Once a photographic subject is identified, there are two components to creating a successful image: composition and exposure settings. In my photography, I often have a bad habit of rushing to capture the image, so I’m trying to work out both components at the same time.
This approach almost always means I don’t give either component sufficient consideration, which usually results in less than satisfactory pictures. I’ve always known this habit was hampering my photography, but, for some reason, I’ve never been able to break out of it. But, I recently captured what I consider to be a very good image that reinforces the fact that I need to slow down my photography and be more thoughtful in my process.
I was sitting on my front porch a few nights ago waiting for my dog to come inside. As I sat there, I noticed a flower pot filled with mums my wife had planted a few weeks ago. Or, maybe a couple of months ago. Truth be told, I’m not really sure when she planted them. As I sat there looking at the mums, I slowly began to realize they could make for a very nice photograph. So, the next morning, I was excited to get up and photograph the mums.
Normally, I would rush to get the composition set up, dial in the setting that I think would work, press the shutter button and capture the image, and move on to the next thing. But, on this particular morning, I decided to try something a little bit different. I would focus first on getting my composition just as I wanted it. Then, after I had completed that task, I would figure out my settings. In other words, take it one step at a time.
Before I set the tripod, I handheld the camera and moved around the flowers looking for composition I thought was pleasing. Finding a group of mums that formed a diagonal line across the frame from the bottom left to the upper right with the largest mum in the center of the image, I set up the tripod and camera.
Only then did I turn my attention to camera settings. I knew I wanted the mums to fill the frame, so I added some extension tubes that would allow me to accomplish that goal. Of course, the addition of the extension tubes was bringing me into the realm of macro photography, which I don’t do a lot of.
The front of the lens was maybe six inches from the flowers, which meant I had very little working distance and depth of field would be quite shallow. I decided to focus on the middle of the center blossom and use an aperture of f/18 to maximize the depth of field as much as possible while trying to keep diffraction to a minimum. Reviewing the preview on the back of the camera indicated the image would have acceptable sharpness throughout the entire frame, and this was confirmed when I viewed the file on my computer.
Processing the image was straightforward and consisted primarily of adjusting contrast. The most significant things I did was to clone out a couple of leaves that were encroaching into the frame from some neighboring blossoms and to crop the final image into a 4:3 aspect ratio. I had originally photographed the flowers with a 3:2 aspect ratio, but, when I looked at the image on my computer, the blossoms seemed a little overwhelming. The crop helped tone down the photograph.
It took me about 15 to 20 minutes to take this one photograph, and it was time well spent. I’ve always known I tend to work too quickly and need to slow the process down. This picture reinforced that understanding. Photography is a process, and the process should not be rushed. Going forward, I will always be striving to slow myself down, arrange the composition first, and then determine what settings I need.
In other words, I’m going to respect the process.