Evening star., 1953-04-05
Flower Pictures Require
Closeup Lens Work
By Alexander J. Wedderbum
Curator Of Photography
The Smithsonian Institution

fashion in a garden. II the
natural arrangements are rag
ged or if you lack the skill to
arrange flowers attractively the
best plan is that of photo
graphing a single flower or
blossom covered branch.
Keep Background Plain
Backgrounds are important.
Keep them absolutely plain to
avoid any distraction from the
floral subject. Close-cropped
grass or q shadowy background
lacking in busy" detail will
be ideal. In certain instances
where the flower is tall enough
the sky can be used for the
background. Although cloth
or cardboard can be used when
natural backgrounds are un-
suitable, they are apt to give
the impression of artificiality.
If used, it should be kept far
enough away from the subject
to be out Of focus. This is
specially true when color Aim
Is used. Such pictures, hav-
ing an artificial background,
often have a "seed catalogue"
look about them. When such
a background must be used in
color photography be certain
that it is Complementary in
color to the flower.
The first step in flower
photography is the arrange
ment. Keep the arrangement
as natural looking as possible
never as though it obviously
had been planned. Incidental
ly, the flowers should always
be perfect specimens. Never
use a bloom that Is wilted or
imperfect in any way. Remove
any dead or wilted petals or
leaves that show the ravages
Of insects. When working in
doors under lights keep the
flowers in the icebox or other
cool place until you are ready
to use them.
After the arrangement is
complete move the camera, on
its tripod. into position and
go to work on your compost
ton. If the plant or flower is
small, shoot from a low camera
angle. A tall specimen should
be photographed from q
higher plane to avoid over
emphasis on length. The print
shape can fit the flower type.
being either tall and narrow
or square for the stubbier
plants or groupings.
Use Front Lighting
Use a front lighting for your
first attempts at flower pho
Biography. Dark Shadows,
which are apparent the closer
the subject is to the camera,
destroy the delicate effect
that you will wish to secure in
your pictures. If shadows
exist, reflector should be
used to tighten them but not
quite to the point of extinc-
ton. The slightest bit of
shadow will help give the illu-
sion Of depth and roundness to
the picture. The reflector
SHOULD be placed at a low
angle on the side opposite the
sun.
When composing the pic
ture, be sure to remember that
at this close distance to the
subject, the image on the
finder screen is not identical
to the one that will be cast on
the film at the exposure. This
condition will be due to paral-
lax which will exist because
the finder lens is slightly diff
ferent in position from that Of
the taking lens. Some modern
cameras compensate for this
factor but in most cases the
photographer will have to
make a compensatory camera
movement to correct Of paral-
lax.
If you find flower pho
Biography as enjoyable as most
camera fans you should, by all
means, learn the names of
your subjects. A properly
catalogued collection of flower
photographs can be not only
a source of personal gratifica-
ton but a valuable teaching
aid for children.