Story
behind
the Still
Name: erik Veldkamp
Website: erikveldkamp.com
Image location: the netherlands
Type of commission: Personal work
Shot details: nikon d750, 105mm,
1/50sec, f5.6, iSo 100About the shot: Sometimes it can be easy to form
assumptions about specific genres of photography.
For instance landscape and wildlife photography can
sometimes be seen as relatively uncreative in their
execution, merely capturing records of the subject
scene. Macro imaging often suffers from the same
misrepresentation. Yet as this shot from Erik Veldkamp
demonstrates, pro-level macro photography requires
precise timing and considered composition to create
close-up works of art.
“Photographing butterflies and dragonflies (and birds)
is my passion. I wanted to capture that special light
and mood at sunrise (golden hour) combined with this
beautiful, rare butterfly. If you’re lucky they still have
some dew on them, which also gives something extra,”
Erik explains. “[For this image], shot in a nature reserve
that has many rare butterflies and dragonflies, the sun
was shining through the bushes in the background. This
always gives a nice bokeh with the right angle. When I
found these two butterflies next to each other I knew
I could make a great shot out of it and capture that
special moment in the early morning.”
Whenever we work with live subjects there are a set
of specific challenges, but these can be exacerbated
greatly when using a minimum focussing distance and
high magnifications, especially in outdoor conditions.
“The challenge with this kind of photography is always
finding your subjects before the sunrise and the wind
starts. They also have to be on the right spot so you can
see the sun in the background. Here the sun was shining
through the bushes, which gave a nice bokeh. Since I
found ten [butterflies] next to each other I could choose
the best ones for this shot.”
Right
Right place, right time
“i took two pictures in the field, one for each
butterfly in focus, and stacked them in
Photoshop so they were both sharp. next i
added some minor contrast and sharpening
in lightroom”All images © Erik Veldkamp20
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