The way to shoot a reduction ice still life

Imitate the coming of spring and coil as we show you a brilliant technique for shooting a reduction still life image.

Depending on where you stand in the world, spring may still feel just a little way off – but like a photographer you don’t have to wait for the second, sometimes you can create it on your own.

Frozen subjects have a wintry magic all their own, and the way the actual ice around them holds onto and refracts the light since it melts means no 2 photographs
are the exact same.

This project involves getting a bright, vibrant subject, then freezing it inside a block of ice. In the event that you’re using buoyant topics, such as flowers, place them inside a pot of shallow drinking water, allow this to deep freeze, add more water to completely submerge the flower, after which freeze it again.

When the block of ice is actually ready, you are likely to suspend it above a few candles, the idea being to feature a mixture of ice, water, fire and perhaps actually some smoke all in one still-life image.

You’ll need a macro lens to get really close to your own subject, but if you don’t have one you are able to shoot wider and include more from the candles within the frame making use of your standard zoom at complete zoom. You could also make use of a cheaper alternative
to a passionate macro lens, such like a magnifying filter or a good extension tube.

Macro photography provides a variety of challenges, from requiring extremely precise focusing having a narrow margin for mistake, to calling on an enthusiastic attention to detail when designing your scene. Despite these types of challenges, with some careful placement and key settings you too is going to be capturing stunningly detailed macro touches.
1 Frost nova
Make your ice blocks ahead of time – start at least your day before your shoot. It’s smart to make multiple ice blocks so you have more options obtainable. Make them in plastic tubs and pour warm water within the underside of the box to obtain your block out.
2 To black
Set up your own backdrop and light. All of us used a black fabric to isolate our topic, with a standard 40-watt household lamp towards the right to light the actual scene. It’s also smart to put down a holder that’ll sit underneath your susceptible to catch dripping water as well as any candle wax.


3 Maintain a candle
Position your own candles against your history (but not too close), remembering you’ll have to suspend the ice over them. One flame isn’t especially effective, so we arranged three candles inside a line. Wider shots filled with smaller tealights can also lead to interesting shapes.
4 Prop it up
Placement your ice above the actual candles, either by propping this up (use the edge from the tray, jars, cans, or anything you like so long as it’s out of shot), or even suspending it from over on string. If a person suspend it, use multiple bits of string to stabilise it and prevent it spinning.


5 Open up wide
As your scene will probably be low-lit, you might need to utilize a slowish shutter speed, so place your digital camera on a tripod if you want to. Keep the depth associated with field shallow, with a good aperture of, say, f/3. 2 to split up the subject from the backdrop. Set ISO to 100 to get rid of noise.


6 Glaciers melt
Light the candles as well as shoot from low right down to crop out the holder and any stands accustomed to hold up the glaciers. The ice will dissolve quickly; this is ideal for showing the defrosting procedure, but means you need to shoot quickly. Only light the candles when you’re prepared to shoot.