Insect macro photography tips

4/23/2018 Insect macro photography tips - Amateur Photographer
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Insect macro photography tips
Macro photography proves that small is beautiful, and is a wonderful way to reveal the intricacies of insects
and bugs. Ross Hoddinott gives his top tips
Little critters have always fascinated me. I’ve been shooting insects since I was 10 years old, using inexpensive close-up
lters at rst to enable me to achieve frame- lling results. When I was 11, I won BBC’s Country le inaugural
photography competition with my photograph of two emperor dragon ies. I enjoy capturing the exquisite beauty,
intricacy, shape and form of insects. I favour natural light and photograph my subjects in situ in the wild to cause
minimum disturbance. I authored the book Digital Macro and Close-up Photography and have won awards in
competitions such as Wildlife Photographer of the Year, British Wildlife Photography Awards and International Garden
Photographer of the Year with my close-ups of insects.
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Marbled White butter y (Melanargia galathea) in the evening light, Dunsdon Nature Reserve, Devon. Credit: Ross Hoddinott
Article Continues Below
1. Use backlight
Backlighting really suits insects, as it tends to highlight their form, detail and intricacy. It particularly suits the
translucency of butter ies. Low early-morning or late-evening light is perfect for shooting backlit subjects – the light’s
quality is warmer and softer too. Position yourself carefully, so you sandwich your subject between the light and your
camera. TTL metering can be fooled in tricky light, so check your histogram and apply positive exposure compensation if
images are underexposed.
2. Get up early and stay out late
Insects are at their least active and most approachable early in the morning and late in the evening, when their bodies
are cool and they are generally settled. Butter ies will roost among tall grasses or on owers, while damsel ies and
may ies will settle among reeds close to water. Tread and search carefully. Once you’ve located a suitable subject, you
should be able to get within the best distance to take a picture relatively easily. You may even be able to set up a tripod,
which will greatly aid with framing and focusing.

3. Keep it simple
In all my years of experience with shooting wildlife, I’ve found that the best insect close-ups are simple in their
construction. To help your subject really stand out, opt for a clean, di used backdrop, free of clutter or distraction. You
could photograph insects with distance between them and the surroundings: for example, select an angle where you
can contrast them against sky, water or distant foliage. Also, set the largest practical aperture to help throw your
subject’s surroundings attractively out of focus.

Credit: Ross Hoddinott
4. Maximise depth of eld
Depth of eld is inherently shallow at higher magni cations. To help maximise the zone of acceptable sharpness (for
any given aperture) try to keep your camera parallel to your subject. Why? Well there is only one geometric plane of
complete sharpness, and you will normally want to place as much of your subject within this plane as possible. If you
hold your camera at an angle in relation to your subject, wing tips and tails will quickly drift out of focus.
5. Pristine subjects
In close-up, even the smallest imperfection will be highlighted. Therefore, it is normally advisable to only photograph
insects that are in pristine condition. Butter ies lose some of their vibrancy and wings tend to get damaged as they near
the end of their adult stage. Try to photograph insects within days of their emergence. By researching the life cycle of
potential subjects, you can plan to visit suitable habitats at the right time of year.
Do you use a tripod?
I do!
I don't!

Amateur Photographer 

Meadow Grasshopper (Chorthippus parallelus), Vealand farm, Devon. Credit: Ross Hoddinott
6. Stalking subjects
During the day, when it’s warm and insects are busy, shoot handheld. It can be frustrating stalking insects, so be patient
and persevere. When you move into position, try not to disturb the surrounding vegetation, and avoid casting a shadow
across the subject. Increase ISO to generate a su ciently fast shutter to eliminate camera and/or subject motion. I
would recommend a minimum speed of 1/250sec when working handheld in close-up.
Female emperor dragon y (Anax imperator) laying eggs on garden pond in Broxwater, Cornwall). Credit: Ross Hoddinott
7. Capture behaviour
Try to capture elements of insect behaviour. Dragon ies are di cult to capture in ight, but it can be possible using a
long telephoto and shooting continuous bursts with a fast shutter. Mating butter ies and damsel ies add symmetry or
h t iti I th i ’ll d d l l li i t d b th t ’ d d h t hi i t

shape to compositions. In the spring, you’ll nd damsel y larvae clinging to reeds by the water’s edge and hatching into
their adult form. Close-ups of dragon ies or spiders devouring prey can also be fascinating.
Kit list
Telephoto macro A telephoto macro is ideal for insects. 100mm and above will generate a larger working
distance from the subject and minimise the risk of disturbing your subject.
Small LED Small LED devices, like Manfrotto’s Lumimuse range, are great lighting aids. They can be camera-
mounted or handheld. With a continuous light source, you can preview the e ect before triggering the shutter.
Geared head The design and type of tripod head you use is down to personal taste, but personally I favour a
geared head for close-ups. They allow you to make very precise micro adjustments to composition, which suits
the ddly nature of close-up work.
Ross Hoddinott is one of the UK’s leading outdoor photographers. He is a multi-award winning
artist and the author of eight books. Ross has been an Ambassador for Manfrotto and Nikon UK.
Visit www.rosshoddinott.co.uk (http://www.rosshoddinott.co.uk).

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