In order to take great flower pictures, you don’t need any fancy camera gear but you do need to have an eye for detail. If you want to take beautiful flower pictures, like the ones in magazines, this article will help show you how you can do that with a digital compact camera. 

Many of us have taken a picture of a flower and thought it was perfect – that is until we saw it enlarged or on a computer screen.

Another problem many new flower photographer enthusiasts find is that their pictures come out blurry and out of focus.   

Blurry or poorly composed pictures are all things that are easy to avoid if you know what to do.

You should first always plan to take flower pictures when the lighting is good and the air is still (no wind). Even a gentle breeze can cause the flower to move enough to blur your picture. Usually dawn is the best time of day when the wind is the calmest. This is also a time when you’ll often find the best lighting.

But if you’re not an early bird, you can still catch that perfect flower shot. You can also get good lighting the hour before sunset and anytime when there is bright overcast light. These times provide soft light without the harsh shadows. The times just after dawn and before sunset add a warm glow. And if it’s a little windy, you’ll need to set up a blind or a temporary windbreak.

The other big reason for out of focus flower pictures is from using improper camera settings. Depending on how close of a shot you want, set your camera to Portrait or Macro. The latter allows you to shoot from within one inch to a foot (check the camera’s manual). If using manual settings, choose a wide aperture (small F-stop number). All of the settings just discussed will make the flower more sharply focused but will make the background more fuzzy.

Let’s look now at turning that pretty flower into the perfect subject for your photo.

• Look for a flower with pristine undamaged petals. Or if you find a flower that’s almost perfect, except for a ragged petal or two, simply remove them. If doing so will leave a noticeable space, look for another flower.
• Look for tiny bugs and loose particles like dust, and then remove with them with a soft, makeup or artist’s brush.
• For a dewy look, gently sprinkle or spay the petals with a few drops of water.

Now it’s time to compose your photograph.

• Look at the flower from different positions to see what angle looks best in your viewfinder or preview LCD. Make sure to look for shadows and other things in the background that may not look good in your picture. Look at how the light looks from different angles. Also look at the flower from various vantage points. Try standing directly above the flower and then try lying on the ground to see which angle looks best.
• Make sure that if you’re leaning over the flower you don’t cast a shadow on it. If the flower is backlit, you can avoid lens flare by wearing a broad brim hat or by using a lens shade to block light from entering the lens.
• You also want to look at the background tones. Contrasting tones will add depth and make your flower stand out.

Whenever you see an image you want to capture, fill the frame with the flower or use a classic composition method such as the “rule of thirds” where maybe the flower is two thirds of the image and the sky is one third.

Then focus on the part of the image you want to be the sharpest – this could be the stamen, a ladybug, etc. Then holding very steady, press the shutter.

As you can see, flower photography is all about detail. And how you display your beautiful flower images also matters so make sure to display it in a picture frame that nicely offsets the flower. When framing your flower picture, avoid highly decorative frames like flower picture frames or bright colors like pink picture frames that will overpower your flower photo. Instead, choose a frame that subtly accents the flower and you’ll be sure to have a framed flower picture that everyone will admire.