Pixiq

You probably don’t think of a gardener’s spray bottle as a standard photo accessory when you’re photographing flowers, but I always have one nearby—especially on bright, sunny days. Nothing in the garden is as pretty as a mist-covered rose in bloom; the problem is that when the sun comes out, natural mist burns off quickly. And since I’m not much of a morning person and rarely see the morning dew on anything, this tip is a great cheat.

So when you plan on shooting flowers, carry a small misting bottle that you can buy in any garden center. After you compose your shot and have your exposure set, give the flower a few quick sprays and you’ll have a mist-covered blossom right in front of you. Most bottles have an adjustable spray setting that creates different-sized beads of water, so experiment with the spray nozzle or even different bottles. Also, if you build up the droplets by spraying several times, the water tends to bead up in larger drops, which can look interesting as well.

You’ll also find mist on flowers and plants if you shoot after a gentle rain, of course, but often the skies are still gray and the lighting, while more gentle and even than direct sunlight, can sometimes be kind of bland. Hard rains also tend to damage delicate flowers, and if you wait until they pop back into shape, the droplets may have vanished. For an actual rainy day look, have a friend sprinkle your subject with a gentle (and emphasize the word “gentle” to your helper) spray while you shoot. (You might also want to note the expensive nature of your camera in case they decide to get playful with the water.)

By the way, if the roses (or other flowers) in your garden are looking kind of tattered and you still want to do some close-up work, consider visiting your local florist. I bought the rose above (along with several others) to shoot for an ad assignment because the ones in my garden were all past their prime. Long-stemmed roses are only a few dollars each and if you’re careful buying them, you’ll find perfect specimens in all different colors, shapes and patterns. Then just pop them into a vase with some bloom extender and they’ll last for days. When you’re done shooting them, give them to your sweetie and she (or he) will look much more kindly on all that time you spent taking those pictures of flowers.