With an exceptional eye for detail and a deep appreciation for the intricate beauty of the natural world, from the intricate patterns on insect wings to the subtle textures of plant life, nature photographs can capture and showcase all of this.
“My goal is to create an emotional relationship with my images and with the person who looks at these images. Macro photography inspires me to stop and make the invisible natural life visually visible.” – says Mikael Lundgren.
Let’s dive into the creative process, explore the inspirations, and learn more about how to bring nature wonders to life through the lens!
Mikael Lundgren is a professional Swedish nature photographer.
His image won second place in the local Swedish contest, and third place in the macro category in the International part of the Wiki Loves Earth photo contest in 2023.
Author of the photo: Mikael Lundgren, CC BY-SA 4.0
How long is your journey as a photographer? Do you remember your first steps in professional photography and what inspired you to get started?
“I started photographing when I was 14-15 years old and have been photographing continuously for about 30 years. What inspired me with photography was being able to make visual stories, photographing landscapes, flora, and fauna of the environment around me and showing it to my friends.”
What type of photography do you specialize in? What is your photographic style?
“My goal is to create an emotional relationship with my images and with the person who looks at these images. So, my style and what I strive for is that my composition should, at the same time, ‘look back’ at the one who sees my pictures. My goal is that a contact is created between what is in the picture and the viewer. This applies to both my landscape photos and close-ups of plants and wildlife. When I take wedding photos, I work in the same way with the relationship between the composition and those who look at these photos.”
What kind of equipment do you use? Can you explain your choice of camera, lenses, and other gear?
“I use full-frame cameras and a variety of lenses that suit what I’m shooting. This means that I use all types of lenses, such as macro lenses, zoom lenses, and telephoto lenses. For macro photography, I regularly use different flashes that provide good lighting conditions. The lenses help me find the right relationship to what I want to photograph and create a closeness between my compositions and those who will see my photos. My full-frame cameras give me good opportunities for good resolution of my photos and image editing.”
What software do you use for post-processing and editing? Can you describe your editing workflow?
“I mainly use Adobe Lightroom and Photoshop for image editing. When editing, I first check that the photo I’m looking at has some kind of instinctive contact with me, that my eyes are caught immediately. Then I focus on bringing out the thing in the image that created my interest. The image editing is mainly for me to enhance the first feeling I get from the image so that the photo becomes more like its own story to me as a spectator. It can be about increasing certain details with sharpness, enhancing details in light, or softening to the bokeh that is in the background.”
Author of the photo: Mikael Lundgren, CC BY-SA 4.0
Your works picture breathtaking and different parts of nature, especially in macro format. What do you love the most about nature?
“I love nature’s own pulse and wilderness where the human footprint is as small as possible. Walking in nature with my camera is like walking on a journey of discovery with different eyes than those used in an urban environment. Being able to look into the micro life of nature with a macro lens is also a way to get an insight into the life that is often invisible to our everyday life. Macro photography inspires me to stop and make the invisible natural life visually visible.”
How do you usually choose the locations? What was your favorite one?
“I usually choose to go to places in my immediate environment, which are no more than 30 kilometers from my home. Near my home, there are a number of nature reserves. I also live in a Biosphere Reserve designated by Unesco. I like to photograph both in primeval forests, by larger lakes, in meadows, or on the nearby plateau mountain. My favorite place is to go to the plateau mountain Kinnekulle early in the morning at dawn when the first rays of the sun give a soft and nice light.”
What was your experience in picturing the protected areas? Is this term somehow changing the photography conditions? What do you advise starting from when picturing the protected areas?
“In Sweden, accessibility to nature reserves and biosphere areas is quite good. Photographing in Nature Reserves or Biosphere Reserves gives me good opportunities to create photos with exciting biodiversity and visual storytelling. This applies to both landscape motifs and macro compositions. My first advice to other photographers is to first get to know the characteristics of the nature reserve or biosphere area that you want to photograph. This applies to both plant and animal life. My second piece of advice is to dare to photograph a variety of times and seasons in these areas. It can provide exciting and unexpected opportunities for good photos. My third piece of advice is to give time to experience the nature you are photographing; how does it affect you? Is it possible to compose the image from this experience at the time of photography?”
Author of the photo: Mikael Lundgren, CC BY-SA 4.0
How do you prepare for a photography session or project in general?
“I usually prepare by deciding which main subject is in focus and thus determine the choice of time and place for the photography. If it is macro photography, I make sure to pack the appropriate camera and macro lens. I also always bring an extra camera and other lenses for other subjects that may come up. It is always important to have knowledge of the weather forecast before shooting. It determines whether flashes are needed or how the handling of the day’s natural light will be. I also make sure that I myself have good opportunities to pass a photo shoot. This means that, before a photo shoot, I have been able to leave stress and other negative moods in order to enjoy solely focusing on photography.”
How do you handle challenging situations or unexpected issues during a shoot if such happen?
“I use my long photography experience to deal with unforeseen events during a photo shoot. It is often a matter of having the right cameras and lenses with me, as a different lens is almost always needed than the one I primarily planned to use. It could be that the weather is not what I thought, which means that I have to use a more light-sensitive lens or macro flash. I always plan ahead for a photo opportunity to cover as many contingencies as possible. It can be about being able to quickly take a photo of an animal that suddenly appears in front of me. Then it is necessary to already have a camera and lens in place to be able to take that picture. It happens at almost every photo opportunity.”
How do you continue to develop and refine your skills as a photographer?
“The main thing that makes me develop as a photographer is to dare to challenge myself in finding new subjects and visiting places I have not been to before. It also applies that I dare to be out in places in different seasons and at times of the day, which affects the composition and the photography itself in a marked way. I also now photograph how urban environments affect people and animals, which creates other forms of compositions.”
Author of the photo: Mikael Lundgren, CC BY-SA 4.0
How did you first get involved in the Wiki Loves Earth International photo contest devoted to picturing natural heritage?
“I saw on the web information about Wiki Loves Earth and thought it might be fun to submit a number of photos as I often photograph in nearby Nature Reserves and Biosphere Reserves.”
The previous year, in 2023, your image took a winning place in the main nomination in the local Swedish and the International Wiki Loves Earth competition. Did you aim to win, and what was your reaction?
“I sent in my photos in the hope that these would attract interest and maybe have a chance to be among those that Sweden chose to include in the international part of the competition. When I found out that I had both won in Sweden and also entered the international competition, I was very happy. Then also winning a prize in the international competition was really gratifying and inspiring for my photography.”
Many people said that it was the cutest image of that year’s contest! What was the hardest part about photographing the deer? Did you catch “the right moment”? Do you have an interesting story behind this beautiful image?
“The most difficult part of taking this photo of the Roebuck was waiting for the exact millisecond where the Roebuck was in the right position with its head facing me. Dare to wait for the right moment. When I took this picture, I really felt that I had got it just right and that I had, at the same time, had a spiritual experience of “looking into” the world of Råbocken. I had seen this Roebuck before for a few weeks and thought about its different horns and the damage that was on one ear. What has Råbocken experienced recently? What battles and events had he experienced? Being able to get this photo with this particular composition and background in a millisecond is one of the finest moments I’ve had behind a camera.”
Do you plan to take part in the contest again?
“Yes. I will continue to take photos and send them to this competition.”
What would you advise someone who doesn’t have professional photography equipment? How can you take a good picture even on a mobile phone?
“I think the most important thing you need to take a good photo is that the person behind the mobile phone/camera has an interest in the subject that is created in a photo. A good photo for me is a composition that gives me, as a spectator, the opportunity to fantasize and feel something about the image. So if you as a photographer have a thought, feeling, or experience about your photo, often someone who looks at the photo can get it too. Then, I think it is important that you, the photographer, can handle the light that is present when you take the photo. How can you handle this light? The more you shoot with a mobile/camera, the more you learn to handle this light. So photograph as much as you can with the mobile phone and learn how it works and what you yourself like to photograph.”
What advice would you give to someone aspiring to become a professional photographer?
“Have the courage to show your photos publicly and to your friends. If you have the opportunity, try to create your own photo exhibitions on-premises or on the web. Then you will both hear what others think of your photographs but also get a chance to be discovered and seen. This can lead to you getting the first requests to be a photographer on various occasions. Make sure that even then, you start receiving compensation for the photos you start selling. As a professional photographer, it is important to start getting paid for the work you do if it is to become your main income.”
Author of the photo: Mikael Lundgren, CC BY-SA 4.0
What influences or inspires your work?
“I like to look at other photographers’ photographs. Ansel Adams, American photographer and Henri Cartier-Bresson, French photographer. They have inspired me with their soulful black and white photographs to try creating black and white photos. Kirsty Mitchell, an English art photographer with her fabulous photographs, is another living photographer that I like a lot. She composes images that show fairytale-like people in fantastically constructed environments. In my everyday life as a photographer, I am inspired by nature’s four seasons and how nature changes month by month. It always creates new motifs, animals, and plant life.”
What’s the most rewarding part of being a professional photographer for you?
“Being able to use a lot of my time doing what I love to do, creating visual stories for myself and for others to experience.”
Can you share some of your favorite projects that you are proud of or photographs you’ve taken? What makes them special to you?
“One of my most exciting projects was to create large-format photographs based on local people’s stories about which places in their local environment they like the most. The result was 12 different photographs in a 2×3 meter format, which were exhibited in a room centrally located in this village. The exhibition became very popular, and villagers came to the venue to experience and talk about these 12 favorite places in the village. Another photo project was to compose 12 photographs for a Swedish music artist’s new record album and its 12 songs. This photo exhibition then followed the music artist’s various concerts around Sweden for a year. Both of these projects had clear motives and a soulful connection to those who visited these photo exhibitions.”
Author of the photo: Mikael Lundgren, CC BY-SA 4.0
Instagram of Mikael:
https://www.instagram.com/tjustorparn/