Stenomesson Ecuadorense

Close-up Photography Backgrounds

If a photographer decides to render a subject like a wildflower sharp and crisp, there is often the issue of a busy distracting background.

I have in the past dealt with this by carrying a spot-light and a white umbrella when I’m in the field. By highlighting the flower, the background could be subdued.

Some photographers seem to deal with this by carrying multiple prints with artificial soft backgrounds which they can place behind the subject while they photograph.

In the digital age there is another option. A photographer may store a collection of soft generic backgrounds in his computer (made by him or herself hopefully) and in the Digital Darkroom, replace the original background with a more pleasing choice.

The above image of the Stenomesson Ecuadorense flower, taken in Ecuador, was made on a dreary day in a dark Canyon near the Cotopaxi Volcano. There was no wind. I used my LED spot to cast some light on the subject.

I got more excited about this flower recently when I discovered it belongs to the Amaryllis family!

So I took an image of a blue Canadian sky with some out-of-focus vegetation at the bottom (a Weeping Willow) and inserted my Ecuadorian Amaryllis into this image. The light on the flower was fortunate as it looks like the flower was sun-lit. Orange and blue make great complementary colours.

Ingredients: Simplicity, Great complementary colours.