummy rose won’t win many awards – groom the bloom, if needed and, take a photo of the name tag FIRST. Be selective with composition. Take many photos, varying your position and perspective. Make sure focus is sharp and the center of focus is where you want it (usually the center of the rose) - use a tripod with timer/cable release and avoid windy days. Don’t be afraid to crop the photo, adjust the exposure, color saturation, etc., i.e., “groom” the image – most image handling programs allow basic image manipulation – I use Adobe Lightroom [Ansel Adams: “You don't take a photograph, you make it”]. Develop a good computer filing system for your photos; use ratings, flags, tags, etc., and backup your files! I use Google Photos. Lighting: My best photos result from late afternoon sessions, the hour or so before sunset (the hour or so after sunrise is also good, I’m just not much of a morning person!). Those “golden hours” offer light that is softer and warmer than what can be obtained otherwise, regardless of filters, diffusers, or photo processing. I try to find blooms that aren’t mottled by shadow; I use a screen to block direct light, if necessary. Depth of field: Make sure the rose, not the background, is the center of attention, i.e., pay attention to DOF, which is the distance between the nearest and farthest objects in a frame that are in focus. Generally, a shallow DOF will allow a subject, e.g., a portrait or a bloom, to stand out from the background. When photographing a garden scene, a deeper DOF is usually more desirable because more of the scene will be in focus. DOF is largely controlled by the aperture of the lens, the focal length of the lens, and the camera to subject distance. Aperture is the opening in the lens that allows light to reach the film or the sensor. A large aperture = a small f-number = a shallow depth of field, while a small aperture = larger f-number = deeper depth of field. Many cameras, including point-andshoots, have an Aperture Priority mode (AV on my camera’s setting dial; I use this mode almost all the time for rose photography). Give it a try, or at least try the portrait setting on your camera. Also, at a basic level, the longer your lens’ focal length is, the shallower the depth of field. So, if you are using a zoom lens, zooming from 50mm to 100mm, can reduce DOF. If you have a fixed focal length lens, moving closer to the subject will reduce DOF. I hope this information helps you take better photos...keep clicking that shutter!