Photography in Sacramento is seasonal. In the summer, there used to be Lotus photography at the William Land Park, in addition to chasing the abundant sunflowers in the nearby fields. The pond has been drained and the lotuses are gone. But there are still sunflowers.
I love dark backgrounds and the way they make the form and shape of my subjects pop. However, the summer calls for lighter tones and during this season I like to explore light grey and white backgrounds.
In 2021, I wrote a post about sunflower photography in the studio, and showed how I composed one image from multiple photographs picturing the wilting of my subject. I presented the final image against a light grey background and with a texture superimposed on it. This year, while I work on new material, I show an image I composed back then, to which I also applied texture.
My set up to take the initial photograph is depicted below. On the left hand side, I have a speed light going through a home-made diffuser and a dark foil around the diffuser directing the light to the center of the sunflower. In my exposure, I used both natural and flash light. The reason to direct light into the center of the flower with a foil is to illuminate the very dark center.
In the case of sunflowers with a dark center, if you meter your exposure for the center, the petals will be blown out, whereas if you meter your exposure for the petals, the center will be pitch black. Directional light from a speed light solves the problem. Meter for the petals, then add light to the dark portion of the flower, balancing natural and artificial light. There is no formula, you will have to experiment with the exposure.
Making the featured image was a four-step process:
1) I photographed a sunflower against a grey background, as depicted above;
2) I then cropped the image picture in three different ways;
3) Next, I used photoshop to apply a texture to each resulting image, as a top layer;
4) Finally, I converted the image to black and white.
If you are not familiar with adding texture to your photos, and would like to learn more about it, watch How To Apply Textures In Photoshop 2020, by fellow photographer Howard Grill.
This year, I am experimenting with a light pad. When I get the technique down, I’ll write another blog post about it. Below, a series of images from one experiment:
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Wall Art landscapes and miscellaneous
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It is all about the light 
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