Considering most of the world is well into a few weeks of self-isolation, you’ve probably photographed nearly everything you can in your household, leaving little left to document. Now, it’s time to get really creative and to help make the most of a rough situation is Ben from Adaptalux, who’s shared a 15-minute video showing how you can capture abstract macro photographs using little more than a few lights, a few sheets of paper and a little bit of creative thinking.
Throughout the 15-minute video, Ben walks through a number of different setups and other variations you can experiment with to capture the macro abstract photographs, but the basic tools you’ll need on hand include a camera, a close-up capable lens, a tripod (not necessary, but will very much simplify the process), at least one light source, several sheets of white paper, paper clips (or bobby pins) and a flat surface that’s either transparent or translucent.
While Adaptalux lights are unsurprisingly mentioned in the video, any lights should do and if you have a few gels sitting around, you can get extra creative by mixing up colors.
If you prefer a non-visual explainer, Adaptalux has also published an accompanying blog post on its website that details the process. You can find more tutorials on Adaptalux’s YouTube channel, where it offers up a complete playlist dedicated to ‘Macro Photography Tutorials.’