Friday, March 6, 2015

Under Your Feet: Abstract Winter Macro Photography

Hello all! I hope this post finds you well. Like I discussed in this post last year, winter nature photography can be difficult. I mean, who really wants to go outside when it's cold, right? Well, I hope to convince you that there are lots of great reasons to try macro photography in the winter.



Searching for Patterns

Snow and ice add interesting detail to nature. However, instead of always choosing to compose a typical winter landscape blanketed in snow, try focusing in on abstract patterns created by this strange precipitation.

The photo above is of an oak tree, frosted with snow. By zooming in on familiar objects, foreign and unusual topographies are revealed. This, of course, is the quest of the macro photographer - but you don't need a macro lens to achieve this. This photo above was taken with a standard kit lens, for example.

Ice Worship

I prefer ice to snow for winter macros. While snow covers detail, ice often accentuates it, creating strange bubbles and patterns on top of boring objects.


The way the ice emphasized the outlines of these twigs turns an utterly unremarkable composition into an intriguing image. 



Similarly here. The gravel peeking up above the ice layer adds another element of depth to the pattern.


Here, the contrast of the green grass with the icy winter feel of the rest of the photograph provides visual interest.

The theme with these winter ice macros is looking down. That is, I walked outside, looked around at my apartment complex in the ice, and then looked at my feet. I realized that I was standing on beautiful macro subjects that I had almost passed by, because I almost didn't look.

So, grab your camera, get outside, and don't forget to look at your feet every once in a while.

What's your favorite winter photography tip? Let me know in the comments!

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