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Many photographers associate close-up and macro photography with subjects like flowers and insects. These are standard for this type of photography, but there are some more unusual subjects you can shoot as well.
It’s time to grab your macro lens, extension tube or close-up lens and start experimenting…
By the way, I’m not suggesting you shoot close-ups exclusively (although you can if you want). Think of close-up photography as another tool in your toolkit, a way of adding variety and interest to the photos you make.
Unusual close-up photography subject #1: Travel and documentary photography
What do you think of when it comes to travel and documentary photography? Grand sweeping vistas? Gritty black and white environmental portraits? Photos of cultural events and street scenes?
All these are part of the genres of travel and documentary photography, but don’t forget about close-ups. They help you mix things up and are a great way of capturing the spirit of a place.
Museums, temples and markets are all great locations to try close-up photography. For example, if you’re in a market, how about making close-up photos of some of the food or goods that are for sale? Ask the stall holder if it’s okay. If you speak the language it’s an easy conversation starter. And if you don’t, just point at your camera to show what you’d like to do.
If you don’t have a macro lens then get in the habit of taking an extension tube or close-up lens with you on your travels to use with your existing lenses (both work well with standard prime lenses and zooms). Close-up lenses are great as you can put them on or remove them without removing the lens. It’s a slightly faster, easier process than using an extension tube.
For example, I made these photos in museums in New Zealand:
These ones in a street market in Shanghai:
And this one in a temple in China:
All with an 85mm lens (on a full-frame camera) and a Canon 500D close-up lens.
Unusual close-up photography subject #2: Food and travel
Food photography is another genre where you can make interesting photos by getting up close to your subject.
One approach to food photography is to make photos of food prepared by somebody else, like in a cafe, restaurant or street market.
There are overlaps here with travel and documentary photography, especially if you combine your food photography with travel. Food can say a lot about the place you’re visiting, especially if it’s a country or region with different cuisine to that you’re used to.
Another advantage of getting up close is that it lets you make photos without having to worry about the background. It’s easy to exclude it from the composition through point of view or blur it with a wide aperture.
Light is a big factor in this type of food photography. It’s often beyond your control, so you have to be observant and and search for those occasions where the light suits your subject.
Outdoors, in direct sun, the light might be too hard. Look for subjects that are in the shade, or create your own by holding something between the sun and your subject. Anything that blocks the direct sun will do, even a menu or your own hand.
Indoors, look for window light. If you have a photogenic dish and a table next to a window, then you’re in luck. Make the most of it.
The most problematic lighting is artificial light, or situations where artificial light is mixed with daylight. Photographing street markets at night, for example, is tricky for this reason. It’s not so bad if the artificial light is tungsten as the orange light adds mood. Fluorescent light and mixed lighting sources are more problematic, but you can work around it by using black and white.
You can see these ideas in action in the photos below. I made the first in a market, the second in a tapas bar, both in Cadiz, Spain. In both cases there was a mix of daylight and ugly fluorescent lighting, but I was able to compensate using the White Balance tools in Lightroom Classic.
Photographing food at home
Food photography lets you combine two hobbies – photography and cooking (or baking). It’s a great subject to shoot if you’re bit of a foodie.
First you have to know how to prepare food so that it looks good in a photo. If you’re new to this, it’s hard to go wrong with baking as cakes, muffins and cookies look fantastic fresh out of the oven.
The next step is creating an environment that shows the food off at its best. Even pro chefs use food stylists to help with the photograph for their cookbooks. Keep it simple. You’ll need some photogenic chopping boards and plates, which you may well already have. This is close-up photography, so the background’s likely to be out of focus and not something you have to worry about.
A table in front of a window makes a good studio. It’s a good idea to avoid direct sunlight, but don’t be afraid to experiment with it if you’re happy to make photos with deep shadows. Take advantage of the soft light of a cloudy day or a window away from the sun, as it’s perfect for photographing food. You can use a piece of white card or paper to fill in the side opposite the window if there’s too much contrast.
These ideas come together in the photo below. I baked the muffins, put them on a tray by a window and used an aperture setting (f5) that blurred the background.
You can get lots of ideas about composition, styling and lighting from your favorite cookbooks.
Unusual close-up photography subject #3: Classic cars
Classic cars are another subject with lots of potential. Details like hood ornaments and logos are perfect for close-up photography. Experiment with wide apertures that throw the glittering chrome and paintwork in the background right out of focus. You can get dramatic, near abstract photos like the ones below.
Summing up
Getting up close is a mindset as well as a technique. If you have a standard prime or zoom lens you may be surprised by how close you can get to the subject when it’s set to its minimum focusing distance. Sometimes all you need to do is switch to manual focus and turn the focusing ring until the lens is focused on the minimum focusing distance and take it from there.
Extension tubes and close-up lenses don’t take up much room in your camera bag and add to the versatility of your lenses. If you own a big macro lens you can leave it home and use an extension tube or close-up lens with your smaller lenses, so there’s less to carry.
Learn more
You can learn more about close-up photography techniques in the articles listed below, or by buying my ebook Up Close.
Is A Macro Lens The Best Option For Close-Up & Macro Photography?
How To Get Up-Close With Extension Tubes
How To Get Up Close With Close-Up Lenses
