Lately, my church, St. Ambrose Catholic Church, Omoba Road ground, has become my studio, a kind of outdoor studio. Walking along the well-landscaped path, I get to take in the beauty of the environment - the bright, colorful flowers adorning the garden, the butterflies, birds, and all the little things in nature. That's where I captured these shots.
Tridax procumbens, or Tridax daisy.
I was looking for a particular flower, but couldn't find it, instead, spotted these wildflowers with vibrant blooms growing amongst other weeds under the flowers.
These would make a good macro photo, I thought. Phone in hand, I zoomed in on the bloom, so I could get some shots.
That’s where the fight started. Lol.
My phone kept dimming the screen the closer I got. The focus would lock, then blur. I’d adjust; it would blur again. The camera clearly wasn’t happy with me trying to shoot something it thinks is “too close” without a macro lens. Imagine that!
Honestly, I almost gave up.
I cleaned the screen, camera and tried again. After like 15 tries, most of them mushy or half-focused, I finally got these shots.
My patience and dedication paid off.
Come to think of it, almost 15 tries to capture weeds! Sounds ridiculous, right? 😅 But that’s the thing. We walk past stuff like this every day. Too small, too common, too “not worth it” to notice. Yet when you actually stop and look, you'd be amazed by what you find.
Take another look.
You can see the yellow center - looking sharp, the petals are clean, the tiny hairs on the stem are visible, and the background... see how it melted into that soft green blur.
I think these photos look clean, not bad for a camera without a macro lens. Don't you think?
These photos are just a reminder that beauty can be found anywhere, even amongst grasses. And here at my church, nature gives me a lot to capture.
Honestly, I’m really enjoying taking macro shots lately, and I think with each practice, it keeps getting better. A photographer friend I shared some of the shots with said that I've got a good eye for finding these little shots, and I couldn't agree more. Lol.
Although capturing these macro shots with a phone that lacks a macro lens could be tough, sometimes, I'll keep on. Nothing good comes easy, you know.
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