Highfield Discovery Garden – Glenwood Gardens Photography Tips

So excited to get back to doing My Great Park in Pictures Photo Walks!

I went LIVE on Great Parks facebook and at @great_parks Instagram June 9, 10am with Nikki sharing tips for photographing butterflies and plus lenses and easy blurred backgrounds.

Highfield Discovery Garden, f5.6, 1/4000, 800 ISO, 450mm, NIKON D500. ©Malinda Hartong, Hartong Digital Media

Top 10 Tips for Photographing Butterflies & Gardens

We spent time at Highfield Discovery Garden’s Butterfly garden sharing tips for photographing gardens and butterflies, plus easy blurred backgrounds! Check out the photos below!

1. High Noon! While “magic hour” is great for most landscapes and portraits (1st and last hour of daylight), butterflies typically don’t get active til the sun is bright and warm!
2. Long Telephoto Lens – Zoom in.
3. Minimum Focus Distance –  Get closer! Typically for telephoto lenses, the closest you can be to focus is between 4′-6′. For wide angle lenses you can get within INCHES! For macro lenses – GET IN THERE! Check the specifications for the lenses you use. Watch the video for tips!
4. Don’t overshadow your subject! Pay special attention to avoid your shadow falling on butterflies or dragonflies – they’ll think you’re a bird about to eat them!
5. Shutter Priority mode on your SLR or mirrorless camera. A fast shutter speed will freeze the action of bees, butterflies, dragonflies, birds and more! You set your shutter speed (1/4000 for hummingbirds!), and let your camera handle AUTO ISO and auto f-stop/aperture. Also focus on the FLOWER and wait for your subject, pressing your shutter half-way to focus.
6. Be Patient! It takes patience and a bit of stubbornness sometimes to get the best shot – don’t just take one!
7. Do a 360! Walk all the way around – shooting from different angles makes a HUGE difference – especially in the way your subject relates to the background.
8. Lock Focus. Focus on the FLOWER and wait for your subject, pressing your shutter half-way to focus. On iPhone – press and hold on screen on flower to lock (AE/AF Lock appears in yellow box)
9. Avoid Portrait Mode – the flower stems will be blurred out.
10. Stand out in the crowd! Look for flowers that stand out in the crowd with nothing around them. Zoom in. Shoot vertical AND horizontal! Open distance behind your subject and more zoom = more blur!

Try these tips and share! Tag @hartongdigital and @great_parks on Instagram with your photos!

 

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Pick up a guide at Natures Niche Stores

Find guides for birds, butterflies, wildflowers and dragonflies at Natures Niche stores at Glenwood Gardens, Farbach Werner Nature Preserve, Sharon Woods Sharon Centre. Bonus – they’re coated and water resistant. Perfect to stick in your pocket or camera bag when you’re photographing nature.

Great Parks Photo Walks

Free with vehicle sticker. Register below for notifications and updates.

Glenwood Gardens

Sunday 6/27, 10 a.m.

Join us as we capture the beauty of the season – both large and small. Photojournalist Malinda Hartong will share tips and tricks to improve your photography skills on this walk- we’ll look for birds, bees, flowers and more. If it’s sunny, a circular polarizer filter would be great for your camera lens. Don’t forget the bug spray!
Bring your smartphone or digital camera and start taking better nature photos! Great Parks is following protocols from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and the Ohio Department of Health. Physical distancing and sanitation recommendations will be followed. Glenwood Gardens/ meet a the Gatehouse by the restrooms – free with park sticker.

Miami Whitewater

Sunday 7/25, 11 a.m.

Explore the Tallgrass Prairie Trail and surrounding forest through the lens of your camera. Photojournalist Malinda Hartong will share tips and tricks to improve your photography skills. Bring your smartphone or digital camera to start taking better photos! Great Parks is following protocols from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and the Ohio Department of Health. Physical distancing and sanitation recommendations will be followed. Miami Whitewater Forest/meet at the start of Tallgrass Prairie Trail

Woodland Mound

Sunday 8/8, 9 a.m.

Learn how to take stunning photos of your favorite Great Parks with the help of photojournalist Malinda Hartong. She will share tips and tricks to help you get the most out of taking photos with your smartphone or digital camera. Great Parks is following protocols from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and the Ohio Department of Health. Physical distancing and sanitation recommendations will be followed. Woodland Mound/meet at Seasongood Nature Center

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