Mushrooms In Their Pure World

Introduction

I’ve taken fairly some mushroom photographs over the previous couple of years and most of them have been achieved with my macro lens. Mushrooms are sometimes tiny, and it’s very inviting to single them out with a gorgeous gentle background. I wrote a selected article about this in 2020 which you could learn on my web site.

However in fact, as a photographer I wish to evolve. I wish to attempt for brand new inventive angles and do one thing totally different. I began focusing extra on the encompassing of mushrooms. I wish to present the magic world of the forest that lies round them. I observed that already with my macro lens, the place I typically shoot just a little bit wider to incorporate some additional parts, like on this explicit picture the place I present the tiny scale of this mushroom among the many surrounding autumn leaves:

Additionally, I began to experiment an increasing number of with focus stacking in mushroom pictures. Focus stacking is commonly utilized in macro pictures (particularly these tremendous sharp insect photographs). Right here I take advantage of this system to get this small scene with shrooms that grew round an autumn leaf from a high down perspective:

However I additionally use it in large angle panorama pictures to get every little thing sharp from entrance to again. Fairly a few of my pictures are fairly recognized for these extremely large angles the place every little thing is tremendous sharp.

The Completely different Strategy

This yr, I approached the mushroom season just a little bit totally different. I wished to seize the mushrooms and actually present their setting. I wished to mix the world of macro with the world of large angle landscapes. 2 totally different worlds that I actually love, and convey them collectively in photographs. And I wished to do all this in my very own ‘fairytale’ like fashion.

Upon posting a few of these on-line, I’ve obtained an unimaginable quantity of constructive responses with folks typically saying that they haven’t seen this fashion of photographing mushrooms earlier than. I’m positive that is nothing new and it’s been achieved, however the best way of photographing mushrooms like this actually impressed me to do extra. Folks additionally raised many questions. And that’s truly one of many fundamental causes for writing this text: in order that I can merely hyperlink to it when folks ask the identical questions again and again 🙂 If you wish to skip proper to the questions, there’s the FAQ part on the backside of this text.

A Woodland’s Story

Approach

Within the picture above, we see a bunch of mushrooms with the misty forest behind it. The method used to seize this picture is to get very low with the digicam (nearly on the bottom). Photographs are taken from a tripod, so that you want a tripod to get tremendous low to the bottom. Additionally, a flip display in your digicam is an enormous plus. Then, I don’t get ‘too’ near the mushroom. As a result of I desire a correct stability between the dimensions of the mushroom and the forest behind. So I transfer barely again, and them zoom in just a little bit. This was shot with a 24-70 lens, at 39mm. So actually not even that large.

As a result of I’m fairly low to the bottom and I typically should put the tripod in tight areas, I at all times test the composition with my cellphone first, in order that I can shortly see the way it’s going to look. A tip I can advocate to everybody: Use a small tripod for pictures like this, as a result of an enormous tripod will get very clumsy on these tight areas.

I then used a way referred to as ‘focus stacking’ the place I take a number of pictures at totally different focal factors and later mix them collectively, to get the entire shot in focus. Even capturing at f/22 doesn’t get the background sharp. And in these photographs, I wished to create that 3 dimensional look which you could obtain with correct focus stacking. I’ve a tutorial about this system on YouTube.

Right here’s the remainder of the collection. All of those have been captured throughout misty mornings within the Netherlands. As you possibly can see, we at the moment don’t have autumn colors but. However the forests are stuffed with mushrooms!

Sequence – Mushrooms In Their Pure World

Row of Shrooms

Giants within the Darkness

Mushroom Household

Obsidian Oasis

Excessive Up

Silent Sentinels

Glimmers within the Shadows

White Knight

The Gathering

FAQ

Like talked about earlier than: many questions have been raised about these pictures once I confirmed them on a number of social media platforms, so let’s discuss a few of these:

Are there at all times so many mushrooms within the Dutch Forests?

No! You discover most mushrooms in autumn round October and November within the Netherlands. This yr, there are a lot of of them due to the comparatively heat local weather and plenty of rain. Colleague photographer & buddy Jan Vermeer has a complete picture e-book in regards to the totally different mushrooms within the Netherlands. Undoubtedly test that out if you wish to see all of the totally different ones in a gorgeous means!

Are these (social gathering) generated with AI?

AI is a scorching matter nowadays, and folks typically assume that my photographs are generated with AI. This isn’t the case. I spend a number of work within the discipline and I realise that a few of these look ‘unreal’. I feel it’s the mixture of the main focus stacking method with the modifying fashion that makes folks have these doubts. However I can guarantee you they’re actual photographs 🙂

How a lot modifying is concerned in these photographs?

These photographs have been shot in RAW format. Which means it’s a must to do some modifying to convey the colors out. For instance: For those who shoot photographs along with your smartphone, your smartphone does a ton of modifying to your pictures to make them look ‘good’. Skilled cameras that shoot in RAW format don’t try this, so sure there’s modifying concerned. Aside from the ‘focus stacking’ (talked about above) , common contact ups have been achieved concerning color and distinction. No parts have been added or eliminated.

To present you an instance of an authentic RAW file (with none focus stacking) from the primary picture on this collection:

Opinions on modifying and elegance drastically differ, particularly on-line. Everybody like’s to say ‘I’d have achieved x and y’ or ‘I like toe RAW rather more!’ However that is my modifying fashion and my means of displaying these photographs to my viewers. Some folks prefer it, some don’t, and that’s completely positive 🙂 Pictures could be boring if we’d all make the identical issues. If you’re considering my modifying fashion: I’ve a course obtainable that teaches you ‘Methods to get probably the most out of your RAW recordsdata’. You could find that right here: www.edityourlandscapes.com

What settings have been used?

I’ve already described the method above and put all of the settings with each picture. You would possibly query: Why principally capturing at an aperture of f/14 for focus stacking? For my lenses, f14 is on the sting of dropping sharpness due to diffraction. And likewise, f/14 continues to be a slender aperture which supplies good overlap by way of focus stacking. For those who use an open aperture like f/4, you would wish rather more photographs to get every little thing sharp, and the entire course of turns into a complete lot harder. Shutter pace is easy: I take advantage of the shutter pace that’s required to get a correct uncovered picture. ISO is generally 200, whereas the bottom ISO of my digicam is 100. Why use 200 then? To scale back the shutter pace and get sharper leaves. Though there was principally no wind in these photographs, leaves of bushes typically transfer just a little bit. To get them sharp within the picture, I take advantage of just a little bit increased ISO. The remainder of the settings, you possibly can merely discover above 🙂

Do you utilize additional lighting when photographing mushrooms?

Whereas I like to see folks get inventive with mushroom pictures, utilizing LED lights and so on to make some actually stunning photographs, I don’t do it. I like to point out them of their pure world with the pure climate and light-weight. I do that in these collection, however I additionally do it once I {photograph} them with a macro lens. I merely love utilizing pure gentle.

Are you able to title all of the mushrooms?

I truly can’t. After all I can look them up. I may advocate the documentary ‘Incredible Fungi (it’s actually unimaginable)’, however I’m actually not an skilled. I don’t care that a lot about which mushrooms I see, so long as they ‘communicate’ to me they usually look stunning of their surrounding. However I’m positive there are a lot of consultants studying this text, and please do touch upon the names of those mushrooms and some other fascinating information there’s about them! I really like issues like that!

Are you able to eat them?

Just like the above query: I don’t truly know. I actually wouldn’t attempt it, however I’m positive you may most likely cook dinner a few of them. Once more, please do remark if you already know extra 🙂

I wish to go to the Netherlands and see mushrooms! When & The place?

Superior! Like talked about above: Half October to half November is one of the best timing I’d say. You could find them in mainly any forest. Merely test the woodlands on the map and go. Plenty of these pictures have been taken within the stunning Speulder Forest within the Netherlands. It’s one of many oldest forests within the nation.

Thanks Albert! The place can I contact you and observe your work?

To begin with, thanks for taking the time to take a look at my work and studying this text. When you’ve got any extra questions, be happy to electronic mail me at [email protected], or speak to me on social media. My web site is www.albertdros.com

Gear used on this article:

Sony A7RV

Sony 24-70 GM II

Sony 16-35 GM II

Sony 70-200 f/4 Macro

Sony 90mm f/2.8 Macro

Thanks for studying!

Albert