10 Ideas For Taking Stunning Spring Photography

Spring is one of the most eye-catching seasons, especially when it comes to photography. Once the weather changes and animals come out of hibernation, you’ll have plenty of inspiration for your next project.

With just over a week until spring officially begins, we’ve pulled together some of the best and most exciting ideas for taking stunning spring photography. Whether you’re getting more creative with props or embracing the April showers, there’s plenty for you to get excited about over the next few months.

Get back to nature

When you think of spring, the main things that come to mind are the fresh leaves on the trees, green fields and budding flowers. Nature becomes the perfect photography subject, as there is so much to discover.

This time of year is ideal for landscape – or even macro – shots of the smaller spring changes. Ensure you have wide-angle and macro lenses, to allow you to get extremely close to your subject or capture those sweeping landscape shots.

Embrace the changing weather

Embracing the constantly changing weather can help you take some of the best photos (even if this makes it slightly harder to plan your shoots).

Cloudy days and incoming rain can add a sense of drama to an otherwise plain landscape photograph. Spring is the perfect time to capture these abnormal occurrences in nature, with the winter weather battling it out with the warmer climates to come.

You can also aim to shoot the bright sun rays breaking through the clouds to create unusual lighting for your spring photos. Make sure you get your exposure spot on for this – you may even want to underexpose the image to capture the detail of the light rays.

Keep a close eye with this setting, as you may have to battle with changing light levels. This means your exposure will need constant adjustments depending on the effect you are trying to get.

Collect spring props

Spring offers great props to work with, such as:

● Umbrellas - the brighter the colour, the better
● Raincoats
● Easter eggs
● Easter baskets
● Wellington boots
● Fresh flowers
● Balloons
● Easter cakes and pastries - great for spring themed food photography

You can experiment with a mix of props for a spring photoshoot, or even just a spring themed flat lay. You can also try making the prop itself the focus of the image, capturing it from as many angles as possible.

Create spring photography backgrounds

When it comes to creating the perfect spring photography backgrounds, nature makes the best subject. As mentioned above, getting a simple landscape shot that perfectly encompasses the spring season can make the perfect spring photography background.

A tripod is essential in order to keep your camera steady while it captures those landscape shots. When using a tripod, make sure it’s safe and secure before starting to shoot, spring can also bring windy days, so you may be more prone to accidents if the tripod is not secured properly.

Tip: More minimal shots work best, i.e. a shot of an open field, or cherry blossom orchard. The less happening in the photograph, the better.

Spring fashion

Spring photoshoots are ideal for showing off the latest spring fashion trends. Whether you’re a blogger or product photographer, take your shoot outside and capture these trends in a seasonal environment.

Play around with layers and bright colours that perfectly contrast with your background. Some of the most eye-catching fashion shots are of brightly coloured raincoats against grey or misty backgrounds.

When doing your spring photoshoot, you may find that working handheld is easiest, to allow you more movement around the subject. An ND filter can also help when it comes to dampening distracting reflections or glare, something that could be an issue in a more urban setting.

Play with pastels

Pastel colours are always best when choosing a softer spring aesthetic. These colours are often found around Easter, but adding them to your photography can immediately add a spring feel to your photos. You could also try adding pastel or faded filters to your photographs, to soften their look and give them more of a spring feel.

Experiment with Easter

Easter offers different props that are commonly used in spring photographs:

● Easter eggs
● Painted eggs
● Easter egg hunts
● Daffodils
● Easter bonnets
● Rabbits or rabbit ears
● Chocolate
● Hot cross buns

Creating Easter-themed images can be the perfect way to capture family moments or seasonal product photos. Easter food photography can also benefit from including a few of these props into their imagery.

Fill your frames with flowers

Whether you use real flowers or faux flowers, adding florals is always an easy way to give your photos a spring look.

For the best effect, opt for seasonal flowers, such as blossom, daffodils, daisies or tulips. You can include these in your photography in a multitude of different ways:

● Used within flower crowns
● Art created with flowers - some artists have created mandalas out of petals or buds and then used them in flat lay photography
● Floral fields - lavender fields work particularly well
● Floral interiors - focus on bringing flowers into the home
● Spring wedding bouquets

Spring food photography

Spring is when we swap warm winter foods with lighter spring snacks and sweet treats. As such, this time of year presents the perfect opportunity for food photography. From hot cross buns to chocolate eggs, there are plenty of foodstuffs you can experiment with.

Adding florals, as mentioned above, can also add an extra flair to your spring food photography. Furthermore, you can switch between a flat lay or side views to find the best way to exhibit your food in the frame.

Baby animals

There aren’t many things cuter than baby animals – and spring is filled with them. Small lambs, baby birds and calves are all around and make amazing models for spring photography.

Handheld shots are best as they give you more freedom when it comes to framing your shots. Animals, especially young ones, can move around quickly, so you need to be on the ball.

It’s best to use a tripod and a zoom lens to capture these shots, as you don’t want to get too close to the baby animals, as this could distress them.

Handheld shots are best as they give you more freedom when it comes to framing your shots. Animals, especially young ones, can move around quickly, so you need to be on the ball.

Many of our suggestions may require you to do some location scouting to find the perfect backdrop. Therefore, make sure your equipment is protected from loss, theft and damage when you’re out and about by taking out our specialist photography insurance!