Some Insects

[colin_12]

Here are a couple of recent shots for critique.

Cabbage butterfly


A crop from Above.



A fly for good measure.



Would like opinion on colour hue and brightness as well as general crit.

[zafra52]

Good macro photography, but they are hideous creatures.

[biggerry]

ohh yeah, love them water droplets...hang on, are they water or is it taking a very large leak (jk)

I love the way the speckled wings match the speckles in the eyes on the second! They all have great detail and dof. Nice work colin

[johnmc]

Colours and brightness look great to me - still plenty of definition in the shadow areas too

I'm curious to know what sort of gear (in particular lens(es) & lighting) you've used for these shots as I'm keen to improve on my macro 'skills'

[surenj]

I'm curious to know what sort of gear (in particular lens(es) & lighting) you've used for these shots as I'm keen to improve on my macro 'skills'

Dude check out Colin's exif's. He is kind enough to include them. His meager kit consists of a D700, 100mm ?2.8 macro and a large (compared to the subject) light source. But then the gear is not all that important though. Learning to use what you have is more important IMO.

Colin nice shots! Do you hand hold flash and camera at the same time?

[colin_12]

Thanks fellas,

John, I use the gear Surenj mentioned. My light source is an sb 600 with a home made cardboard soft box. (search ATJ's posts to find detailed instructions on these) I am yet to make the fold up version.

Surenj, I am lazy so the flash is just in the camera hot shoe while I run around and take shots. To lazy for tripod since I started to use flash for lighting.

[chrisk]

great detail and colour in the first colin. very nice shot.

[ATJ]

Great shots, Colin. How are you managing to find any insects with this cold weather?

The first one loses a bit because the wings are cut off by the foreground leaf (and the hindwing is slightly torn) but the water drops add interest. It is certainly nice and sharp.

The fly could probably be a tad lighter in the shaded areas (d-lighting in Capture NX or Fill Light in Lightroom).

[surenj]

Surenj, I am lazy so the flash is just in the camera hot shoe while I run around and take shots. To lazy for tripod since I started to use flash for lighting.

Tell you what, I can't really tell that's it's on-camera flash. I suppose it's kind like flash from above when you take into account the subject to lens distance as well as subject size. any ideas on this matter? Does it really matter whether the flash is on or off camera? [or one of those ring macro flashes?] I suppose the latter may provide wrap around lighting that's more even?

[colin_12]

Hello Andrew, I only found a couple mate, or is the answer like kiwi's find sheep in the long grass?
Yes I would have liked to have all of her wings in the shot but those that do are the wrong angle to have the lot in focus.
I have already lightened up the shaded areas of the fly a tad. Maybe I could push this a little more.

Surenj, it does matter depending upon what you are trying to acheive with the lighting. I don't think that I am being overly creative with my lighting arangement. But for my subject in this instance I don't think it needs creativity. Shooting other subjects like people on the other hand looks to really benefit from creative lighting. Not my area at all.
I have an old ring flash that I have not used for some time as it is not as powerful as the on board flash and thus reduces the depth I can obtain. It would have been great for some of the fungi shots that I have taken of late, but not all. Ring flash can also leave the subject looking a bit flat as you do not have much or any shadow to gve definition.
Next time we are going to the same meet remind me to bring it along for you to try.

[ATJ]

[or one of those ring macro flashes?] I suppose the latter may provide wrap around lighting that's more even?

I personally don't like the look of images taken with a ring flash mainly because it produces an unnatural light typically with no specific source and no shadows. With a soft box (like the one Colin is using) you still get directional lighting. The shadows are still there but they are softened.