Macro is the category of photography that pretty much every amateur photographer begins with. We all took those cliché close up flower pictures the first day we got our hands on a digital camera. After a few months have passed either that digital camera started gathering dust in your closet, or you moved on to a style that eventually suited your needs.

However, macro remains the staple in the world of photography because it captures incredible detail that the human eye simple can’t process.

Here my 3 main principles before taking a macro shot:

Turn off auto-focus

Manual focus will allow you to have more control over the subject you are trying to keep in focus. Since you will be working with water-thin depth of field, auto-focus will just cause frustration and loss of valuable time, especially if you are looking to capture a moving subject such as a bee or a butterfly.

Find perspective

The beauty of macro photography is that it captures the beauty of ordinary everyday things that we would otherwise ignore. Which is why perspective is important because it adds a new dimension to the way these ordinary things are viewed.

Break the rules

As the old saying goes, “Rules are meant to be broken.” So go ahead and play around the technique using a small and a large aperture, a 50mm lens or 300mm lens. Each photo is unique and more importantly YOURS, so get out there and get some new shots!