Alpine country lupines.

Ben Egbert

Ben Egbert

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Staff member
Inspired by Kurt, Douglas and Monica, I wanted to try my hand at wildflower images. It's not at all easy. First you must fund them then find a specimen or a group then find and angle with good light angle and background, and then get yourself in position and get focus and dof. My hat is off to those worthies who do this.

I was at this place a week earlier and thought I was too early, then I heard the lupine was prime. The problem with this place is that there is a very wide variety of flowers none maturing at exactly the same time and no pure stands of one type. So it's nice in its own way, but different. I decided to find a nice specimen and feature it against a regular background.

Comments welcome



220715-2172-R5.jpg
 
MonikaC

MonikaC

Well-Known Member
Good on ya, mate, as the stereotypical Aussie would say.

When I started trying to shoot flowers, I was coming from the landscape shooter perspective. Wildflowers were pretty much just the foreground, and yielded me mediocre, at best, shots. To have a great shot that way, I think you need an amazing density of wildflowers in the foreground. That being unlikely (lots of bare patches, though I did get 1 or 2), I went to a long lens for compression. I used a tilt-shift to keep the flowers & background in focus as focus stacking was absolutely driving me crazy. Even when I thought it was dead calm, there was a breeze & flowers move and where does one draw the line of where to choose what should be in focus, etc. I had Helicon Focus and Zerene Stacker to push me further into madness. Next I went to a long lens for compression (& minimizing those bare patches), which was better. Then I just felt bad about judging something as beautiful as wildflowers (no, this patch isn't good enough ---what??? They're wildflowers and beautiful, who am I to judge them?) and stopped for a few years or more. Just enjoyed them in their ephemeral beauty. Then I became reductionist in my thinking (good in this case, though not so good in other cases) and just shot single flowers or single bunches instead. Combined with Doug Sherman's excellent tutelage, I've been able to enjoy sleeping in ;).
 
Kurt Harrigan

Kurt Harrigan

Well-Known Member
Nice image and the background puts things into perspective. I believe, though, that these are probably some kind of penstemon. Not sure of the species as there is quite a few of them.....
 
Ben Egbert

Ben Egbert

Forum Helper
Staff member
MonikaC said:
Good on ya, mate, as the stereotypical Aussie would say.

When I started trying to shoot flowers, I was coming from the landscape shooter perspective. Wildflowers were pretty much just the foreground, and yielded me mediocre, at best, shots. To have a great shot that way, I think you need an amazing density of wildflowers in the foreground. That being unlikely (lots of bare patches, though I did get 1 or 2), I went to a long lens for compression. I used a tilt-shift to keep the flowers & background in focus as focus stacking was absolutely driving me crazy. Even when I thought it was dead calm, there was a breeze & flowers move and where does one draw the line of where to choose what should be in focus, etc. I had Helicon Focus and Zerene Stacker to push me further into madness. Next I went to a long lens for compression (& minimizing those bare patches), which was better. Then I just felt bad about judging something as beautiful as wildflowers (no, this patch isn't good enough ---what??? They're wildflowers and beautiful, who am I to judge them?) and stopped for a few years or more. Just enjoyed them in their ephemeral beauty. Then I became reductionist in my thinking (good in this case, though not so good in other cases) and just shot single flowers or single bunches instead. Combined with Doug Sherman's excellent tutelage, I've been able to enjoy sleeping in ;).
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Monica thanks for the excellent reply and really more than excellent. I have also tried most of that and even some focus stacking this trip and a macro lens and a longish lens ( 105mm ) I should have had my 100 -400 with me but left it home

I should practice in my front yard but there is so many distracting elements
 
Ben Egbert

Ben Egbert

Forum Helper
Staff member
Kurt Harrigan said:
Nice image and the background puts things into perspective. I believe, though, that these are probably some kind of penstemon. Not sure of the species as there is quite a few of them.....
Click to expand...
Thanks Kurt I was not even going to try for your technique as it belongs to you. I tried to copy Ken’s pool of light on waterfalls and besides failing I realized it was something he developed and it fits the waterfalls in his home grounds. So it is with your beautiful floral images. I will be trying for my own look

and thanks for the correction
 
BlackRockArt

BlackRockArt

Staff
Ben Egbert said:
Inspired by Kurt, Douglas and Monica, I wanted to try my hand at wildflower images. It's not at all easy. First you must fund them then find a specimen or a group then find and angle with good light angle and background, and then get yourself in position and get focus and dof. My hat is off to those worthies who do this.

I was at this place a week earlier and thought I was too early, then I heard the lupine was prime. The problem with this place is that there is a very wide variety of flowers none maturing at exactly the same time and no pure stands of one type. So it's nice in its own way, but different. I decided to find a nice specimen and feature it against a regular background.

Comments welcome



View attachment 50824
Click to expand...

Ben, nice refreshing shot.

Oliver
 
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