I’ve always loved taking photographs, but when my wildlife interest in “all things small” started to take hold a few years ago the one thing that really helped me identify the insects I was seeing was my low-cost camera with macro (close-up) mode.
So how did I choose what to buy? First I set myself a budget (mine was £100-130). I wanted some flexibility with the camera controls, so I decided to look at what the camera manufacturers call a “bridge camera” (in-between a basis compact and an expensive DSLR). I also wanted a good macro facility, it needed to be small enough to chuck in my backpack (or pocket), be made to last and, most importantly, easy to use.
I’m sure there are now several cameras on the market that would fit my list of “wants” but at the time the one I plumped for was a Fujifilm FinePix S5800 (now discontinued), but don’t get bogged down with camera research. Make a list of what you want the camera to do, and the type of photos you intend to take – and there’s sure to be a camera out there that can do at least 90% of the things on your list.
My camera has two automatic macro settings; standard macro and super macro. I use both, but admit standard macro is my favourite. It allows me to stand 60cm away from my subject (a perfect distance for insects, as they tend to stick around, any nearer and they often fly off), fully zoom in (the camera has a 10x zoom) and take a close-up “macro” photo.
At this point I can hear you screaming “but every insect I try to take a photo of flies away”. I’ve managed to get around this in two ways. Either ensure the flash is activated, so that you can take sharp photographs of moving subjects, or second (and probabgly the best advice I can give to anyone), sit down. Stick with me; this isn’t as mad as it sounds.
Nine times out of ten I’ve found it doesn’t matter how well I can use my camera if I don’t understand my subject. Sit down, put your camera down, and just watch what is going on around you. If you are in your garden is there a particular flower that your subject is attracted to? Does it keep landing on a particular leaf or branch? Does it always follow a particular route from plant to plant, or go in an anti-clockwise or clock-wise direction? The more you know about your subject, the better. Once I discovered that some species of solitary male bee have a “territory” (which included a favourite food plant of the female), it became so much easier to photograph them. They’d fly from flower to flower looking for a female to mate with; they followed the same route every time, and usually stopped for a few seconds at a particular leaf for a rest. Perfect opportunity for a photo (or several photos from different angles if I waiting long enough). You’ll soon find that you’ll start to anticipate what your subject is about to do, that’s the time to pick up the camera!
That’s another thing worth considering. How many photographs should you take? Personally, I take hundreds. I make sure I use a large capacity memory card (at least 16mb), and take as many photos as I can, from as many different angles. I might only get one decent shot, but sometimes the other photos can still be incredibly useful for identification purposes. If you are photographing a particular species, find out what you will need to be able to see on the photograph in order to identify it. Does it have a very particular pattern of spots on the thorax, or a particular colour of hair under the abdomen? Find out, and make sure you get those vital ID shots if you can.
So, to the slightly techie bit. What settings should you use on your camera? If you’re using a compact camera or even the camera on your phone, you won’t have too many settings to worry about. With these I’d just get as close as you can to the subject, and take as many photos as you can. You can also buy some rather natty strap-on lenses (for about £10) which fit onto a mobile phone, and help to magnify your shots. I haven’t tried them yet – but they’re definitely on my “must have” list.
If you have a bridge camera (like my Fuji) then the first thing I’d recommend is read the manual, then read it again. I know it’s boring, I know you want to get out there and just photograph everything, but knowing your camera inside-out WILL help you take better shots. I must have read my camera manual about five times before I really understood what it could do. Even if you leave the settings in “auto” mode, and don’t stray into the realms of manual shutter speeds, apertures and depth of field, make sure you know instinctively how to change the settings, and where all the switches are. There’s nothing more frustrating than seeing your perfect subject, in the perfect position, then fumbling around with the macro, flash and zoom, and missing the shot!
Finally, have fun and experiment. Your first photo attempts might not be brilliant – but with practice they will get better. Nothing beats the feeling of identifying (or an expert identifying) a rare species in your garden from one of your own photographs.
Have you got the macro-photo bug yet?
Written by amateur naturalist, Jane Adams
The NBN Trust has just published its 2012-13 Annual Report, which features a variety of Jane's photographs as well as images from a number of other biological recorders. Take a look at the Report to see what fabulous images we were able to use this year.