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Stuck for something to photograph? There’s actually a huge variety of exciting and challenging subjects lurking right in your backyard.
Going in close reveals that the world is full of visual surprises.
Visiting somewhere new is always a good tonic for your photography. Different surroundings stimulate the senses and get the creative juices flowing. Often getting to new locations requires travel, but what if there was a whole world of exciting photographic possibilities right under your nose?
Well, there is – and it’s the world of close-up photography, or macrophotography to use the technical term. Even if you’ve only got a small backyard – or even just a balcony with some pot plants – there’s likely to be a great many small creatures that have the potential to make dramatic images. The insect world is full of the weird and the wonderful, but shooting close-ups can include plants or flowers or even small sections of inanimate objects where you can exploit patterns, textures or colours. And, of course, you’re not restricted to your garden because there’ll be many more fascinating subjects to find and photograph at your local park, at the beach or even in patches of vacant or wasteland. You’ll quickly realise that, with macrophotography, you’re very unlikely to run out of things to photograph (especially if you decide to explore the insect world), and you’ll certainly end up spending plenty of time fine-tuning your techniques, knowledge and skills.
Stationary objects might be a good place to start, because of the very fact that they are stationary! You are able to play around with composition, focusing and lighting without suddenly finding that you have an empty viewfinder. Insects can be a lot more of a challenge, especially the flying ones, as they’re not only small, but fast and often very unpredictable. Plus many don’t particularly like the idea of getting close to you, even if you want to get close to them.
The two key ingredients when photographing insects, as with all forms of wildlife, are patience and persistence. You’ll need to be prepared to put in plenty of time,
