Digital SLR Photography

10AutumnveinsBacklighting leaves isastunning wayof highlightingtheir detail and capture striking, colourfulclose-ups. Layering multi-colouredleaves on a lightbox is one method, butyou could alsoattach a leaf to a windowand use direct sunlight toreveal the finedetails in these translucent subjects. Theclosefocusingof a macro lens such asa60mm, 105mm or 200mm lens is idealfor filling the frame, but placing extensiontubes on a nifty fifty can also providegoodresults. Position your camera onatripod so the sensor is parallel to thesubject and set your camera to aperture-priority mode, with a mid-apertureoff/8-f/11. Shoot in Raw and tweak theWhite Balance when editing, otherwiseset it to Daylight toretain the boldcolours. As you’re shooting backlit, themetering system may underexpose theleaf so you may need to add a coupleofstopsof exposure compensation –keepan eye on the histogram to be sure.11Magic mushroomsWhen the summer’s warmthcollides with autumnal damp itcreates the perfect environmentfor anexplosionof woodland fungi in a varietyofcolours, sizes and shapes. They’re a superbsubject to shoot close up, so pack a macrolens or close-upattachments and don’tforg et your tripod and a mat to lie on;mushrooms like to grow in dark places soyou’ll need the extra stability.Once you’vefound mushrooms ortoadstools in good condition and position12CanopiesofcolourWhen walking through woodland,don’tforg et to gaze up. If youcatch the blazing tree canopies before toomanyof the leaves fall, you can capturestriking landscapesof towering trees.Position yourself surrounded by close-bytrees and use a wide-angle or ultra-widezoom like the NIKKOR AF-S 10-24mmf/3.5-4.5G to amplify the convergingverticals created by the rising trunks. Setasmall apertureof f/16 or more and a low ISOrating toretain image quality.You’ll needa``````for photographing, carefully prune anydistractingfoliage. When shootingat lowangles, a vari-angleLCD monitor, like thatfound on the Nikon D5300, is an asset whenexperimenting with viewpoints.To get theforeground and background outof fo cus,use a wide aperture and selectivelyfocus onthe subject. Depending on your distancefrom the fungi, an aperture around f/3.5-f/8should work well.At close quarters, a dimscene and f/8 is arecipe for long shutterspeeds, so use aremoterelease and perhapsadd light via a macro flash orreflector.``````tripod and if your camera has a vari-angleLCD monitor, use it to ease composition.Ideally you’ll need a still day as longer thanideal shutter speeds are likely, but a littlemovement in the trees can look painterly.If it is windy, you could consider deliberatelylengthening the exposure to capture themovement or even turning thezoom ringslowlyfor a zoom burst effect. If the sky isvisible through the trees, you may find youneed to add a stop or twoof positiveexposure compensation toavoid yourcamera underexposing the scene.``````heLeN DIxON``````ROSS hODDINO``````TTNove mber2016Digital slr Photography 85ROSS hODDINO``````TT