40 summer photo projects

Don't waste the last of the season's sunshine, sunsets or celebrations... Jason Parnell-Brookes has got 40 ways for you to capture it all with your camera

01 FILL IT WITH FLOWERS

Faced with a beautiful floral display, the temptation is always to reach for a wide-angle lens to fit as many blooms as possible in the frame but zoom in with a telephoto instead and the blooms will appear more densely packed, for a photo that's absolutely bursting with colour. You won't be able to get every flower sharp this way, so pick one to focus on, choose a wide-ish aperture (your choices may be limited by bright light on a particularly sunny day) and let the rest become an impressionistic blur. The flowers will move in the slightest breeze, so set a fast shutter speed and shoot handheld.

02 SPRINKLED LIPS

There are hundreds if not thousands of ways to shoot summer, and this is one of them - and it's an easy project that you could do anywhere and still get that summery vibe. Get some hundreds and thousands (sprinkles) and lick your lips then pucker up and coat your lips in the sprinkles. Pick away any excess bits that don't conform to your lip shape then take a shot in a well-lit area. The more colourful the sprinkles, the better the shot will look - you can boost the colours in post-production using Photoshop's Vibrance slider.

03 SILKY SHORES

Why not photograph the sea with a focal point in the distance we suggest a lighthouse. Put your camera on a tripod, and attach a variable neutral density filter. Now twist the filter until the scene is much darker. Aim to get around 30 seconds of exposure time - this will give you a glassy sheen on the water, and if you have fast-moving clouds overhead the long shutter speed will blur the movement in those as well.

04 BROLLY GOOD SHOW