top of page
sharmondavidson

Up Close and Personal: Macro Photography


21 MAY, 2020


        "The whole point of taking pictures is so that you don’t have to explain things with words." Elliott Erwitt

photo of small yellow and brown moth


"I really believe there are things nobody would see if I didn’t photograph them."

     


photo close-up of amaryllis buds
close-up photo of pollen on red amaryllis stamen


Beyond Words


If you've been following this blog or my old blog for any length of time, you're probably aware of my feelings about words versus images. There are times when I struggle with trying to make the words express what I mean to say, if you know what I mean. I guess you could say that it's often easier for me to express myself in pictures than in writing.


There are several posts where I may have whined about that, and attempted to defend my preference. Here are a few examples:


The close connection between visual images and emotions is believed to be the primary reason that art functions so well as a healing therapy.  In another post, I write about the art of visual storytelling, and how picture books can captivate peopleof all ages by speaking straight to our hearts. And my Fragments of Memory  post is about how people told stories with pictures before the invention of written language.

"When words become unclear, I shall focus with photographs. When images become inadequate, I shall be content with silence".



close-up photo inside mountain laurel flower

Strangely, a mountain laurel flower looks like it's made of styrofoam when seen very close up.


"Photography is a way of feeling, of touching, of loving. What you have caught on film is captured forever… It remembers little things, long after you have forgotten everything.” Aaron Siskind


Macro Photography Love


I've been in love with macro, or very close-up photography for many years. It fascinates me to look at the tiny parts of things that we usually don't bother to stop and pay attention to. It's almost like peering into another world that's been right there under our noses all along. A change in scale brings with it a total change in perspective. (Like Horton Hears a Who, right?)


Back during the winter I purchased an Olympus Tough TG-6 camera, partly because of its incredible macro functionality. This camera can focus on objects only one centimeter away, and THEN zoom in. Due to weather and other factors, I really hadn't had the chance to try out the macro features until recently. So, the photos I'm sharing here are among my first. I still have a lot to learn.


And if you're wondering when this non-wordy girl is going to shut up, that time is now. There will be quotes, however!


close-up photo of red dragonfly
zoomed-in closeup of red dragonfly wings

"Taking pictures is savoring life intensely, every hundredth of a second." Marc Riboud


photo of thistle bud

thistle bud


photo close-up of cecropia moth body and part of wing

        " Look and think before opening the shutter. The heart and mind are the true lens of the camera." Yousuf Karsh


macro shot of butterfly on orange butterfly milkweed

"A camera is the save button for the mind’s eye.” ~Roger Kingston



macro shot of fern frond unfurling
super close-up of fern frond

“Great photography is about depth of feeling, not depth of field.” ~ Peter Adams



macro shot of tiny spider on lilac blossom

This tiny spider on a tiny lilac bud was so small, I almost missed seeing it.



macro shot of bottom half of dandelion gone to fluffy white seed


macro shot of dandelion seed head with only a few seeds remaining

"We take photos as a return ticket to a moment otherwise gone."   







Comments


bottom of page