A Black and White image of a backlit flower showing the fine texture of the petals. Click on the Image to see a larger version, and to purchase/license.
I took the opportunity last weekend to visit our local Botanical Gardens here in Dublin. It doesn’t mater what time of year it is you are always sure to find something in bloom. And after plenty of grey Sky’s and rain recently it was a great way to lift my spirits.
One thing I promised myself for this year was to use the flash a lot more often. I picked myself up a Yongnuo YN560 just before Christmas and have been getting used to using it over the last couple of months. I brought it with me on this trip and had some great fun trying out different setups. For the image above I placed the flash behind and beneath the flowers so as to backlight them. Using the fastest shutter speed possible of 1/160 I was able to completely block out all ambient light and bring the focus just to the flower itself.
Camera: Canon EOS 5D Mark II
Lens: Canon EF 100mm f/2.8 Macro USM
Exposure: 1/160
Aperture: f/7.1
Focal Length: 100mm
ISO Speed: 100