Macro photography is accomplished by using what’s called a macro lens, or with lens extension tubes. Macro lenses are specialized to shoot objects very close up, great for capturing small things or details. They are also used to create special effects, by taking example of their extremely shallow depth of field. Similarly, extension tubes are essentially ring like objects that attach to the end of your lens, moving the glass lens element away from the camera body, thus creating a magnifying effect whereas the lens is able to shoot very close to the subject, just like a macro lens. Having a macro lens is great; however, if you want a versatile solution, for a lower cost, check out lens extension tubes. Here are some quick tips.

1. Use a higher shutter speed. Remember, when you are focusing on a small object, as small as a wildflower the size of a silver dollar, every camera movement is exaggerated. Slow shutter speeds and an unsteady hand will result in motion blur, out of focus subjects, and/or less control over your creative vision. For example, I wouldn’t advise handheld shooting at a shutter speed slower than 1/160 of a second, unless you have a tripod, or you are in a very bright environment. It’s a handy trick, if you want to keep things easier.

2. Use a tripod. You’ll find very quickly that the depth of field is very shallow. This means it will be harder to get the part of the subject you want correctly focused. A tripod can enable you to shoot with a higher aperture, thus more of the object will be in focus. Tripods are especially important if you are shooting in a low light environment. This will enable you to perfectly capture the image you’re after.

3. Think outside the box. It’s tempting to go and shoot a penny, at least for practice. But some really interesting macro photographs come from seeing an ordinary object in a different way. For example what if you photographed the zipper on a pair of blue jeans, the texture and color contrast would make for an awesome capture. Nature is especially incredible from a macro standpoint. Seeing things closer than you could with the human eye, can create beautiful and interesting compositions. If you’ve ever seen the series tv series called “Planet Earth,” you’ll know what i’m talking about.

4. Practice shooting macro at different apertures. When it comes to macro photography, the selective focus area is especially important. Sometimes you may want to draw the eye to an interesting aspect and leave everything else out of focus. For example, perhaps you’re photographing a button on a shirt.  You may want only the center, where the threads go thru the holes in focus. This effect would require a lower aperture (smaller number). Having the entire button in focus would require a higher aperture (bigger number).

Here’s an example of macro photography, using lens extension tubes. These are two different angles, I shot of some Colorado Wildflowers, during a hike in the early morning. In real life, each were about the size of a silver dollar.

As with anything, the best way to learn the tricks is to practice on different subjects, with different camera settings, in different lighting environments. You can find macro lenses that shoot incredibly small objects like a single sprinkle, or macro lenses that shoot further out, perfect for filling up the frame with person’s face.

PART 1

How do you find someone to pay you to take pictures? Do you search a job site? Write a letter to an editor? Put together a resume on fancy textured paper, with a college degree or assistant history in bold block letters? It’s perhaps the most perplexing question of all time. Maybe the reason 99% of hopeful photographers jump off the wagon within the first year. I can tell you this about college training in my field, not one single client has ever asked to see my college degree. As my buddy Rich would say,” it’s like frosting on a cake, it’s delicious, it’s ATTRACTIVE, but once you get past that frosting, then you find out what that cake is really made of.” And believe me, JS has got some pretty sweet frosting on the cake, but I can tell you, it’s the cake itself that separates the professionals from the prosumers.

Alright so let’s get to the story. I went to one of the most renowned photography college programs in the world (i’m pretty awesome right?). But when it comes to creatives, often no one really cares, since it’s all about your work. Naturally, being the naive 23 year old I was, I searched for jobs on Craigslist. Why? Because i’d tried everything else, and everyone knows all the best photography jobs are on Craigslist right? No, actually not at all. I filed thru them carefully, i’d guesstimate 90% of any creative work advertised on craigslist goes something like this:

Title: Successful, growing, and up and coming corporation looking for experienced photographer to shoot fall catalog!

Details: We need 200 different professionally lit photographs of our products. You must supply all your own professional equipment. We figure the job will take 2 days max (16 hours). Unfortunately, due to budget restrictions, we can’t pay you anything, but it would be great experience and you can use the photos in your portfolio.

This is how I read into ads like this. Essentially, you are an up and coming “successful” corporation that can’t even afford to pay an “experienced” photographer $1.25/hour to perform what essentially amounts to 40-60 hours of work? Come on! They spend more than that on a pizza for lunch! If you told an investment banker from Harvard to work 2 minutes for free, they’d probably faint and go into convulsions. Don’t get me wrong, working for free rarely (emphasis on RARELY) is only okay when it’s under the right circumstances, with a person you trust, etc. Even though my peers still say, never ever ever ever ever ever ever ever work for free. So I was smart enough to stay away from the old, get something from nothing hat trick.

One day, 2 months out of school, and after 3 months of job searching, a legitimate ad came up. It was a jewelry store willing to pay “good money for photographs,” so I sent over my portfolio. A day later, I got an email and they asked me to come in to discuss the job. The feeling was exhilarating! Like the first time seeing the ocean, or gliding a beautiful woman you love across the dance floor, or…okay, enough comparisons. I think you get it. The next evening, I went down to the store, and rang the buzzer. The door unlocked and I went in. An old man was leaning back in a stool, sound asleep behind the counter. “Is this a joke” I thought to myself? Did I just get duped on Craigslist? Just as I was expecting to get hit over the head with a frying pan and robbed, a man with a frown appeared towards the back, signaling me to follow him. I would be lying if I said I wasn’t a little creeped out, a “hi good to meet you” would have been nice. Once we reached a small lunch area, the man finally introduced himself. “This is my family’s jewelry store, we make the best jewelry in the world. Our clients come from every corner of the globe.” I saw your work. You’re very creative…I like that. I think you’d be perfect for the job.” RED FLAG #1: Let’s be honest here. If they made the best jewelry in the world, with clients flying in on private jets, why were they hiring a kid off Craigslist to shoot the jewelry? He pointed at a frayed national jewelers catalog, firmly demanding “I want you to make our jewelry look exactly like this,” ripping the page out and handing it to me. It was simple enough, rings on a black background, a little sparkle in the diamonds, nothing too dramatic, piece of cake right? My confidence kicked in, “no problem” I said. Suddenly he looked up, shutting the catalog, staring at me terrifyingly before cracking a weak smile, “but you obviously know what you’re doing, so I want you to have complete creative freedom on this project, do whatever you want, make them look beautiful. Use that creativity of yours.” RED FLAG #2: This man just told me he wanted the photos to look exactly like the ones in the catalog, yet he wanted me to have complete creative freedom to do whatever I want. For those of you who just got lost, he told me he wanted one thing and then told me he wanted an entirely different thing. It’s the equivalent of telling me he wanted chocolate ice cream in a cone, and that same chocolate ice-cream in a bowl, simultaneously.

Naturally the next step was talking money. In school they teach you to always draw up a contract, carefully calculate the price, the usage fees, terms, and any details the client wants. Naturally, I rambled off the canned lines, just as I was taught. “Oh how professional I must look!” I thought to myself. The man looked at me suspiciously. “Listen, i’ve barely got 8 months of law school left, so don’t f**k with me. I’m not stupid. I don’t do contracts, I don’t mess with that usage crap, and I want the images forever, they’ll be mine, no conditions whatsover. So don’t waste my time with this contract usage garbage. Just give me a number.” Oh god I should have walked out that door, right there and then and never looked back. For those of you wanting to become a professional photographer, print his exact words out at Kinkos, make a banner and put it on your wall. Hey, go all the way and tattoo it backwards on your forehead so you can look at it in the mirror in the morning. Just make sure you remember it. You have just vicariously read the most blatant RED FLAG of all time (RED FLAG #3 to be exact). First of all, the fact he was in law school had absolutely 0% to do with anything we were discussing. It was an intimidation tactic. Second of all, he shot down every proper business practice I knew at the time, before I could even blink. Third, he wanted the whole shabang. Unlimited usage, my image copyright, no contracts, no guarantees. I felt naked and wounded, as if my spine had been ripped out by a grizzly bear in the gym shower. Take in mind this was my first professional shoot. At this point, everything, I thought I knew, had exploded against the sides of my skull. Intimidated and too scared to disagree, I just gave him a number. You all know by now what happened next. He told me that number was ridiculous. If I wanted to charge that, then I could leave his father’s store now, and he could do it with his own point and shoot camera for free. Before I could even process what was going on, he offered me 1/5 the money I proposed, shook my hand, and told me he’d see me the next morning. I walked down the ramp, past the old man still sleeping at the counter, opened the door and walked out. The night had fallen, the deafening sound of the “L” train shook overhead, as I peered upwards, thru the hazy urban streetlights at a black starless sky. My heart was racing and my confidence shot. My first negotiation had failed miserably, my client was terrifying, and the thought of what the next morning had in store for me, was enough to make me sick right there on the street.