Weaver Ants, LGB and a green crab spider

[tchuanye]

Not much time to shoot this weekend, so just shoot something more common.

A lesser grass blue, and a Weaver ant, and a green crab spider.

FZ10+Raynox 250, ISO50, F8, 1/60s, 2 flashes-diffused.

#1:Weaver ant guarding white nest


#2:Side profile


#3: LGB


#4: Green crab Spider

[seemolf]

Now you are a "master" of the dcr250 too, Tan!

I admire the pictures of the small ants.

But my favorite is the very common butterfly (we have a similar one here).
The light is touching the wings in perfect way!

congratulation!

Sven

[Narmer]

Nice ant and BF (also this one with DCR 250?). Pity that the BF wing is not perfectly sharp (wind or not perfect alignement?).

IN the CS maybe a bounced or more distant main flash would have been better: I don't like the light lines on the edge (bottom right) and amid the leaf and on the right legs (and its hair) of the spider.
Harsh light (either by direct sunlight or by too strong flash spots) is one of the problems with some macros, especially when bugs' bodies are so reflective like that glass-like spider.

Sometimes I get a good effect (even in not overexposed pics) by copying the image on itself and applying the "multiply" blending effect (at about 20-50% percentage) but maybe this will sound turkish to you not beinga Photoshop user.

Finally a curiosity: in the original (4Mp) pics of ants with DCR250 at full zoom, is it possible to detect the pointilized (cells) pattern in the ants' eyes ?

Narmer

[tchuanye]

seemolf wrote:

Now you are a "master" of the dcr250 too, Tan!

I admire the pictures of the small ants.

But my favorite is the very common butterfly (we have a similar one here).
The light is touching the wings in perfect way!

congratulation!

Sven

Thanks Sven.

Glad you liked them!

[tchuanye]

Narmer wrote:

Nice ant and BF (also this one with DCR 250?). Pity that the BF wing is not perfectly sharp (wind or not perfect alignement?).

IN the CS maybe a bounced or more distant main flash would have been better: I don't like the light lines on the edge (bottom right) and amid the leaf and on the right legs (and its hair) of the spider.
Harsh light (either by direct sunlight or by too strong flash spots) is one of the problems with some macros, especially when bugs' bodies are so reflective like that glass-like spider.

Sometimes I get a good effect (even in not overexposed pics) by copying the image on itself and applying the "multiply" blending effect (at about 20-50% percentage) but maybe this will sound turkish to you not beinga Photoshop user.

Finally a curiosity: in the original (4Mp) pics of ants with DCR250 at full zoom, is it possible to detect the pointilized (cells) pattern in the ants' eyes ?

Narmer

Thanks for the critique! Appreciate that v much!

The BF I think is more of the alignment issue.

For CS, agree with you. It was taken late evening, and main source of light is the flash. I know the 'multiply' techinique you mention and use it quite often, but not this pic. The white lines are indeed a distraction.

For the ants, what you see is what you will get at full zoom, can't get any bigger than that. The #2 is almost full frame, except the top and bottom are crop off.

CY

[Narmer]

Tan, I was just wondering about the resolution or definition of the eye at 100% (cropping the head only, withoutresizing the pic)

[tchuanye]

Sure....

[PeHa]

Your images always holda high standard, tchuanye!! I assume you're using a tripod, the Raynox DCR250 must be too powerful for handheld usage, or...?

[tchuanye]

PeHa wrote:

Your images always holda high standard, tchuanye!! I assume you're using a tripod, the Raynox DCR250 must be too powerful for handheld usage, or...?

Thanks PeHa....I shoot handheld....without tripod, its too cumbersome to set up unless the subject is stationary long enough for me to shoot.....which is most unlikely. Tripod use for me is only for night shots for night scenes.

[tiger98]

Very nice captures CY ! Especially the first 3 . Jim