To me, nothing is more beautiful or cheerful than flowers. I never get tired of photographing them. My garden, local flower shows, and flower shops provide a never-ending variety of subjects all year, and even dried flowers make charming subjects. The real fun begins when I get in very close and focus on the details (often referred to as macrophotography). Hidden in plain sight is a wonderful world of tiny shapes.

Whenever possible, I like to bring the flowers indoors to eliminate the wind and to control the lighting and the background. Your own backyard is fair game, of course, but you should always get permission if you want to go on other people’s property. Also, don’t pick wildflowers on public land where you would deprive others from enjoying them. Besides, many wild- flowers are in danger of extinction and protected by law.

I generally place the flowers where the light from a large window illuminates them from the side. I’ll then place a reflector on the opposite side to lighten up the resulting shadows a bit. White cardboard, white fabric, or aluminum foil work great as reflectors. The last thing I do is create an uncluttered background by placing some plain cardboard or fabric some distance behind the flowers.

I can sometimes get a nice effect by having the flowers back-lit by the window and reflecting light back onto the front of them. Because the reflector will now be between the flowers and the camera, I have to cut a hole in it to accommodate the lens.

I shoot with a Nikon 8008 with a Nikon 55mm lens or a Mamiya 645 with a 120mm lens. But even some point-and-shoot cameras can now focus close enough to get good details. Also, some lenses have special “macro” settings for close-up work.

Close-up filters (magnifying filters) can be attached to most lenses but their quality is generally not great. If you want the best quality pictures, invest in a good macro lens and/or use “extension tubes” that fit in between the lens and the camera.

Because the camera is very close to the subject in macrophotography, the area of sharpness is very limited. You can either use a very small aperture for best overall sharpness, or a larger aperture to focus just on certain features and let most of the picture go out of focus for a soft effect.

I always take several exposures (called “bracketing”) of each composition and I always use a tripod and a cable release. Lastly, I recommend a polarizing filter to minimize reflections and to bring out the best colors.

Werner Bonitz is a member of the f/32 photography group and is currently represented by Silver Fox Gallery in Hendersonville, Miya Gallery in Weaverville, and Design Gallery in Burnsville. He can be reached at 828.697.8460 or by email at bonitzw@bellsouth.net.

The f/32 Photography Group meets the second Wednesday of each month at the Reuters Center on the UNCA campus at 6:30 p.m. The diverse individuals of Western North Carolina who are members of the group known as f/32 are young and old, professionals and amateurs. The common bond is a mutual love of photography and what it can show us about our world. Find out more at f32nc.com.