Spring Flower Photography

Some Tips, Some Lenses

In my part of the country, spring usually comes late April. This year it sprung early, At this time in the year, and its only for about a week, the tree’s begin to bud, grass begins to grow again and turn green, and the marigolds begin to flower. For the nature photographer, it’s time to get back to work!

The tree’s at this time of year begin to bud, and within a week, boom! They’re full of leaves. If you can catch the tree’s as they are blooming, you can get some very interesting images. The emergence of spring also means color for many photographers. The greys, blacks and whites are gone from winter, and the great outdoors starts to look good again. Bring out your macro lenses, it’s time to start shooting!

Magnolia, Nikon D80, Nikon 50mm f/1.8, ISO 200, f/10, 1/2000 sec

Whether you’re shooting Nikon, Canon, Pentax or Sony, the best lens for shooting flowers would be the 100mm F/2.8 macro. These lenses offer excellent color rendition, absolute sharpness (hey, it’s a “prime” lens) and 1:1 macro capability. The 1:1 macro capability gives you the ability to get sharp detail in the nose hairs of a small insect. The petals in the center of a flower fill the frame, as well as the litter of pollen often surrounding that area of the flower.

Nikon D80, Nikon 50mm f/1.8, f/5.6, ISO 200, 1/500 sec

Here are some excellent macro lenses for flower photography and macro work:

1. Nikon 105mm f/2.8G ED-IF AF-S VR Micro-Nikkor Lens

2. Canon EF 100mm f/2.8 Macro USM Lens for Canon SLR Cameras

3. Sony 100mm f/2.8 Macro Lens for Sony Alpha Digital SLR Camera

4. Pentax D FA 100mm f/2.8 Macro Lens for Pentax and Samsung Digital SLR Cameras

5. Sigma 105mm f/2.8 EX DG Medium Telephoto Macro Lens for Nikon SLR Cameras

6. Sigma 105mm f/2.8 EX DG Medium Telephoto Macro Lens for Canon SLR Cameras

If you’re looking to save some money right now, but really want to get some cool extreme close ups, try the Canon – USA 58mm Close-Up Lens 500D (it’s made by Canon, but I use them on all my brand DSLR lenses). Its easy, and attaches right to the filter threads of your favorite lens. I have one attached to my Nikon 50mm f/1.8 prime lens, and it does a great jobs with the type of macro abstracts I like to shoot.