Make your flowers monchrome marvels

Take black and white photos or convert existing shots with Lightroom’s Select Subject

- Sean McCormack

If you’ve learned how to water plants, you probably own some gorgeous flowers. For a long time I killed every plant I bought. When I finally remembered to water regularly, I was blessed with colour. I even rescued a dead-looking lemon verbena belonging to my late wife, and serves as a reminder each spring.

Flowers don’t last all year, but you can do something that makes their memory last longer: photograph them and create prints. You’re not required to make colour copies; you could create fine-art versions, giving a unique twist on them, so hopefully you shot some flowers over the summer, or have some late bloomers.

Shooting flowers is pretty straightforward. A macro lens can help, and you can choose bright sunlight for a crisp light with deep shadows, or a diffuser for a softer, more even light. Any basic 5 in 1 reflector has one in the centre, and this is the time to use it.