Matt Mernagh of Cannabis Culture breaks down his process for taking great marijuana pictures
By Matt Mernagh
Getting amazing marijuana photos takes practice and access to a variety of cannabis, but it’s not next-to-impossible to snap great ganja shots.
I made a “How to Photograph Marijuana” video for YouTube while setting up for an extensive shoot recently. That day I photographed over a dozen strains!
It’s critical to have the necessary gear nearby when doing a photo shoot that large, but even on a smaller scale having the right equipment close-by is important.
Using this exact setup in my how to video, I’ve photographed over 120 marijuana strains. The results will be noticeable in my forthcoming book from Green Candy Press. They sent me for a private photography lesson that really boned up my ability to photograph buds.
Once this project is done I’ll publish some outtakes for my marijuana reviews so people can see how my skills have improved. This video is all about my setup, but depth of field, macro lenses and bud size preference will be made if there’s interest. My current setup consists of;
1) Optex Portable Light Studio — this is a must have for photographing small objects. If you’re serious about your nugporn for the cost of a half an ounce you can professionally light-up your pot.
2) Opex Tripod — the tripod they use for the light studio is one of its weakness. Add this tripod for $40 for a much better experience.
3) Canon DSLR — the camera is attached to my computer via a tether cable. the settings on the camera are consistent because I use the light studio. However, it’s important to have it set on full manual to adjust, ISO, focus, and F-Stop. More on this in another vid.
4) Adobe Lightroom — An excellent computer program that allows me to snap marijuana photos directly to my computer. I don’t even touch the camera to take the marijuana pictures.
5) Marijuana Strains — I try to save samples for a week or two and make an afternoon of photographing marijuana.
The video shows my setup in better detail. I’ll make more “How To Photograph Marijuana” videos if people are interested. Subscribe to my YouTube channel or follow me on Twitter please. I respond to Tweets!
