Selling Flower Photography – Tips for Taking Pictures That Sell Quickly

Flowers make a great subject for photography. Photographers will be able to capture the beauty and depth of flowers in their many shapes, colors, and contrasts for a lifetime. But which flower or arrangement will you choose? Is it more about a single sunflower against an abstract background or a bouquet of country-garden flowers? You may prefer an outside shot with delicate flowers rather than an artificial studio setting. There are a few easy steps you can take to ensure your WOW shot sells quickly.

How to get that perfect shot

Camera equipment

A DSLR camera is the best choice for camera equipment. You can use a wide-angle lens to capture beautiful floral landscapes. Then you can switch to a 50mm lens to get sharp shots. Or, you can change to a macro lens to get stunning close-up photos. If you are photographing flowers with macro lenses or wide apertures, a tripod is essential. A tripod gives you more time to compose your shot. If you have splayed legs, it allows you to shoot close to the ground for different perspectives. A reflector can be used to enhance outdoor shots that require more detail in the shadows. Moderated lighting, such as softboxes, can be used in the studio to create a softer, diffused light, as opposed to a bright, direct flash.

Camera settings

To reduce noise in your photos, set ISO to 100 or 200 at the lowest. RAW is better than JPEG, so you have as much information as possible. To determine the right white balance, either set White Balance to auto (or use a grey card). To maximize depth of field, use small apertures. Wide apertures blur the background to make your image stand out.

Composition

To create professional-looking photographs, use the rule of thirds. Having your subject in the middle of the image can look dull. When composing your shot, you can use both horizontal and vertical formats. Vertical shots look best for tall plants, while horizontal shots are better for wider plants. You should be aware that magazines often feature more vertical shots, so it’s worth having both. Although not a major factor in composition, you can give your photo that morning dew look by adding water from a spray bot.

Focus

Sharp focus is key to great photography. Macro photography of flowers is difficult because of the small depth of the field. A few millimeters can mean the difference between a flower subject being completely in focus and apart. Choose early morning if you are outside. This is not only because it is the “golden hour” but also because there are fewer breezes that can spoil your ability for pinpoint focus. A studio shot is a better option if you don’t want wind moving around your shot. Manual focus is my preferred method. I use the zoom control to get right into the details, and the camera is on a tripod. Autofocus can cause the camera to “hunt” and may make it difficult to find a focus point. An adapter rail is a way to connect the tripod to the camera. This allows me two sliders for fine movement control in both planes. Sometimes, a more abstract effect can be achieved by getting really close to the flower and focusing on the stamens or their texture or pattern. Attach a cable release to your tripod and then use a remote shutter release. You can fire the shutter by pressing the shutter release button, which will prevent camera movement.

Angle of view

Because of their shape, size, and colors, some flowers are more interesting from an angle than others. The angle you choose to take a shot from will depend on what makes it more interesting. For a change, try shooting below.

You are selling your photos to stock photo sites.

There are a few things you should consider when selling your photos. To begin with, you should research stock photo sites to determine what photo subjects are most in-demand and what the rate of payment per image is.

Which stock photo sites are best?

These are some of the most popular stock photo agency websites for you to look at. According to the size of the image downloaded, Dreamstime pays an average of $1 per image. If you sell images through Dreamstime, you can earn an additional 10%. Shutterstock is another option. It pays 25 cents per downloaded image but has a large membership base. istockphoto, a popular stock photo agency, also has a lot of traffic. You can earn between 50 cents and $3 per download by submitting your image to BigStockPhoto. Some agencies have specific requirements, so be aware.

Send images to these sites.

These are some helpful tips to help you submit your images to stock photo websites:

You can find the scientific name or Latin name of the flower as well as the common name. To aid in searches, include the name in keywords. This is useful if your images are to appear in magazines or books.
Look at the image requirements of an agency. You will find a link to their website.
Websites that specialize in stock photos need simple images with no artwork, except where necessary.
Photograph many images of flowers. You have a better chance of getting paid if you submit more images to agencies. Because agencies have different customer bases, you can submit the same image multiple times to each agency. One agency might accept your image while another agency may reject it.
Photograph images at the highest resolution possible. Agents are often interested in images larger than 5-10 Megapixels.
To avoid noise, set your ISO to the lowest setting when you take the picture. The agency will reject any noise in your photo.
Allow some space for text additions by agencies when taking your shot.
Rejections are not to be taken personally. Many agencies will give you a reason why they rejected your application, such as They have enough of that type of image.