A Lesson in High Key Macro Photography

Intro by Chamira Young

While it's great to know the technical aspects of your camera, it's just as important to understand how to masterfully execute your vision within your chosen niche as an artist. That's why we're featuring the high key imagery of fine art photographer Lisa Langell today. With every beautiful image she creates, she understands who it's best suited for. Her target market is the home decor buyer who wants to adorn their sunroom, kitchen, or bedroom with tasteful images, and her pieces fall under the category of decorative art. With her craft comes a deep understanding that her perfect client desires softer, more gentle images that intelligently use negative space. Rather than a super-realistic photo, they want an artist's interpretation of that image. Lisa has found her niche, and she's such an inspiration to her fellow creatives! 

Using her Tamron SP 90mm VC Macro and the SP 24-70mm VC G2 zoom lenses, she's able to capture stunning images that will make you want to fill your home's walls. Click on either image below to learn more about these great lenses. We love the constant inspiration the Tamron team brings to the table.

Check out the post below!

Tamron 90mm Macro Lens - Tamron SP 90mm F2.8 Di VC USD Macro

Tamron 24-70 G2 - SP 24-70mm F2.8 Di VC USD G2

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How to Shoot: High-Key Photography

Lisa Langell uses the Tamron SP 90mm VC Macro and SP 24-70mm VC G2 lenses to create minimalist decorative art for homes and offices.

By Jenn Gidman
Images by Lisa Langell

A variegated tulip sprinkled with dew, a hummingbird flitting about a fuchsia, a daffodil basking in the morning light, its creamy yellow corona stretching skyward. These are Lisa Langell’s subjects for her high-key imagery, delicately positioned in front of her camera and ready to be exposed to the masses—or overexposed, in this case.

“I love high-key photography because it's so simple,” Lisa says. “Not necessarily always simple to photograph, but simple to enjoy. It’s so minimalistic, light, airy, and pretty, allowing your subjects to stand out on their own.”
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The high-key images Lisa creates with her Tamron SP 90mm VC Macro and SP 24-70mm VC G2 zoom lenses are targeted toward clients who are looking to enhance their home decor. “I like to call these pieces decorative art—once you hang one of these images on your wall, it becomes just that,” Lisa says. “Most of my clients who go for this type of photo don’t want super-realistic photography in their home. They’re looking for something softer and gentler, images that have plenty of negative space and work within their decor. I can see many of these images in someone’s sunroom or kitchen or bedroom.”
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​Lisa has a DIY indoor studio she uses for her close-ups, using white studio boxes lit from the outside in as her backdrop. “I light it from three sides and create a diffused light,” she says. “I tend to use less light in front of my subject, so that when I expose my subject, it’s exposed properly and my background gets blown out.”

For her outdoor shoots, Lisa takes advantage of natural light, either with or without a white backdrop. “You want a bright background, and subjects that are much darker than your background,” she says. “You also want a diffused light background, with your subject backlit, so avoid full sun. Hazy, gray sky days are perfect for high-key photography. You don't want any direct light on your subject.”

On occasion, Lisa will use flash, such as when she’s photographing hummingbirds, but as a steward of nature and wildlife, she’s done her homework on how to use such lighting ethically. “I use a five-flash setup for my hummingbird photos, using extremely low-powered flashes,” she says. “I've done extensive research in peer-reviewed journals on birds and flash photography, and I have a link on my site explaining my research. I’m very cognizant of photographing ethically without harming the birds.”

Read the rest of the post here.