Photographing snowdrops in a different way

Friday 3 March 2023, 11:40 by Erik Nevels | 5,557 views | 4 comments

This article was translated from Dutch with the help of AI. Read the original.

My photo calendar tells me it is time for the snowdrops again. How will I capture them this year? No repeat of last year, but new angles!

Another year has passed. I still remember where I was lying on the ground last year to take macro photos of snowdrops: at Wittsee in Germany, just across the border from Venlo.

This year I am looking for these spring flowers closer to home, together with my photography buddy. We are going to Horn Castle, in the Midden-Limburg village of Horn. Today, the mercury is approaching 20 degrees. Last week the snowdrops were still closed, but today they are sure to open.

We arrive early. The sunshine puts hundreds of snowdrops in a wonderful light. The dew makes the field sparkle and, full of enthusiasm, we get to work looking for ….. yes, what exactly?

There are plenty of snowdrops, but how will I approach them this year? Backlighting, a low viewpoint and the macro lens. That much is clear. A single flower or a small group?

Two next to each other, both sharp on the green inner leaf, or one behind the other, one sharp and the other blurred in the background? Photographing through a group? What will my background be? Is there perhaps a little creature on the flowers?

My favourite aperture, f2.8, or should I stop down a little for more depth of field? There are also snowdrops at the edge of the pond. What possibilities do they offer? Either way, I am looking for something different.

Dewdrops

As I search through the wet grass, I discover dewdrops. They offer the possibility of beautiful bokeh when I photograph the drops against the sun in the background. But of course, I can also make them the subject themselves.

A few weeks ago, I discovered that drops act like a kind of mirror. A subject in the background then appears small, upside down and razor-sharp in the drop. It takes real macro work to achieve this!

Amazingly, I can now also see a snowdrop in the drop. Focusing has to be extremely precise. As I do not have a beanbag, I screw my camera onto my small table tripod, which allows me to position the camera low to the ground. Fortunately, there is hardly any wind and the drop is hanging still, giving me time to pay attention to the composition.

With the help of the 'focus magnification' function, I can then focus manually with precision. To prevent the camera from moving when I press the shutter, I use the self-timer.

To be safe, I repeat the focusing process several times and take multiple shots. My first 'different' snowdrops are on the memory card.

Sony A7 mark III, 90mm, f/2.8, 1/250s, ISO 400

Mist

My next challenge is a large group of snowdrops whose bells have already opened in the warming sunlight. Easy, the groups are everywhere. But I want something extra, a particular atmosphere.

If I make sure that there are other snowdrops between the lens and the subject, a diffuse, serene image appears. It looks almost misty and sharpness becomes secondary, although I do make sure that the focus falls on the inner leaf of a snowdrop on the right, giving the eye a place to rest.

Sony A7 mark III, 90mm, f/3.2, 1/250s, ISO 100

Comma butterfly

As the sun raises the mercury towards the predicted 20 degrees, a butterfly suddenly appears. Surprised, I stand up and follow its fluttering. As I adjust my camera settings, I carefully walk towards the spot where the comma butterfly has landed.

However, it is not quite sure of itself yet and flies from flower to flower. Then it seems to have found the right one and I take my chance. I lie flat on the ground in the grass and now look at it at eye level.

There is no time to move for a better composition. As the little creature walks back and forth across the flower, I take several shots. Then it flies off and I do not see it again that day.

Sony A7 mark III, 90mm, f/2.8, 1/800s, ISO 200

High-key

After a tea break, we walk around the castle and I notice a steep slope with a few scattered snowdrops. This gives me the chance to photograph a snowdrop from underneath for once.

I do not have my tripod with its tilting centre column with me, so I photograph handheld here. The tilting screen is very useful, as looking through the viewfinder is not an option in this situation.

The image is beautiful. The yellow flower centre, which you do not normally see, now shines surrounded by three sepals. It is difficult to get the yellow centre sharp when shooting handheld.

To be safe, I therefore take several shots, also varying the amount of overexposure. A high-key snowdrop. Very different from the ones I made last year!

Sony A7 mark III, 90mm, f/3.2, 1/500s, ISO 100

Dit artikel is voor het laatst bijgewerkt op 3 maart 2023.
De eerste publicatiedatum is zaterdag 20 maart 2021, 13:31.

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