Exploring abstract macro photography at home
Photographer Alberto Ghizzi Panizza on his lifelong love of macro photography and his tips on perfecting the shot
Macro photography has fascinated me for a lifetime. It enables us to explore worlds often invisible to us and clearly observe the small details that exist in everyday life which the naked eye cannot. It is one of the most fun photographic techniques.
Getting started
The beauty of this technique is that a good compact or bridge camera might be all you need to get started. Just check if it has a macro function and then confirm the correct distance with which to shoot to get the maximum magnification. If you own an APSC or a full-frame camera, everything will depend on the lens. Don’t be discouraged if you don’t own a macro lens, different lenses are also capable of good reproduction ratios. I often use optics like the AF-S DX NIKKOR 18-300mm f/3.5-5.6G ED VR to take good macro photographs.
Understanding maximum magnification
To get to grips with the maximum magnification you can obtain with your lenses, I recommend focusing in manual mode. Then move the focusing ring to the minimum allowed distance or the longest focal length, if using a zoom lens. At this point, looking inside the viewfinder, you can approach or move away from any subject to see it clearly and in focus. When you see the right distance through the viewfinder (or even using the live view) this will be the maximum reproduction ratio you can obtain with your optics.
For example, with the aforementioned AF-S DX NIKKOR 18-300mm f/3.5-5.6G ED VR, I will be able to stay at 0.45 meters from my subject with a focal length of 300mm to obtain reproduction ratios of 1: 3 or 0.32X. This is often more than enough to capture good macro photographs. Alternatively, if you have an FX body you can use it in DX mode for the same results as you would have with a real DX camera, at the expense of a megapixel reduction. But of course if you have a true macro lens, you should use it to obtain reproduction ratios of 1:1, called life-size, where our subject will occupy the same surface on the sensor that it occupies in reality.
Don't be afraid to have fun
For macro photography to be executed well, you generally need a good level of technical knowledge — but don’t let this put you off. Now is the perfect time to give it a try, experiment and have fun! Here are some scenarios you can try at home.
Capturing droplets on a CD
I used a CD, but a DVD can also work well, with a nebulizer and a syringe to create droplets on its surface. To make it easier for myself, I secured the CD to the tripod with a clamp. To recreate my shot, the most important thing is to find the correct angle to create the rainbow effect. This can easily be achieved next to a window, rotating the CD or using an LED lamp, until the colours are at maximum intensity. Each time you spray the CD, different drops will form. If you particularly want to create round droplets then I recommend using a dry CD.
Everyday household objects can be deceiving
Wandering around the house I found objects such as screws and nails that could be interesting as macro subjects. While photographing them I asked myself what it would have been like to capture them all together, which is when I came up with the idea of creating miniature cities that deceives the observer at first glance.
Using a silver saucer as a base, I placed various screws and objects together to recreate a small imaginary city. Once the city was created — admittedly, this took several attempts because I kept hitting everything with my arm — it was all about good lighting.
To make the background more pleasant, which can be difficult at home, I used my notebook with a photo projected on the screen — a beautiful sunset.
After some experimentation, I tried to remove as much light as possible so that the silhouettes of the tiny structures projected against the background to create a realistic effect.
Wat kun je thuis nog meer vastleggen?
Een ander gemakkelijk te fotograferen onderwerp om abstracte en kleurrijke beelden mee te maken zijn de vormen die ontstaan bij het mengen van olie en water. Alles wat je nodig hebt is een doorzichtige ovenschaal of gewoon een glas, wat ik heb gebruikt. Mijn advies is om het glas te vullen, maar niet tot de rand. Voeg een paar druppels olie toe, meng met een theelepel en je ziet uiteindelijk belletjes van verschillende grootte ontstaan. Je kunt dan gekleurde ondergronden onder het glas leggen. Ik heb een blad met verschillende tinten gebruikt. Een tijdschrift met gekleurde pagina's werkt ook goed. Nu moeten we licht toevoegen aan onze mix. Ik gebruik het liefst een LED-zaklamp om rond het glas te draaien om vormen en kleuren te benadrukken, de beste effecten krijg je met de zaklamp aan de zijkant. Je kunt ook een externe flitser gebruiken om de vloeistof te bevriezen of zeer korte sluitertijden.
De mogelijkheden zijn eindeloos…
Als je tijd hebt, zijn de mogelijkheden voor abstracte macro's eindeloos. Als je een tuin of een balkon met planten hebt, kun je droge bladeren fotograferen en proberen de interessantste details vast te leggen. Je kunt nog een stap verder gaan en de bladeren in een ovenschaal doen en ze invriezen. Een van mijn andere favoriete onderwerpen is mos met zijn vele knoppen. Je kunt een stuk losmaken, het mee naar binnen nemen en het met je fantasie versieren met druppels en gekleurde achtergronden.
Macrofotografie opent nieuwe werelden, dus waar wacht je nog op?
Meer werk van Alberto Ghizzi Panizza vind je hier.
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