There are a lot of places to photograph flowers in April, but one of the two best destinations for nature photographers is California for the poppies. (The other destination is the Texas Hill Country.)  April is prime time although you can find poppies as early as late March in some areas. As an added bonus, there are a host of wildflowers blooming all across the Southwest from California to Texas.

The timing of the poppy bloom is determined by weather conditions so it can vary from year to year and place to place. There are several sites where you can get up to date reports on poppies and other flowers (links below).

The Antelope Valley Poppy Preserve is California’s prime destination. In a good year entire hillsides and valleys are covered with poppies. Poppies can also be found at other locations around the state. When I am in the Bay Area in late March or April I head for the Don Edwards San Francisco Bay National Wildlife Refuge which has several bunches of poppies on the hillside near the visitors center.

Be sure to take a variety of images from closeups to landscapes and everything in between. If you have whole hillsides covered with poppies, be sure to take it all in. If you find just a few nice clumps (like the photo above), get in close.

Everything you know about composition applies to poppies. The photo above is a good illustration of the “rule of thirds”.  If you imagine your photo divided by tic-tac-toe lines, you can place key elements near the lines and/or near the points where the lines cross.

Most flowers photograph well when you get down to eye level with the flowers. Sometimes even lower works. For the photo above my camera was on the ground and my face was in the dirt so I could see through the viewfinder. Getting low can also hide an unappealing background. There was a row of houses behind my poppies that I wanted to leave out of the photograph.

You will get the best color possible out of your camera if you get the best possible exposure, so meter carefully (check out the “how to” articles linked below).

Most flowers look best in the soft light of a cloudy bright day with minimal shadows, but poppies look great in bright sunlight. Make the most of the light and be sure to try front light, side light, and especially back light where the petals look like nature’s stained glass windows.

If you are shooting into the sun to get nice backlit petals, don’t let the sunlight fool the camera into underexposing your image. It is better to meter in  manual mode.

If you are shooting into the sun, you can create a natural sun star by using a small aperture like f/16 or f/22.  The rays of the sun star are created when sunlight bends where the aperture blades meet inside the lens. You will need a dark blue sky behind the sun and it helps if you hide part of the sun behind a flower petal.

A small aperture (f/16 or f/22) will also give you a lot of depth of field (apparent near to far sharpness) so the flowers right in front of your lens are sharp along with anything in the background. This is especially true if you use a wide angle lens.

At least once in your life you should head to California for the poppies (not to mention all of the other photographic splendors in the state).  Where ever you are this spring, get out there, find some flowers, and have fun! I have provided wildflower links for California and the rest of the Desert Southwest.

Links

How To Information:

For more information on flower photography, exposure, choosing apertures, depth of field, making the most of the light, nature photography and more, read Digital Photography Exposure For Dummies, one of the highest rated photography books at Amazon.com. Learn more about the book here and order it at Amazon.

The Best Colors Come From the Best Exposures

Why Is Exposure So Important? – The first of a series of “how to” articles on exposure.

Great “How To” Flower Photography Book by Tony Sweet

The Best “How To” Nature Photography Books

Wildflower Locations and Updates:

Antelope Valley California Poppy Preserve – Wildflower status updates.

Anza-Borrego Desert State Park – A great place to find desert wildflowers.
Anza-Boreggo wildflower hotline: 760-767-4684

Anza-Boreggo Deseret Natural History Association – Wildflower reports

CA Department of Fish and Wildlife – Finding wildflowers in central California.

Theodore Payne Foundation – Wildflower reports for Southern and Central California

Nature Alley – A listing of wildflower reports for Central California

Natural History Wanderings – Wildflower reports across the Southwest from California to Texas

Desert USA – Wildflower reports across the Southwest from California to Texas

Desert USA CA – Desert wildflower reports for Southern California

Arizona-Sonora Desert Museum – the Desert In Bloom

Where to Photograph in California – A Yahoo Group