Glass Ball Photography – Nature Good friend Journal

I’ve at all times been fascinated with mild shining by way of objects and with nature refracted in water drops. So I used to be all-in once I found that tumbler balls had been out there particularly for photographers who prefer to play with the artwork of refraction. I purchased a Besnfoto 80 mm Crystal Ball Photography K9 Clear Lens Ball Sphere, and a set of Tiesome 12-piece Acrylic Sphere Display Stands. The glass ball got here with a padded case and a small black stand with a suction cup to carry the ball. I appreciated the concept the suction cup may very well be eliminated and screwed onto an ordinary ¼” thread speedlight stand once I needed the ball increased.

I bought the a lot smaller acrylic stands for conditions once I needed to place the ball very low and inconspicuous—permitting me to simply cowl the bottom with snow or moss, or edit it out solely if I desired. The ball additionally comes with a small cleansing material, however I carry a a lot bigger one in my case, because it makes the ball simpler to deal with. It’s necessary to maintain the ball clear.

I’ve solely had my glass ball for a short while and have discovered it to be plenty of enjoyable. It’s an incredible instrument for stretching the creativeness and for honing one’s composition abilities, along with including attention-grabbing abstracts to my portfolio.

The images itself will be completed together with your cellphone or no matter digital camera lens you will have. So far, I’ve been utilizing my 28 mm lens, however I will even seemingly use a zoom lens sooner or later. The thought is to decide on one thing attention-grabbing to be refracted within the ball (which shall be very sharp), whereas permitting the precise topic within the background to be blurred. Lighted buildings, bridges, and landscapes are compelling topics, as are flower and nature close-ups.

For my photos right here, I used a tripod. For capturing after darkish, that is very useful, because it permits for gradual shutter speeds. But it is usually potential within the daytime to carry the ball in a single hand whereas photographing it with the opposite, capturing your hand as the bottom. Most of my photos sport a floating ball as a result of I eliminated the bottom solely, however the photos actually do look higher when the ball seems to be naturally resting on one thing. This spring, I can envision the ball resting in mossy grass refracting low-growing wildflowers, or on a seashore refracting a starfish.

During drab winter days with no snow, it’s pretty easy to {photograph} the ball indoors. Inside, a flash yields significantly better photos as a result of the ball will choose up window frames and even seize the images on the partitions. But in case you use a flash, you possibly can shoot in an almost darkish room and stop the partitions from exhibiting within the image.

For the flower pictures, I purchased the flowers at Wal-mart and captured them indoors on a colorless winter day. Abstract mild blurs will also be captured indoors by transferring coloured lights above and behind the ball whereas utilizing a four-second shutter pace.

As far as digital camera settings go, there aren’t any absolutes, as every artist is free to determine how blurry he desires the background to be and the way blurry he desires the ball’s edge to be. f/5.6 to f/8 will often yield a considerably blurry background and a considerably blurry ball edge, whereas retaining first rate sharpness within the middle of the ball. If an individual is trying to seize all the things in a single shot and do a minimal of modifying in put up, f/5.6 to f/8 is an effective place to begin.

If you want a sharper ball edge to edge, and a softer background—and also you don’t thoughts performing some layering in put up—you possibly can shoot the ball at f/18, then take away the ball and stand and shoot the background at f/2.8. Next layer the 2 pictures collectively in put up processing. All of those pictures had been executed that method. In hindsight, I believe my captures would have appeared higher had I added some blur to the sting of the glass balls. Remember—blur and sharpness are helpful instruments in directing the attention to the topic, very similar to darkness and light-weight.

If you’re capturing at dawn and need to seize a sunburst (offered you will have a lens conducive to that), it would be best to shoot at f/18, as a slim aperture makes that potential.

When positioning your digital camera and ball in relation to your topic, do no matter it takes to make your topic seem massive within the ball—you don’t need it too small. Remember, you’re specializing in the topic within the ball, and also you need it to be sharp.
You will even discover that your topic shall be captured upside-down within the ball. It’s completely as much as you if you wish to reverse it
in put up, or not. The solely time it doesn’t seize issues upside-down, is when the ball is refracting one thing proper up in opposition to it—which jogs my memory—the ball makes textual content look very attention-grabbing in case you {photograph} it on a e book!

When capturing low-growing flowers or objects up shut, many occasions the topic, ball, and digital camera yield greatest outcomes when they’re all on the identical horizontal degree. For taller flowers and landscapes the place you need to get extra sky in, you need the digital camera beneath the ball, trying up. Again, it’s all about doing no matter it takes to perform what you need with the composition. But bear in mind this—if the sky in your composition is essentially the most attention-grabbing factor, make your seize two-thirds sky. If the foreground comprises the curiosity, make it two-thirds foreground.

Make certain your digital camera is about to take the most important photos potential, as a result of you will want to crop considerably. If you attempt to get too shut and keep away from cropping, a part of your topic will end up blurry.

Glass balls pose some actual hazard, and you need to concentrate on a few issues. First, if the ball is on high of dry leaves for any time frame with the solar shining by way of it, it’ll catch the leaves on fireplace, as a result of a glass ball acts as a giant magnifying glass. So, in case you don’t need to be generally known as the photographer/arsonist of your village, watch out of that ball in full daylight.

Secondly, the ball is heavy and can trigger injury if it falls on one thing. When I first obtained my ball, I set it on a tall stand which was out of kilter in my uneven woods. As I used to be capturing a dawn, the ball launched from the suction cup and plummeted into the snow. At least that was higher than hitting me on the top, had I been in the best way. Now, I by no means place the ball above my head, and I ensure I shore up the bottom of the stand. I might not get a ball bigger than 80 mm!

It received’t be lengthy earlier than springtime graces us with essentially the most stunning season of the yr, and I’m trying ahead to seeing colourful resurrected beauties refracted in my glass ball. Are you as much as the problem?