Photographing Fungi at 4am, and Why the Hour Matters

Fungi do not move, which makes photographing them sound easy. It is not, and the reason is light.

The case for the awful hour

Woodland at midday is a nightmare of blown highlights and black shadow — a contrast range no sensor can hold. Before dawn, the canopy is lit by a sky that is bright but sourceless, and the whole forest floor sits in a soft, even, almost studio-quality light that lasts about forty minutes.

The photograph you want is at ground level, which is exactly where you do not want to be at four in the morning.

Working close to the ground

Almost everything worth photographing here is below knee height, which means the tripod is the wrong tool. A beanbag, a right-angle finder and a willingness to lie in wet leaf litter will get you further than any amount of equipment.

Bring a second pair of gloves. The first pair will be soaked within the hour, and cold hands cannot focus manually.