It’s okay to photograph flowers on an overcast day. In fact, it is the best day to obtain the soft even light used to complement the delicacy of the flowers where no shadows or harsh bright spots will interfere with your ending image. Photographing early in the day to capture the morning dew always makes an interesting look to most nature photography. Waiting for the late afternoon sun to subside is another great time to photograph flowers. Try to capture backlit flowers late in the day when the sun is close to the horizon which will cast a nice warm light on the rest of your image as well. You might even be able to catch some rays of light filtering through the trees. On a bright sunny day, backlighting happens when the sun is directly in front of you lighting your flower from behind. This makes the flower petals translucent and flowers appear to glow.

When it comes to photographing flowers, the wind is your enemy. An easy way to avoid it is to photography early morning when there is less chance of wind. If you find yourself photographing flowers and there is a bit of wind, use a piece of cardboard or a reflector to create a wind block.

Lenses to Use

Photograph your flower using different lenses to obtain different looks. A macro lens has the ability to focus on objects that are close to the end of the lens. Using a telephoto lens and zooming in on the flower will allow blurring the background and making the flower stand out in your image.

Importance of background

As with every photography, the background can make or break the image. Try to change your position so that there is nothing distracting behind your flower.

Make it sharp

Using a shallow depth of field is an option to capture only part of the image sharply and the rest is soft and out of focus. You can achieve this by using a low aperture such as f/4 or lower. Even if you are using a shallow depth of field, it is essential that at least part of the flower is sharp. Be sure to use a faster shutter speed if it becomes necessary to stop the movement of the flower because of wind.

Mix up your point of view

Change your point of view by moving around and trying different angles for more interesting images. Photography the flower from behind or underneath to capture a point of view that is different from what we see from a standing perspective.

Bonus…

One technique I love is focussing through another flower. Try positioning yourself so that another flower is in front of your main subject and very close to the end of your lens. The secondary flower will become a blur of color and your final image will have a more abstract feel.

If your camera has been gathering dust, now is a perfect time to get yourself outside and enjoy the sunshine and the flowers…Beautiful images are awaiting!