Macro

This incredible fungi close-up is a blend of multiple exposures. A continuous LED panel was used to light the mushrooms from below, pulling them from the background. The image was sprayed with a mister to form the fine lashings of water and the scene was focus stacked to achieve front-to-back sharpness. The lighting, motion blur and subject combines to form this month’s deserved winner.

We love the creative thinking on display here. This photograph of a ‘supposedly’ peeping mantis is just bursting with character, something that’s amplified by the Dutch tilt. The partially eaten leaf provides the scene with a strong narrative, while the hole in the vegetation also serves to draw the viewer’s gaze towards the subject by creating a makeshift frame within a frame.

Long and thin subjects are difficult to frame, but this photograph of a millipede has been cleverly balanced via the glassy reflection. You might assume that this tack-sharp subject was motionless, but the 1/250 sec shutter speed was necessary to freeze the moving critter. The arthropod is well lit, too, with the subtle glare highlighting the curvature of its cylindrical body.

Water droplet photography requires plenty of patience and perfect timing. This image is a particularly stunning example thanks to the beautiful canopy created at the top of the splash, the attractive lighting and the vibrant purple and blue hues from the background.

Eye-catching photos don’t have to be complicated! You might be fooled into thinking this is a water and oil droplet image, but this awesome abstract is in fact the surface of a translucent glass bowl, photographed in natural lighting conditions.

This section of fungus and a deceased fly is packed full of razor-sharp details. The iridescent accents on the insect’s wings contrast against the otherwise muted colour palette, drawing the viewer’s eye. And the grey background doesn't detract from the subject's subtle tones.

This sci-fi-like macro abstract was inspired by the water droplet photography of YouTuber Lee Hall. A glue gun was used to create the thin transparent strands that house the water droplets and the purple-to-red gradient was formed by backlighting the subject with a cheap rotating coloured light.

Part of the appeal of macro photography is getting to study subjects in a way that simply isn’t possible with the human eye. This image is a fine example of how tiny critters can be transformed into something incredible and unrecognisable when captured through the camera and lens. A whopping 68 focus-stacked shots were combined in post-production to form this butterfly close up, so that every single strand of hair is visible.

This extreme close-up of a European hornet was focus stacked multiple times to capture incredible detail and front to back sharpness. The slight tilt has created a more dynamic composition and the dark background allows the creature’s vibrant yellow colouring to really pop.

This creative image bucks the macro trend. Its dark background, low-key lighting and subject – gazing directly at the viewer – are all reminiscent of classic studio portraiture. Instead of focusing on the butterfly’s patterned wings or cropping in to reveal microscopic details, the wider composition provides environmental context and narrative in the form of the purple coneflower.

Soap bubble photography is a popular macro technique, but this image is a photograph of a flat patch of soap so the entire frame is on the same focal plane. The result is a perfectly sharp abstract. A stunning image!

We love the ethereal quality of this beautiful flower close-up. The long distance between background and subject and long 300mm focal length has provided a super-shallow depth of field, despite the middling f/7.1 aperture. Soft morning light has really accentuated the flower’s fine hairs and the glassy water droplets formed by the morning dew.

Capturing an insect in flight is an incredibly difficult task and this is an exemplary example. The bee’s frame is super sharp, with a dash of blur connoting the wings’ movement. A super fast 1/2000 sec shutter speed was used to freeze the action.

We love the dramatic narrative created by the raindrops and wind-swept vegetation, something that’s rather unusual for a close-up image. We also like how the light is falling on the subject and pulling it from the dark background. A stunning shot!

This might be a relatively simple subject to photograph, but the creative idea and how it has been executed is simply fantastic. The colourful thread and needle are reminiscent of the prism colour spectrum. We also like how the shallow depth of field has rendered the needle focal point sharp and gradually blurred the thread as it travels towards the sides of the frame.