6 Steps to great Still Life Photography

Creating Still Life Photography is easy once you know how. Ive been asked a few times how to I make these pictures so I’ve condensed it into 6 steps.

1. Inspiration
2. Collect objects of similar theme and colour
3. Find a background
4. Arrange the objects
5. Take the photo
6. Add Texture

I am going to take you through these steps using ” Ready for Halloween” as an example.

1. Inspiration for Still Life Photography

This can be the easiest or the hardest step. You need to get inspiration or an idea. I find inspiration all around me. In objects, in nature, books, museums, on the internet and even on tv and in films.

For me all the inspiration is a starting point , something I would like to make a picture with. The starting point or inspiration for “Ready for Halloween” was the interesting shaped gourds and squashes. I’ve taken pictures of these before (see below) but never really been happy with the outcome.

2. Collect objects of a similar theme and blending colours

Step 2 is to make a collection of interesting objects with a similar theme and colours that blend well. Firstly I look around my house and garden for pieces. I save stuff ready for this, old bottles, bits and pieces I pick up on country walks such as feathers or acorns. Pressed and dried flowers such as the sunflower you see here are easily kept in a box ready use. Fruit and vegetables, bits from your sewing basket or the garage may all come in handy.

I grown bits and pieces in the garden that I think might be photogenic even though I have no immediate use for them. For example I have planted a whole range of bulbs ready for next year . Who doesn’t love the wonderful shapes that tulips make as they fade?

For Ready for Halloween, I used the squashes, some dried Chinese Lanterns I had grown especially for photography and some apples from the kitchen. Added to these an old basket that was gifted to me with a plant in an a couple of special pieces of antique pottery I had borrowed.

Remember we are looking for bits where the colours are harmonious with your inspiration theme. Otherwise the final image will just not look right.

3. Find a Background

The background to any Still Life Photography is very important. You need something not to busy and in a colour that goes well with the scene you are about to create. I use a black velvet cloth for many of my images. If you are using velvet then make sure it is cotton or it may be too shiny. Other good backgrounds include, old wallpaper off cuts or an old sheet. You can buy purpose made backgrounds but Ive not tried these yet.

One tip is to take a photograph of a background you like and print it out yourself. Use matt paper to avoid the shine. This would usually work out cheaper than buying a background.

Black and white foam core board is available from art shops or on-line. This can either be a background on its own or pin material to it to make the material stand at the back of your pic.

4. Arrange the objects

Arrange your objects into a pleasing shape or pattern. This will often mean using some of the rules of composition. In Ready for Haloween, the owl jug falls onto the thirds line and there is an overall rough triangular shape to the image.

Group the items in threes or fives also works, remembering to have a variety of heights in the display. Fill in the gaps so there is not too much negative space ( unless that is your intention). I’ve used the Chinese Lanterns to fill the gaps here.

I often find arranging the objects is the longest and most difficult step. Take your time. In Still life photography your subject is not going anywhere. You can take your time. Take a photo, look at the image and if necessary change the arrangement and take the pic again until you are happy.

5. Take the photograph

In the studio I often use a 105 macro lens. On larger layouts that requires you to get a long way from your picture and so I would use a more wide- angle lens .

Next you will need to light your scene. I always use as much natural light as possible and wait until there is not too much contrasty light and shadow coming through the window. Then I take a hand held light and point it into areas where I dont have enough light.

My camera stands on a tripod and I use a small aperture F18 or even F22 when I want front to back sharpness with lots of detail like in Ready for Halloween. This will often result in a long shutter speed being required.

6. Add Texture to Still Life Photography

This final step is not always required but in Ready for Halloween I added a couple of texture layers in photoshop. You can probably work out which they are. Firstly there is a texture over the black background so it is not completely flat. Secondly I added a little smoke to look like steam coming from the owl jug.

The background texture is a picture I took of a concrete slab, I then coloured that dark brown in photoshop and added a vignette at the edge. I applied it as an embedded layer with a very low opacity so that it just about shows up.

The smoke is from a snuffed out candle again pictured against a black background. This time I applied it with a pin light blend mode so that it just showed up in the areas I wanted it too.

I will write more detail about creating and adding textures soon.

Did you find this article helpful? If so then Please help me by leaving a comment below or sharing this article. This would be much appreciated and will help me to keep this blog going. If you really love my Ready for Halloween image then prints are available.