Landscape Juice

Don't be camera shy, Stephen Studd's advice for mobile phone classics

Peeling back the layers on the ways to photograph vegetables, plants, gardens and nature, Stephen Studd continues his advice for optimising your business website images.

This is the second article on improving your online photos, while the first one was about presenting images on your website this is about photography techniques.

So how do you get the most out of your camera phone? A lot of the rules are the same as in traditional photography. Stephen Studd writes:

Use the highest resolution
A recent survey revealed more than 60 percent of people who used camera phones used them on their standard setting. Selecting your camera phone to the highest possible resolution achieves better results.

Improve website images the Stephen Studd way

There are pumpkins, and then there are 'pumpkins', and while you may think yours are winners, if you cannot show them in a good light, then you might as well just eat them.

A good photograph can make or break your pumpkin pics, in the same way it can boost your business.

So how do you differentiate your pumpkin from another, or your paving and plant layout from another?

Stephen Studd won first and third prize in the 'Grow your own' category of the RHS Photography competition 2011 for his pumpkin composition and the translucent feel to his lettuce seedling.

Landscape Juice Network members' photostream

There are now 10,899 photos on the Landscape Juice Network any members are uploading new images every single day.

Subjects range from recent landscaping projects completed, copies of garden design plans through to natural landscape and wildlife photos. See our slideshow below.

Find more photos like this on Landscape Juice Network

Want to share your work photos as well as publicise your skills, why not join up today, it's free.

Jerry Harpur at the Garden Museum, London

If you enjoy garden photography, and are able to get to London, then you might want to check out an exhibition of the work of Jerry Harpur.

The Garden Museum, found in Lambeth, is hosting 24 of Jerry Harpur's images in celebration of his 80th birthday.

The award winning photographer has contributed to more than 300 books, and his work shows his interest in international garden design, which he has spent years photographing and researching.

Related: Harpur Garden Images

The New York Botanical Garden links up with IGPOTY competition

The New York Botanical Garden will be the exclusive US partner for the International Garden Photographer of the Year (IGPOTY) contest.

The competition will have a special section for photographs taken at the New York gardens, with the winner of the category receiving a one-year membership to the gardens.

IGPOTY, which is run in association with the Royal Botanic Gardens, at Kew, is a popular competition amongst photographers with special categories in garden, plant, flower and botanical photography.

Garden photography winners on display at Kew

The fourth International Garden Photographer of the Year (IGPOTY) exhibition opens at the Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew, on May 14, 2011.

The outdoor exhibition of all the winning and finalist images from this year's IGPOTY competition will be on display at Kew Gardens until September 25, before travelling to other venues across the UK.

The exhibition celebrates the work of some of the most talented garden photographers from all around the world, demonstrating both passion and technical excellence in this inspirational genre of photography.

This year's overall winner was Sea Thrift Flowers, by Colin Roberts, with the judges commenting on its depth of field that lead the eye through the image.

DNA testing to stop fall in UK's adder population

• 
• 
• 
• 
• 

Images of adders kindly provided by Robin Ward

The number of adders has dropped by more than a half in the past fifty years the BBC reports. The adder is the UK's only venomous snake.

To help to explain and overcome the causes for the decline, The National Amphibian and Reptile recording scheme (NARRS) began pilot survey counts as far back as 2005.

The world's farmland as seen from space

I wanted to share these set of NASA space images on the Guardian website today.

They show the many different land patters as seen from the International Space Station.

I think you'd agree, we have a stunning world?

Image: NASA

International Garden Photographer of the Year 4Seasons competition

The fifth International Garden Photographer of the Year competition is calling for entries for its themed 4Seasons competition - deadline 31st March 2011.

The 4Seasons category theme for this year is ‘Monochrome’ – a theme directly aimed at the creative use of black and white and other monochrome techniques - toning and the like. Be creative - explore patterns, shapes and textures!

The winner of the 4Seasons competition wins a cash prize of £500 and a copy of the latest IGPOTY book, ‘International Garden Photographer of the Year Collection 04’

Corfe Castle photo wins the landscape award for Anthony Spencer

Anthony Spencer's photograph of Corfe Castle, Dorset has won the Landscape photographer of the year 2010 award.

The strangly magical photograph shows strands of mist and sharp focus frost with the castle outlined by sun-tipped clouds and broad skies.

The fourth year of the competition, set up by photographer Charlie Waite, was held in association with Natural England and Network Rail.

There were two special categories.

Firstly, Lines in The Landscape won by Chris Howe's shot of Grindleford Station in the Peak District National Park, pictured right.

Secondly, Landscape on Your Doorstep, won by Slawek Staszczuk for his picture of the South Downs.

"This year's collection of images helps us appreciate the role landscapes play as natural support systems - filtering and storing water, holding fertile soils, locking in climate changing carbon, soaking up flood water and buffering coastal storms," said Dr Helen Phillips, chief executive of Natural England.