The N-Photo experts say…

ideas you can build on

Keep your balance

With close-ups of natural subjects like water drops, pebbles, leaves and so on, it’s important to ensure the composition is balanced, and free of distractions at the edges of the frame. As a photographer, your job is to find structure and order in the chaos.

Get up close

If you’re experimenting with macro, get a close-up dioptre. It screws on to the front element of your lens and enables you to focus closely without a macro lens. If you’re on a budget and photographing things around the house, it’s a great way to get started.

Add some colour

Try making a subject as colourful as possible, by adding backdrops perhaps. If you can fit all the colours of the rainbow into one photo, so much the better. When you’ve had too much of the vibrancy you can restrict your colour palette to your favourites.

Time it right

If you want to capture glass-like water droplets, set up a flash behind a bowl of water, and drop water in from a straw above. Try to time the shutter release to coincide with the peak of the splash; it takes practice, but you’ll soon get a feel for it.