The majority of us have become quite used to our home during the last year. Most photographers, including myself have had a tough to find interesting subjects and ideas as a result. However, one of the greatest features of the art of macrophotography is that it can perform it wherever, even indoors with a little imagination. This article will provide my top DIY suggestions for macro photography at home. Try them for yourself!
We’ll note before we begin that I’m not the only photographer to come up with a lot of these ideas. I wouldn’t be too surprised to learn that you’ve seen some of these before. However, it’s not less exciting to make your own twist on this style of photography.
Homemade Backdrop
The first step is to find a suitable backdrop to take these pictures more quickly.
If you’re a photographer who shoots portraits Maybe you already have beautiful backdrops in various colors you could incorporate into these macro images. If not, don’t worry. You can create a backdrop suitable for macro photography by draping a t-shirt or tablecloth over the top of a cardboard box.
I’ve done that here using the black t-shirt I was wearing. It’s not an expensive backdrop, but when it comes to macro shots, it’s too far away from the camera even if it’s noticeable at all that you won’t require anything beyond this:
Macro Ideas
1. CD as well as Water Droplets
One of the most popular options for this type of “homemade” macro photography is the CD. You may have to go for some boxes, however I’m sure that most photographers have a few old CDs laying around. If you can, choose one that isn’t smacked with excessive scratches.
If you tilt your CD relative to your light source you’ll see intriguing patterns of color, like this:
To increase the interest to the experience, apply water drops to the surface of your CD, and experiment with the your depth of field. You can try propping up the CD using an elevated tripod to utilize longer exposures as well as capture high-quality images.
The result is fun abstract and simple to record:
2. Splashes of Water
Another option is to capture the drops directly (no CD required). It is likely that you’ve taken pictures of water splashes, and how fascinating they are when you get close to them. Some photographers go as that they design custom droplet configurations that create stunning pattern of the water splashes that interact.
The method I’m describing here isn’t as sophisticated however you’ll get some fantastic images. This kind of thing is pretty easy to master:
My strategy was to hold the glass of food coloring at an the length of an arm above the (very filled) cup of water. When I splashed the food coloring using the right side of my hand I would try to capture the ideal moment using my left.
It will take some practice, but and to be able to time the shot properly and also to position the droplet in your field of view. Also, you’ll need to cover a large space around the water bowl with newspaper as well as paper towels, especially if you wish to be at risk of food dye leaking everywhere.
When setting camera settings, it is essential to utilize flash or else it’s almost impossible for the droplet to remain frozen in mid-air. I would also suggest having an aperture that is f/8, or smaller to allow you greater depth of field and, consequently, more room to make mistakes. The best light will be obtained by scattering the flash on a large surface like an umbrella, a wall or ceiling.
Try various background, colors and compositions to produce interesting results. For instance, I made this photo using an orange slice in front of my subject, which it appears on the surface of the ocean
3. Water and Oil
Another one is based on water. (What could I say? It’s a great subject.)
This could be my top suggestion on this list, as the results you will achieve are stunning and diverse. All you have to do is pour a little oil onto the surface of a bowl of water Then, you can take pictures of the setting from above.
These are steps to follow:
- Make sure you have a baking dish, or a similar container with a clear top
- Place the baking dish over the top of some tall objects to leave no space below. (I employed two paint cans each one on either end of my baking dish)
- Partly fill it with water
- Incorporate around a tablespoon of oil
- Mix the oil with a gentle stir until it is dispersed around the water’s surface.
- Position your camera right to the top of your baking dish, and shoot straight down
- Explore the colors and directions of light, aswell by sliding bright objects over your baking dish
There is a picture showing my setting here
I realized that I was able to get the most illumination when I aimed my flash at the tablecloth, so that it bounced out from the dish that I baked in. (You can see where I’m shooting at my flashlight in the picture above.) I also like to slide magazines and bright plastic lids over the flash to create some intriguing pattern colors.
Here are a few images I’ve taken using this technique:
