Macro Photography: A Garden Safari Guide | Take and Make Great Photography with Gavin Hoey

If you are looking for a wildlife photo tour that gets you up close with beasts that are colorful, extraordinary looking, and roam completely wild, then stay right where you are because a macro garden photo safari is what you need. Backyards, parks, and even cities could be your perfect photo location because insects are found almost everywhere.

In this photography video tutorial, Gavin Hoey steps outside his studio and into his garden in search of spiders, ants, flies, beetles, or anything that will stay still long enough for him to get up close with a macro lens. The video is packed full of macro photography tips with plenty of gear suggestions and lighting advice for insect photography.

Gavin starts off his macro photography journey by using just natural light. He shares his camera settings for macro photography and demonstrates how he transforms harsh sunlight into soft shade using a 5 in 1 reflector.

Next Gavin switches to macro photography with flash. He takes you through his ever-improving macro flash set-up, talks about the simple camera settings he uses for his macro photos of bugs, and shares some top tips on how to improve your close-up photos of insects.

→ Article:
A Guide to Garden Photography Using a Macro Lens

Timestamps and Chapters
0:00 Intro
1:12 Essential gear for macro photography
2:06 Macro photography with just daylight
3:55 How to get close-up shots of insects
5:41 Flash set-up for macro insect photography
6:55 Camera settings for macro photos with flash
7:32 Pros and cons of flash for macro photos
8:36 Improve your macro insect photo composition
9:27 How to increase your macro depth of field
10:08 Conclusions and Subscribe

Gavin Hoey is a freelance photographer, content creator, OM SYSTEM ambassador, and trainer who specializes in all things photography.

With over 25 years of experience, Gavin’s photography career has grown from a part-time job writing articles for photography magazines into a full-time career creating video tutorials and live streams. More often than not he can be found photographing, filming, and editing in his small home studio.

Gavin is a highly creative and talented photographer who believes that anyone can take amazing photos. Now in his 11th year with Adorama TV, sharing that belief with over 1.2 million subscribers is an honor he never takes for granted.

Whether it’s portrait or macro photography, studio lighting, or post-processing, Gavin is passionate about creating simple, entertaining, and educational content. In fact, the only thing he enjoys more than talking about photography is actually doing photography.

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✘ PRODUCTS USED:

OM SYSTEM OM-1

Olympus M. Zuiko 60mm f2.8 Macro

Flashpoint Zoom Li-on Manual Flash Speedlight

MagMod MagSphere 2

MagMod MagGrip 2

Flashpoint Locking PC Sync Cable

Flashpoint Universal Hot Shoe Adapter for PC Connection

Flashpoint 11" Articulating (magic) Arm

Benro MeVIDEO Livestream Cold Shoe Adapter

Glow 5-in-1 Collapsible Triangle Reflector (18")

Lexar Professional 1667x 64GB SDXC UHS-II/U3 Memory Card

#macrophotography #naturephotography #adorama

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THANKS SO MUCH FOR WATCHING!

[RickMahoney]

Glad to see you out of the studio and getting some sun and fresh air.

[kennethnielsen]

I just love opening my youtube app, and seeing a brand new

[rymanina-tdlp]

Thank you so much for this, is really helpful, and I wish you all best

[josephchan]

I still love photography and I appreciate these classes.

[willemfloris]

That is a very nice surprise, Gavin. Macro photography. Very nice to see and hear.

[Barbiejay]

thank you Gavin, a great and helpful vid as always!

[Stevie-F]

I think this is the most useful macro video i have ever seen 👌🏼👌🏼

[justmeinit]

nice to see you doing something different Gavin. would like to see more of this

[robinfereday]

The always wonderful Gavin Hoey fantastic photographer and always informative and interesting

[RustyBin]

Just got a flashgun with diffuser and taken my first two insect pics - hooked already - lots of great advice as usual Gavin thanks so much.

[Sportserjeff]

I love macro photography. I generally photograph flowers, and sometimes I combine flowers and models in a double exposure.

[zaqueenateatro]

doesn't get better than Gavin <3

[JohnChubbSr]

Beautiful shots of these little creatures and so much detail!

[charleyl]

Thanks Gavin. I've done indoor macro work for printed circuit boards, small hardware, etc., but never went outside with it. I think you have convinced me to try it.

[bonniekahui-ihim]

So talented at everything you do. Absolutely love your videos!

[DrgnSpawn]

Backyard safaris are a fun way to practice shooting in manual mode!

[Innerlightuk]

Some great images interesting and precise as usual

[carlgray]

superb shots gavin ! ... more videos like this would definitely be welcomed .

[peternilmot]

So surprised to see Gavin hosting this episode. Excellent work as always Gavin!

[marzatomika]

I'd love to see more videos of gav outside the studio