Wildlife Photography!

fartkowski

fartkowski

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Those little red squirrels are very fiesty.:D
We were lucky enough to get a shot of this guy.
Only one of two that I know of in this area.
 
H

hassman789

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Roach

Fartkowski- There is white squirrels!!!?!?!?!? WOW!

Some kind of roach I found.


---------- Post added at 07:12 PM ---------- Previous post was at 07:10 PM ----------

A cricket I found


Is it ok if these 2 posts "morphed" together?
 
Crysta

Crysta

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For fartkowski, since i decided to join the squirrel parade

:) they have some big claws!
 
Tim Benzedrine

Tim Benzedrine

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This one could work in either the inanimate objects thread or this one, but since we are on a squirrel theme....;)

I've posted it before, but here we have the Amazing Mummified Squirrel o' Benzedrine!


 
spider

spider

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Im sorry to say I do not have any squirrel photos to add :8o


 
Crysta

Crysta

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OHH crocodile shot... :) he is lovely!
and omg fart!! that last picture is so cute!~

Im going to break the rule and post 2 pictures due to the story i am about to say, because i'd like some tips :)

So this is my first shoot with a 29mm reveresed lens. It has amazing view in the view finder, but since I dont have a macro flash anymore, I need to use 1600iso :0! sad! but it was cloudy so it would probably be better on a sunny day.
Anyways the part i need help with....is.... sharpness :0
So far on unmoving stuff smaller then a pinhead i've got very decent sharpness

no tube extensions.
I think its something to do with the fstop? so i should stop down?

First macro
500shutter, 3f,-4f sunny...


and when I get to a slightly bigger subject (about 7mm)
its the suckiest quality eeeeever
cloudy, 320shutter, 2.8f



:( must i pray for a flash and sunny times? :( or is there a trick to getting better quality bugs ?
 
spider

spider

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Just invest in a proper macro lens, really. With reversing a lens, it's something more so for teenagers that want a hazy, dreamy look or whathaveyou.

I would invest in the proper gear to get proper macro shots! :)
 
Crysta

Crysta

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spider said:
Just invest in a proper macro lens, really. With reversing a lens, it's something more so for teenagers that want a hazy, dreamy look or whathaveyou.

I would invest in the proper gear to get proper macro shots! :)
Click to expand...
Mmm theres a way about it
this guy uses the same lens -1mm
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wqRn3at0H60&feature=fvwrel

he has lots of practice... hehehe
ill try it as the bugs come out, ill hopefully improve ;D
i wish i had 700$ to spend though xD
 
skinheaddave

skinheaddave

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Yeah, the solution isn't always to just spend more money. Would I have gotten better results if I'd forked out the dough for an SLR and proper macro lense? Most certainly. In fact, that time is coming.

That being said, not all of us have endless funds to spend on camera equipment. I bought my current main camera about four years ago. I've spent <$100 since .. a couple extra memory cards, a couple cheap used flashes and some hardware to make rigs of various sorts. With a little creativity you can build yourself a suitable rig and get some very passable pictures. The attached was taken using a reverse lense and a piece of white paper used to redirect the camera's built-in flash. It was what I could grab in a hurry when the bug in question showed up in my yard.

Recently I went to Florida. A good chunk of the group had SLR cameras. We went to a couple trails where people were out in droves with their SLR cameras and $3k+ lenses. What I saw was a lot of expensive camera equipment and a relative shortage of skill. Lots of just point-and-shoot photography. I saw only a few instances of people getting down on the ground or standing on stuff or walking a bit further down the path because it provided a better angle. I saw a lot of shots taken that I knew wouldn't work out. I didn't see anyone fiddling with their aperature or shutter speed or manually focusing. Of course with enough money on equipment you can get technically decent shots using almost no technique.

So sometimes just spending more money is not the solution. In Crysta's case the first thing I would do is get more light onto the subject with a flash and some sort of diffuser .. you can rig up a softbox or bounce the light off a reflector. More light = higher shutter speeds and deeper DOF. Get that going and you can start to play with your technique. If taking shots of things on the ground, for example, I rest the camera on my hand or fist. I set the focus close and then I can rock my hand or change the shape to fine-tune the focus and composition. You can even take multiple shots and stack them (haven't done that for a few years, though). Practice on that sort of things for a season or so and you'll be taking shots that are a lot better.

Now, this is not to downplay equipment entirely. I have no doubt that my shots would be a lot crisper if they were being recorded with a good CMOS chip rather than a CCD. I have no doubt that the issues with chromatic abberation at higher magnifications could be sorted with a proper macro lense. I have no doubt that I'd get more exposures right on the first shot if my flash was TTL or even thyristor-controlled rather than my sort of guessing on layout and power and then sometimes having to adjust for shots 2 or 3 .. or 4 ..or 12.

You take someone with some serious skill and give them some serious equipment and it is amazing what happens. Have you guys checked out tarcan's shots in the Field Trip section? He couldn't achieve those shots without having spent some $$$ on some equipment .. but there is also no way in hell he'd be getting that stuff if he had just spent the $$$ and not taken time to learn his craft. I could go out tomorrow with, say, 10k and buy a lot of equipment and hire a model and take lots of shots and I guarantee my shots would be horrid compared to spider's in the portrait thread. All I'm saying is that the solution to all problems doesn't boil down to a trip to the store (or even ebay).

Cheers,
Dave
 

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spider

spider

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I suppose I should have been more specific, I spent maybe 60$ on themacro lens setup for the above photos.

Like I said, more lighting (from a proper flash, in your case ETTL) you can dramatically improve photos.
 
Crysta

Crysta

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Cute little centipede.. litho?
awesome dave! love the gold and stuff :) ill look into the flash box!

spider said:
I suppose I should have been more specific, I spent maybe 60$ on themacro lens setup for the above photos.

Like I said, more lighting (from a proper flash, in your case ETTL) you can dramatically improve photos.
Click to expand...
ohhhh xD!
Hm, Ill play with a rig for my 420ex and see what i can do with it... mm

heres one from right out of the camera, no cropping, etc its shot with iiso 1600 so its abit grainy. Will do on the flash!

 
Last edited:
zonbonzovi

zonbonzovi

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I'm one of those cheap bastardos. With a little sunlight & a little less coffee you can get decent macro on the cheap.

 
W

What

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Ixodes pacificus


---------- Post added at 08:15 PM ---------- Previous post was at 08:04 PM ----------

Phiddipus adumbratus


(Tried waiting so that it wouldnt merge posts...didnt work... whatever.)
 
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