Without a doubt, macro photography has been an unexpected joy for me with photography - it allows you to see the world in a whole new way, and appreciate the beauty that can be found everywhere if you get close enough!

Although it is certainly fun, macro also brings a whole new set of challenges to the table too. If you are just starting out into the world of macro, here are 10 tips to get you started!

1) Explore Your Surroundings

The beauty of macro is that beauty or an interesting shot can be found just about anywhere. Take some time to explore your surroundings - start in a room and try not just to see the big picture, but really drill down to finding the details. Look for items with intricate details, or patterns or textures.

2) Close Down Your Aperture

When you are that physically close to your subject, your depth of field becomes crazy shallow, so you will need to shoot at apertures that you don't perhaps normally shoot at, such as F8 or F11. I generally start around F8 and then move from that depending on the subject, my distance from it, and how much of the item I want in focus.

(Not sure what camera settings you should be using for different macro shots? Then check out our macro photography workshop Everyday Macro Magic! We have a whole lesson just on camera settings - along with focus, light and composition - so you’ll know exactly how to choose the right settings for the shot! Check it out here)

3) Watch Your ISO

Because you are going to be working with smaller apertures, you are going to be allowing less light into the camera, so you can find yourself needing to bump up your ISO to pretty high numbers just to get a decent shutter speed. Remember that high ISO's introduce noise or grain, and therefore are not great for working with subjects when we really want crisp, clear images.

4) Consider A Tripod

A way around this is to use a tripod, which allows you to use slower shutter speeds that you can get away with if you are handholding the lens, and therefore allowing you to reduce your ISO. You don't really need to get an expensive one - you can pick one up for around $30.

5) Keep Yourself Steady

If you do not have a tripod (or like me, just can't be bothered digging it out of the cupboard) then you can still use slower shutter speeds - you just need to learn how to brace yourself! If you can, set the camera on a steady surface, and tuck your elbows in to stop your natural sway. Hold your breath for a second whilst you push the shutter too - the movement from your breath can be enough to knock off your focus.

Or you can rest your camera on a pile of books with a bean bag!

6) Get into the Light

Again, the biggest challenge with macro is using these smaller apertures, so if your subject is in dim lighting, then you it's simply adding to the problem! If you can, take your subject and move it much physically closer to a natural light source such as a larger window or door, or even take it outside! You can buy special macro ring lights to add light to your subject or a continuous lighting system. (I have neither of these things - I use natural light all the time!)

7) Use Manual Focus

If you are working with quite a shallow depth of field, you need to be quite specific about the area you focus on! Sometimes, just being that physically close to the subject, and having such a small area in focus can make it difficult for your lens to auto-focus. If you find that your lens is "hunting" but latching on to the area you want in focus, then consider switching your lens to manual. Simply move the ring out of focus, then move it until the area you want appears sharp and clear.

(And why yes, there’s a whole lesson just on focus that gives you extra tips and tricks inside Everyday Macro Magic!!)

8) Check Your Focus at 100%

Your subject can look perfectly in focus when you view it on your viewfinder or in editing, but it may be slightly soft - zoom into 100% to check focus is razor sharp on the area you want. There's nothing worse than a "soft" macro shot!

9) Shoot from different angles.

One of the wonderful things about macro photography, is that (unless you want to shoot bugs etc) your subject ain't going anywhere! Really take your time to move around your subject and shoot from different angles - from above, parallel to your subject, or along the length of it - you can get some really interesting and unusual shots just by changing your vantage point!

10) Experiment with Aperture

Although I have said above that you need to use higher apertures than normal, you can sometimes get some really interesting shots when just a tiny area of the subject is in focus, so don't be afraid to play around with your aperture settings!

Now get out there and start practising with macro photography!

Don’t forget if you’d like to get your hands on core trainings on the key aspects of macro photography (light, composition, focus and camera settings) along with dedicated macro challenges, with pullbacks, suggested settings, set up guides and examples, plus macro editing videos, gear guides and more, check out Everyday Macro Magic. It’s an in-depth, hands on workshop that will take your macro images from so-so to spectacular in no time!)

10 Tips for Better Macro Photos