If we had no winter, the spring would not be so pleasant and if we did not sometimes taste of adversity, prosperity would not be so welcome ~~~ Anne Bradstreet (1612 – 1672)

Spring has arrived in full force in South Africa, it’s the 1st of September and already we are set for day time temperatures reaching near 30 degrees. As Spring returns so does a plethora of life return to our gardens and there is no better time for Photographers in South Africa to get their Macro lenses dusted off and get crawling around in their gardens. Macro photography is one of the most enjoyable forms of photography.You can also get started in Macro Photography without breaking the bank.

A Banded Bee Captured in Flight Near a Salvia clevelandii x leucophylla Flower. From Mitchell Krog's Macro Photography Collections. (Copyright Mitchell Krog - All Rights Reserved)

Only once a photographer has crawled around their garden for a few hours with a Macro lens do they realise how much life is in the garden normally unseen to the human eye and the more you start crawling around as a photographer the more you actually see. Of course it goes without saying don’t go sticking your fingers into dark places and watch out for spiders and snakes. With Macro Photography it is quite essential to learn to use flash to freeze action and ensure sharper images. There are many ways of doing this. You can use a standard flash unit attached to your hot shoe or you can make yourself a bounce card to force the light down towards your subject. The best way however is to purchase a Macro Ring Flash unit which sits around the lens itself and pushes light directly onto your subject.

A Mantis/Stick Insect Photographed in the Dead of Night using Macro Flash Techniques. From Mitchell Krog's Macro Photography Collections. (Copyright Mitchell Krog - All Rights Reserved)

The night time garden is full of life, most insects come to rest at night and this is one of the best times to get out and photograph them as it does not involve you chasing them around the garden in the daylight. This however requires that you absolutely positively need to have flash lighting to assist you.

If you are relatively new in photography and have wanted to experiment with Macro photography there is no better time to get started. A good quality Macro lens is relatively affordable and Macro ring flash units are also not too badly priced either. I can assure you that Macro photography is very addictive but also very enjoyable and rewarding and you get to appreciate a whole part of life that most people do not take notice of.

A Bee in Flight Coming in For Landing on an Aloe mutabilis Flower. From Mitchell Krog's Macro Photography Portfolio. (Copyright Mitchell Krog - All Rights Reserved)

Watch out for more Macro Photography Articles and Image from Mitchell Krog