A few days back, I began finding a solitary jagged ambush bug nymph (genus Phymata) on the dog fennel plants. I was pleased, because there’s something about these little predators that’s appealing, and not just to me The Girlfriend likes them too, solely based on their appearance. I don’t find many of them – my last round of decent
Tag: macro photography
Getting there
I’m starting with an image largely unrelated to the post topic, simply because I like it better. I did get a few dewy morning photos of the plant I’m about to mention, but this one’s much stronger, and it does illustrate the conditions nicely. Just don’t call it art.
In the attempt to get nice natural settings for subjects like hummingbirds (who are raiding the feeders madly
Macro photography, part seven
I mentioned in an earlier post about experimenting with a new method of lighting macro subjects, so now we’ll take a close look at it. One of the chief pursuits of photographers is getting the light just right,
The trend begins
Last year was largely devoted to arthropods, even though I’m not actually trying to limit myself – they were just what I had the greatest opportunities to tackle. And it seems this year may be largely the same.
The same holly trees that appeared here have been playing host to several specimens
Finally
I’ve been working on it longer than I think I should have been, but I finally finished a page on the main site dedicated to macro photography lighting. The writeup isn’t the difficult part – it’s getting images that show everything that I want as clearly as possible. I’d like to think I have good examples up there now.
So if you’ve ever wondered why some macro
Humidity and challenges
So, The Girlfriend’s Younger Sprog had a volunteer engagement at the North Carolina Museum of Life & Science in Durham, so I tagged along to kill time at the museum, because I hadn’t been in a while. As you may have already surmised if you’re exceptionally quick, the museum has a butterfly house.
For a working nature photographer, such places can be nice, but not necessarily
Changing perspective
I just find this amusing. The Girlfriend, like probably 85% of the world’s population, isn’t terribly fond of bugs, most especially not the big ones. But she’s watched me pursue numerous arthropodic subjects, and still finds fascination in the details revealed from macro work.
The net result of this is seen here, what I’m fairly certain is an Acanthocephala declivis,
Macro photography, part six
I had to go back through my images to peg down this time frame, but ten weeks ago, a green lynx spider (Peucetia viridans) created an egg case on one of the flowering fronds of the pampas grass in the yard. I kept checking on progress, looking for spiderlings, but never saw anything,
Muttering darkly behind winter’s back
North Carolina winters are usually not too dire, and we can count on some good outdoor weather pretty much throughout, but this doesn’t mean that good photo subjects will be as readily available, so I’m resigned (albeit reluctantly) to the arrival of the slow season. This little gallery is my minor act of defiance.
Above, a photo that’s harder to capture than you might imagine.
Macro photography, part five
I got my timing down the other day, and caught a set of lady beetle eggs as they hatched. The eggs are 1.2mm in length – yes, I have a loupe with a micrometer scale – so the details you’re seeing here are pretty fine. As you can see, the larva are visible through the translucent shells.
Hatching isn’t quick by any stretch, but it can still happen entirely while you’re