Project six: The big project
Master macro with off-camera flash to capture mushroom photos with James Paterson
From antibiotics to alcoholic drinks, organic decay to delicious food, fungi play an important role in all manner of things. They range in size from tiny microscopic structures to the largest living organism on the planet. Underground, the ‘wood-wide web’ of fine tendrils creates a network that allows plants and trees to communicate. Above ground, the fruiting bodies form as mushrooms and other stunning structures that offer some wonderful opportunities for macro photography.
Fungi – and mushrooms in particular – tend to prefer dark conditions like dense woodlands, crevices in rotten wood and shady areas. When photographing in these murky spots, a burst of flash can provide a welcome lift to the scene. But it’s not just about increasing the light levels, a flash also gives you the opportunity to enhance the mood. By firing the flash off-camera, either from the side, above, behind or even below, we can highlight the fine fungi features, draw attention to colours and textures or show the delicate gills on the underside. Whenever we add our own light into a scene like this, the ambient daylight becomes almost like a secondary light source. We can decide whether the daylight plays a major or minor role in the exposure, either by balancing our flash with it for a subtle lift or by overpowering it for a spotlight effect.
But before you head out in search of fantastic fungi, it’s worth saying that you shouldn’t touch anything you don’t know. Do not inhale spores and you must wash your hands. As for eating foraged mushrooms, please heed the wise words of Terry Pratchett: ‘All fungi are edible. Some fungi are only edible once.’
Majestic mushrooms
GET YOUR OFF-CAMERA FLASH SET UP FOR FUNGI CLOSE-UPS
The camera is set to Manual mode with 1/30 sec shutter speed, f/8 aperture, ISO100. A mid-range aperture like this will give you the sharpest results, as lenses tend to perform their best a couple of stops down from the maximum aperture. Even at f/8, the depth of field will be very limited, so precise focusing is crucial.
A tripod is a must for macro photography, not just because it lets you slow your shutter speed, but also because it means you can be really precise with your focusing. Manual focus is best. Use Live View and zoom in, then use the focus ring to ensure the front edge of the mushroom is sharp.
Fired at 1/4 manual power, the Speedlight is placed slightly behind the subject and angled back towards the camera so that it doesn’t spill onto the area beyond the subject. This helps the backdrop to come out nice and dark, which, in turn, helps the water drops to stand out.
Key to this technique is learning how to fire your flash off-camera. You��
