CLIVE’S TOP 10 TIPS FOR GARDEN PHOTOS

Use a tripod

For garden scenes, a tripod is great if you want to get a lot of depth in your pictures. I find that I can compose images precisely and it also helps me get very sharp images with no camera shake.

Set your alarm

the best light for garden and flower photography is usually the first hour of daylight – especially on sunny days. this is the golden hour, when plants and gardens are at their most photogenic.

Check the weather forecast

I always check the bbc weather forecast the night before a shoot. I look for days when there is little or no wind, because this makes garden and flower photography easier.

Use mirror lock-up

For garden vistas when using a tripod, using mirror lock-up ensures that your images are pin-sharp, giving them a professional look.

Take a Live View

Use live view to focus incredibly accurately, especially when shooting wide or zoomed-in views of gardens. one thing to note, though, is this only works if your camera is mounted firmly on a tripod.

Image stabilization

Use this only when hand-holding a shot – IS is especially useful if you are using a longer focal length of around 100mm or over.

Take a pic of the plant labels

If you are in a garden where the plants are named, take a quick pic of the label of the plant or flower that you are photographing for future reference.

Plan where you need to be

gardens change over time, so make sure you are in the right place at the right time. there is no point going to shoot a rose garden in early spring when nothing is out – check on flowering times with garden owners.

Find a good garden nearby

It is much easier to shoot a local garden because you don’t have to travel miles to find a good location. remember: in the spring and summer, you really need to be in gardens around dawn, which can be as early as 5am.

Consider shutter speed and aperture

to freeze the movement of flowers blowing in the wind, you need a relatively fast shutter speed – around 1/250 sec or above. Use large apertures, such as f/4, to blow backgrounds out of focus for a nice bokeh.