Capturing Halloween in Photographs in Your Garden

 


Last fall, after leaving the dolls up all spring and summer awaiting Halloween time, I harvested the dolls on my backyard doll island and collected creepy hands, feet, and heads.... 










This year, I took special delight in putting the dolls out to set the mood as the corn stalks die back like scratchy white paper flapping in the wind and the tall overburdened sunflowers droop like faces turned down upon them. 


At nighttime they turn into something sinister and possessed by the moonlight - 









Adding a Michael Myers mask to the situation creates a hauntingly scary nighttime summer garden - 











And then there's my scarecrow, Josiah in the moonlight - 




I suggest if you want to do some nighttime spooky photography in your yard, use the natural moonlight or consider some solar lights as they add a soft eerie light at nighttime. A lantern is another great visual, as well. Don't use the flash, you lose all spookiness.



Another great technique is to move the camera back and forth quickly as you shoot. Because it's dark the shutter stays open and the subject blurs like a ghost.


Take advantage of filtered light through items to create speckling or striping. Use dead branches, crunchy leaves, and get underneath and photograph up to capture moonlight and give subjects an ominous size. 

Doll heads - from Goodwill shop dolls and aged in the garden for that lived-in look!


If the dolls have no eyes, put a glow stick inside - 


Happy photographing!




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