Tuesday Sundries - Macro Is A Big Hit!

In the world of photography, 'macro' actually doesn't mean big. It is actually taking pictures extremely close up, making tiny details larger. And something I have been interested in for years. However, with a regular camera you have to wrestle a large piece of equipment in really close to your subject.

With the advent of iPhones (and all the other brands) with cameras, it is possible to use something lightweight to do much the same thing. Especially if you are fortunate enough to take a class at the UNC Botanical Gardens with Wendy Wilson. 

A member of the garden staff, Ms. Wilson is also a lovely artist, passing on her knowledge of using a cell phone to create macro photos.

We arrived at the classroom on Sunday afternoon. At each seat was a tray with a variety of items and a little macro lens. I have my own lens now, one I can carry in my wallet and pull it out at a moments notice.

After slipping the lens on, we practiced a bit on the items in the tray.

Grains of salt achieved boulder-like proportions. 

Then we were turned loose in the greenhouses to take pictures and 'play' with our lens.

After about 30 minutes of taking pictures of orchids and cactus, succulents and other foliage, we returned to our seats to learn to use a phone app, Snapseed. While we were strictly using Snapseed on our phones, I have learned you can download it to your computer too. I want to work with it more and do some comparison with what I can do with photos there and with Photoshop. Unfortunately, I will have to do it on my phone as it is not compatible to a Mac.

Once the class was over, on the walk back to my car, I detoured through the garden and took a few more pictures.

I do need a lot of practice getting close enough and holding still. But I love the way the backgrounds blur automatically. 

There will be a lot of pictures being taken and playing with in the future. What I am also looking forward to is Ms. Wilson is also going to have a class on turning photos into artwork. Or basically manipulating your pictures in various ways. I will be watching to see when it is offered so I can sign up. 

I have signed up for another class at the UNC Botanical Gardens already, a botanical drawing workshop. I can't wait. The garden is relatively close to my house and easy to get to. 

I guess I need to go ahead and get a membership to the gardens!