Today’s post is all about native blossom and the apt term Blackthorn Winter provides us a reminder of how harsh weather can return at the drop of a hat- it refers to the habit Blackthorn has of flowering just before a cold snap.
Surely it is a hard heart which does not brighten at the sight of spring blossom. Blackthorn, Hawthorn, Apple, Cherry- we are spoilt for choice. Some winter flowering species have been and gone but many natives are just starting to break or yet to come (looking through my archives I have taken many lovely blossom shots in May).
Blackthorn is one of my favourites, this is the only time of year it is easy to tell apart from the Hawthorn, as Blackthorn comes into flower before the leaves have come out. The delicate petals against the stark branch and lethal looking thorns make a wonderful contrast. Any witches in need of a new staff or wand (apparently this is the favoured wood) or autumn foragers in need of Sloe Gin, may wish to note the location of these bushes now.
A few pointers for creating pleasant blossom images-
1 These photos can often be busy, with lots of extra branches criss-crossing behind the subject, a shallow depth of field can help blur the background. On a phone-camera this may be replicated by choosing Portrait mode.
In nearly all cases you will dramatically narrow the depth of field by ‘zooming in’ on your subject – which is to say, standing back and setting the lens to magnify the scene to fill the frame once more (choosing a longer focal length).
If you use a Macro lens, which is a great choice if you have the option, you will naturally get a blurry background.
2 If you are vertically challenged (like me) and try to photograph the blossom above you in a tree you will invariably be shooting into the light. If you want to avoid a silhouetted subject you will need to be careful. Consider turning the flash on on your camera, normally this has a great measuring system and will compensate by itself for the available light and just provide you with a suitable amount of ‘fill in’ flash. If flash isn’t an option or looks too harsh you can otherwise force the camera to brighten the scene. On a phone-camera try holding your finger on the screen then gently sliding your finger upwards, this often opens an exposure scale and allows you to manually brighten the image. On a camera, if you are not yet comfortable with manual mode, you can use the helpful exposure compensation button. A simple “+/-” symbol will denote the physical button or menu option you need to press. It will normally be set to “0” move the dial towards +1 or even +2 playing about with how much is appropriate- if in doubt err on the side of a slightly dark image. You MUST remember to turn this back down afterwards or your next images will forever be too bright- this setting rarely resets itself.
