In Washington, D.C., winter arrives in fits and starts, or sometimes not at all. In years past, we’ve gone the whole season without measurable snowfall. Nevertheless, in these months when trees are laid bare, we might allow ourselves to take a moment and to pause for reflection. The showy growth of spring is still weeks away and the bonsai at the U.S. National Arboretum’s National Bonsai & Penjing Museum are at rest.
The graphic, abstract nature of the trees is most evident in the deciduous species, as their limbs stand out against the off-white backdrop of the Chinese Pavilion, where many of the trees spend their winter months. The deadwood of the coniferous trees can be equally striking, especially when composed against the dark green of the tree’s foliage. In each tree, there holds a promise – a slowly ticking clock that counts the days, waiting for the moment when each branch begins to push out leaves.
For now, I’m embracing the already monochromatic nature of these trees and taking a different approach to photographing them. As an aside, many digital cameras have a black and white mode, but I’d recommend that you photograph in color and convert the image afterwards in your preferred image editing program. This will give you more flexibility in choosing how the image looks in black and white.
When we photograph in black and white, we need to think as much about the final image we’ll be creating as the actual scene in front of us. In a monochromatic image, form, structure and shape are emphasized. The more abstract nature of a tree can come through. As the old photography saying goes, color photos engage your mind, black and white ones engage your heart.
So what do we look for when photographing bonsai in black and white? I love photographing the texture of the bark. Frankly, this part of the trees can be nearly colorless to begin with, so emphasizing the grooves and patterns of the bark can make for an interesting image. This Japanese pine is one of my favorite trees in the collection, and its undulating trunk and beautiful, craggy bark makes for a wonderful image. One quick tip – when you convert these images to black and white, increasing the contrast and clarity (local contrast correction) can further emphasize texture and patterns.
Looking for differences in colors can also make for interesting black and white images. When you convert the image, the tonality of the colors can change and with a good conversion program, you can define how light and dark the different tones can be.
A light snow had fallen during my last trip to the Museum, and I took advantage of it to photograph these fresh footprints in the snow in the Japanese Pavilion. I’ve continued to enjoy exploring the visual possibilities in the entire Museum, not just the trees in my work. A snowfall makes for a great opportunity to realign how you see a place. When photographing snow, your camera’s meter may try to darken it too much, so it’s useful to adjust the exposure to brighten the image a little. You want to brighten it enough for the snow to look natural without losing all of the detail.
We’re in the last month of winter here in D.C. Soon, the curators and dedicated volunteers will begin repotting bonsai when needed and bringing trees back outside. I’m hopeful the Museum will soon reopen and we will all be able to enjoy its wonder and splendor as the days grow longer and the weather warms up.
As a photographer who now makes a living snapping pictures of some of the world’s most influential figures, Stephen Voss didn’t always know that photography could be more than a hobby. Once a bonsai novice, he certainly didn’t think he would publish a photography book of bonsai.
Now that he’s an accomplished photographer, Voss wants to share his “tricks of the bonsai photography trade.” This entry is part of his regular guest blog series, “Photographing Bonsai with Stephen Voss", published on NBF’s blog, covering everything from lighting, angles and mindset needed when photographing the trees.
Sign up for our newsletter and follow us on Facebook and Instagram to never miss one of his entries! Read his last entry here.