Top 10 Garden Photography Tips!

We love this time of year when gardens spring to life and are full of colour. There are so many fantastic photographic opportunities, so here’s our top 10 garden photography tips to help you capture your garden at it’s best!

1. Time to shoot

Take note of how shadow areas move across the garden at different times of the day and plan the most appropriate moments for your shots. Remember that early morning dew can add a touch of sparkle and sunshine turns golden before sunset.

2. Whatever the weather

You can’t beat strong sunlight for accentuating bold colours but dull days are better for subtle hues and minimising the depth of shadows, so make the most of varying weather for different shots. Don’t let a cloudy day put you off!

3. Lovely in landscape

The Landscape Picture Style makes for vivid greens and blues, as well as adding a little extra sharpness, so it’s particularly useful for creating dramatic images on a bright, sunny day.

4. Standard solution

While the Landscape Picture Style bumps up some colours, it can actually drain the vibrancy of red flowers. This means that in certain shooting situations it’s better to stick to the Standard setting.

5. Isolating blooms

To focus attention on individual blooms, use a longer telephoto zoom setting, switch to Av shooting mode and use a large aperture to reduce the depth of field. This isolates them against the background for an eye-catching effect.

6. Add depth

To squeeze wider areas into the frame, a wide-angle zoom setting has the inherent advantage of giving your image greater depth of field. Use a small aperture to accentuate this when you need to keep near and far objects in focus at the same time.

7. Out of the gloom

To lift plants out of gloomy, shadowed areas, try using the pop-up fl ash on your camera or, preferably, invest in an off-camera flashgun.

8. White balance

A predominance of one bright colour can easily fool your camera’s Auto White Balance setting. Switch to Manual White Balance and then select the most appropriate setting for the conditions you’re working in.

9. Stay sharp

Gusty days make for lots of movement, and offer a great chance to shoot leafy flowers swaying in the breeze. Use a fast shutter speed to freeze the action and increase the sensitivity (ISO) if necessary.

10. Get abstract

Be inventive with the angles you choose and move in close to fill the frame with small detail, adding variety to your garden shots. A quick spray of water on a petal or leaf often adds interest, too.