Thursday, October 05, 2006

CRITTER DAY THURSDAYS -- An Insect Ballet

32 Comments:

Blogger micki said...

Camera - Konica Minolta 70
Film - Fuji HQ ISO 100
Shutter Speed - 1/10 seconds
Aperture Setting - f-5.6 Aperture Mode
Lens - Sigma 105mm macro/portrait lens
Scanning Method - My scan from my cheap little hp officejet 5510v all-in-one copy/scanner/faxer/printer
Cropped and enlarged by 30%

Spent the good part of lunch time two weeks ago shooting this guy. Actually, while I was shooting him, the mosquitoes were having me for lunch. It was a cloudy day with rain off and on. I spotted this little guy on a leaf while shooting some fall berries. I followed him back and forth between two plants for about 40 minutes. He was way down, about a foot off the ground. Between the shade, the wind, and a slow speed film, these were difficult shots. I tried adding on extension tubes, but the exposure time went into eight and ten seconds. This is where a macro flash would come in handy. It is my next big purchase. Anyway, the whole time I’m trying to shoot him, he’s doing this little ballet with his legs; lifting one gracefully into the air behind his head, then the other, then both. Here’s a shot of him with both lifted and on the flowering plant he seemed to be enjoying. This plant thrives in the shade, and was one of a few still left around the yard. It was heavily shaded and protected in its location.

8:50 AM  
Anonymous Anonymous said...

WOW! That's a great capture

9:05 AM  
Anonymous Anonymous said...

i like how you spend some time with your subjects and share with us the details. this little guy seems to be offly comfortable. i really like the focus on this shot :)

9:41 AM  
Blogger Paul said...

What a cute little buglet. You should start studying entomology! :-) You like spending a lot of time with these little guys, but your effort pays off! Great shot.

9:56 AM  
Anonymous Anonymous said...

that were a real to-ing and fro-ing between you and this mosquito.
I imagine the scene. LoL

10:12 AM  
Anonymous Anonymous said...

What a cool capture and excellent sharpness for 1/10 of a second. Excellent patience. :)

10:22 AM  
Anonymous Anonymous said...

what and intresting little fella! Well done!

10:37 AM  
Anonymous Anonymous said...

I admire your patience and perseverance is securing images of these uncooperative little critters. But, as Paul says, it pays off and right handsomely here with the curious high kicks!

12:34 PM  
Blogger Puppatina said...

Sounds like yoga to me!
I love critter shots so this is the place to be on Thursdays!
I'm glad to be home and back to seeing your lovely pictures on a daily basis. Sorry about your mosquito bites Micki!

=:-)
Robin

1:24 PM  
Blogger PhotoSam said...

lovely lovely lovely....8/10

1:27 PM  
Blogger photowannabe said...

Great title for a great photo. You have the patience of Job to capture this creature.

1:28 PM  
Blogger ndiginiz said...

Tena koe ehoa
Brilliant capture with an even more brilliant show of patience. They are very rewarding these moments as I'm sure you'll agree Micki. The time put in to clicking the shutter for a tenth of a sec when compared to the 40 minutes is satisfaction beyond belief and a show of determination, perserverance and of course patience.

1:53 PM  
Anonymous Anonymous said...

those long legs make it look like ballet daning:-)) perfect timing, great capture

3:05 PM  
Anonymous Anonymous said...

What an odd looking bug. Great shot.

4:45 PM  
Anonymous Anonymous said...

Great capture.... Nice details!
Michael

5:09 PM  
Anonymous Anonymous said...

I love it. The thngs we will do to get the shot we want. Well done, Micki.

5:54 PM  
Blogger Dave MacIntyre said...

Ack!!! The bane of our summer fun...I'm glad to see the end of mosquitos for the year!! ;o)

Nice one Micki.

7:24 PM  
Anonymous Anonymous said...

Very Cool ! Is that a Mosquito?

8:06 PM  
Blogger Chris Fry said...

Micki. The pain and wait was well worth it. An incredible photo.

9:51 PM  
Blogger Sandy said...

Though not a lover of mosquitoes, I do love this little flower. I have never seen this one before. I would love to have a macro flash in my camera bag too. I was talking to my dad about just that today.

10:32 PM  
Anonymous Anonymous said...

BEAUTIFUL Love it!

11:00 PM  
Blogger PlasticTV said...

Haha what a cute title. Insect ballet - indeed! :)

3:53 AM  
Blogger manju said...

All your work paid off. Great shot !

5:00 AM  
Anonymous Anonymous said...

Like the title Micki, your patience paid off. :)

5:36 AM  
Anonymous Anonymous said...

That is very cool!

6:58 AM  
Anonymous Anonymous said...

:-) .. perfect timing, Micki. I know how painful it is to wait for the perfect timing to shoot insect.

8:21 AM  
Blogger Susan Jones said...

Skitter dance!
what a brill fab shot!

9:00 AM  
Anonymous Anonymous said...

the insect's cemaphore .before or after fly ;)

have a nice week

9:02 AM  
Anonymous Anonymous said...

It was well worth all the trouble, superb shot!!

1:33 PM  
Blogger Legabal said...

Master piece. I like this.^.

7:05 PM  
Anonymous Anonymous said...

Unbelievable clarity for handheld at 1/10 sec. Excellent dof and I love the details on the subject.

5:30 PM  
Blogger frame of mind said...

What a great moment you've grabbed here! Insect ballet, indeed!

7:03 AM  

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