Garden through the lens

Whether garden photography is your passion or an occasional hobby, there are a few guidelines that will assist on your quest for the perfect photo. Read on as I share a few of the secrets that have served me well in over 20 years of shooting the world’s finest gardens.

Light and timing

The first step is to get timing and seasonality right, as the photograph shown at left of Cloudehill in summer demonstrates. If you are photographing your home garden, you are already primed for success to observe and capture peak flowering moments or effects. Light will then have the next biggest impact. My photographs are taken during the ‘golden hours’ – the moments around sunrise and sunset. I’d encourage you, even with the early summer sunrise, to see your garden at this magical time with its special quality of light. Later in the morning and during the middle of the day, colours, even though they look good to the eye, often don’t record well in photographs. They look bleached out and the contrast between shadows and highlights results in shaded areas being almost black, with no detail.

Move – follow the light

Although it’s quite an intuitive process, I use light to guide my movement through the garden. Because I like to photograph at sunrise and sunset, I am capturing the garden in a different direction, shooting into the light, which is my favourite technique.

Shooting into the light

I take the wider landscape shots first and last, when light is softest across the entire scene and most atmospheric. I start at the highest point for sunrise, whether that be on a hill or a ladder, as it’s nice to capture the sunburst effect as it just comes up, or at sunset as it goes down behind the horizon, house, tree etc. This is a shot you need to be ready for, as you have only seconds to capture it.

Blocking techniques

After sunrise, I continue shooting into the light using various blocking techniques. Finding a position where an object (e.g. tree, flowers, building) will block the sun in my lens, gives a stunning backlighting effect. Notice the beautiful highlighting of layers in the photos overleaf. If there’s no object available and the angle of the sun permits, I often use a black reflector (or you can use one hand) above or on the side of the lens to block the sun.

Rain and mist

I get very excited when there is mist, with the stunning, magical atmosphere it creates. Rain can also be beautiful from under an umbrella, bringing out vibrant colours.

Overcast

I generally avoid overcast conditions for landscape shots as I find them very flat, dull and lacking atmosphere, but they can be useful to capture plant details or close-ups. On overcast days, it’s often better to crop in closer and remove the sky, so you can get even lighting on planting.

Composition

Focal point

A great photo has clarity. You know what you are looking at straight away. So, concentrate on what inspired you to take the photograph and let this become your main focal point or point of interest, then use framing to make this pleasing to the eye.

Rule of thirds – balanced images

Two horizontal and two vertical lines evenly divide the frame and by placing dominant points of interest like horizons or trees on these lines the image naturally feels balanced.

Hot spots are created where lines intersect and it works well to position points of interest or focal points on or close to them.

Simplify

A photographer selects what to include in their images – what is excluded is as important as what is included. Notice details and include only those that add to the image. Remove distractions (e.g. hose pipes, garden debris, misplaced furniture) either physically in the garden or later with cropping. Sometimes it’s better to be a bit more subtle with images than trying to include everything in a scene.

Leading lines

Leading lines, especially paths or garden beds, are perfect compositional tools for garden images – they encourage movement and direct the eye to focal points.

Symmetrical images

Unlike most images, for a symmetrical image, it works well to place the focal point right in the centre of a frame.

Perspectives

When you have a great subject and lighting, exhaust it from every angle and with different framing. Often it’s the last shots that reveal a unique and favoured perspective. Get down low, see it from a ladder, frame it with various foregrounds and lighting effects. Even with your own garden, try and see it with fresh eyes and from different perspectives.

Depth of field and foregrounds

Think about a landscape scene. A good image often has interest right from the foreground, to midground and background. Pay close attention to foregrounds. Make sure they are interesting and add to the image, rather than distract. Also, notice the light hitting the foreground. The ultimate aim is to capture layers of interest with light falling on each.

Editing

I can take anything from 200 to 1,000 photos of a garden during a really good shoot, so choosing images really becomes key. See which ones you have an immediate and strong reaction to, as these are often the best. Look closely at the detail and the light. Think about which image feels most balanced and comfortable to the eye. A powerful photograph should evoke emotions. I spend at least as much time editing and processing my images as I do photographing them. But ready-made filters on Instagram, various apps or even the photo program on your smart phone allow quick adjustments, which can make an amazing difference to your images. Whatever season and garden you find yourself in, enjoy and be in the moment!

Written by Claire Takacs, garden photographer.