Praying Mantis

[Karm Redland]

I go years without seeing one of these critters. A couple a days ago I came across two of them at a hunting marsh. Comments welcomed.



karm

[Brownbear]

beautiful! Amazing detail, yet he still stands out no matter how good he is at trying to blend into the background.

[flashback]

Even though we can't see the face, it's a good shot. Most especially when one considers how closely the color patterns of the mantis matches the local environment (FYI if you didn't know, mantids can change their color, from a dark brown to a light green.)

[Karm Redland]

Hey Flashback, if you go to the black background then you'll see his head a bit better. I actually struggled awhile with this issue of artificially making his head standout a bit more. I decided to render him in his true state with a bit of software hype.

karm

[Karm Redland]

Thanks Christina.

karm

[flashback]

Karm,
I did and I can. And in the lightbox view, enlarged it's very evident. Enough so that you might consider a tighter crop.
Jack

[Karm Redland]

Flashback, the crop size is another issue I struggled with. I wanted the Mantis displayed in a natural setting so I settled on this size crop.

karm

[Marie Hass]

Very beautiful! They are very shy and difficult to find, much less photograph in their natural habitat. You have done a good job.

I had a gravid female I "borrowed" for a day so I could take pictures. I set her loose today in the spot where she came from. As Jack pointed out, they can change colors. My mantis is a bright lime green.

Marie

[jprzybyla]

Hello Karm, nice image... wonderful creature. The larger image shows it off well. I have a suggestion that you might try to make the Praying Mantis stand out more from the background. If you have Lightroom 5 use the Radial Filter with a minus exposure. Adjust the circular/oval filter so that the Praying Mantis and a little more are inside the filters outline. Darkening the surrounding background will draw the eyes to focus on the subject because the subject is brighter.

[Karm Redland]

Hi Joe. I just updated to 5 and have played with the command you're describing. I'm going to try your suggestion. If I like it then I'll post it. Thanks.

Karm

[Karm Redland]

Hi Marie. They're the one insect, along with a full blown mayfly hatch, that when I stumble across makes me giddy. I first accidentally kicked this guy out from his hunting ground. He (I don't know whether it's a he or she) then flushed into dense cover. I walked on and when I returned about two hours later again I spooked him. This time he simple moved to some cover. I then started to blast away and simply followed him as he moved.

karm

[pasusan]

Nice capture, Karm. I've seen lots of praying manti (?) but they've always been all green. They must turn brown in the fall to continue blending in? Thanks for sharing.

[Karm Redland]

Hi Joe. I think your suggestion created more definition of the Mantis. I just tweaked it a bit. I think I will also try the opposite strategy.



karm

[Stagecoach]

Karm,

Whilst we often try to subdue the background to make our subject stand out the beauty and value of this image is that it shows so well how it merges with its habitat being the reason we do not see them often.

Not sure if it is the same with mantis as I have only seen green but our stick insects here are green if female and brown if male.

Grahame

[Karm Redland]

Thanks Grahame. I agree with your sentiment. I guess its finding the right balance between a natural image and one that helps the viewer see the star of the show.

karm

[Karm Redland]

This image more clearly reveal the creature's head. Comments welcomed.



karm

[Brownbear]

Hi Karm,

I prefer the uncropped version. It is stunning. Even though this crop shows the wonderful detail you captured.

[Wavelength]

Excellent

[Karm Redland]

Thanks Susan. I looked up your plural manti and all I could find are folks who put and "es" at the end of the singular. So I don't know which is right.

karm

[Karm Redland]

Christina, I agree with you. At times I am torn between what I like and what I think viewers would like. So I appreciate your comment.

karm