Mating Macros

[teokf]

Been busy lately with good things happening in the family so have not been posting as much as I would like to.

1. a pair of fruit flies


2. a pair of long legged flies


3. a pair of red beetles? (anyone knows the ID?)

[ClaudioG]

Great Images Steven...im completely new to all this..so been asking evryone for advice tonight..were these also taken with tripod? and is that natural light? They're all fantastically sharp!!! Gratz

[Brownbear]

Incredible photos thank you for sharing... #1 & #2 are my favourites because of the perfect backgrounds, but #3 is incredible, too.

I have to ask just where does one finds mating insects?

[Kaye Leggett]

They're are gorgeous, especially the first one.

[teokf]

Great Images Steven...im completely new to all this..so been asking evryone for advice tonight..were these also taken with tripod? and is that natural light? They're all fantastically sharp!!! Gratz

Claudio all the images are shot hand held with an external diffused flash. Like I said, tripod slows you down in the "open." I learned from a pro and he uses a broom stick to give "support." He holds the broom stick like a cue stick but to the ground with his left hand and with has a finger sticking out to support the tip end of the lens while his right hand holds the camera body and shoot. A tripod would be useful when you shoot bugs in natural light.

Hope this helps. If my above explanation is not clear, I will send you a photo showing you how it's done.

[teokf]

I have to ask just where does one finds mating insects?

Hi Christina, well, I don't find them every time I go bug shooting. I just go out and look for bugs. But, once a while I do come across them mating. I even have a photo of a threesome of tiger moths which I have posted here in CiC before.

Hi Kaye, thanks for the view and comments.

[zen]

Stephen, these are fantastically sharp for being "hand held", altho some might not consider them hand held because of the use of the "cue stick". I've tried that "hold" a few times with my monopod but have not found it comfortable. Perhaps I'm doing it incorrectly. A photo would certainly help and I would appreciate your posting one when you can.

In the interim, don't stop "bug hunting".

Thanks for sharing.

Zen

[ClaudioG]

Hope this helps. If my above explanation is not clear, I will send you a photo showing you how it's done.

A photo would be a great help thank you Steven. Just to getan idea.. i need anything in my arsenal to get these critters sharp thanks

[rpcrowe]

Incredible photos thank you for sharing... #1 & #2 are my favourites because of the perfect backgrounds, but #3 is incredible, too.

I totally agree with Christina...

I have to ask just where does one finds mating insects?

I have been told that it some soft music, candy and flowers help. OTOH, candy is dandy but liquor is quicker!

[John 2]

Great set of images Steven. By external flash you presumably mean off camera?

[teokf]

I have been told that it some soft music, candy and flowers help. OTOH, candy is dandy but liquor is quicker!

Richard, I am a bit confuse about the music, candy and liquor 8) btw, what is OTOH?

[teokf]

My basic setup.



Instead of a broom stick, I use a monopod as it's easier to carry as oppose to a broom stick. But in today's situation, a broomstick is a handy tool to have to wade of any untoward incidents. Last week a lone photographer was beaten up and robbed of his gear when he was shooting alone in a park

Claudio, Zen and John ... hope this image answer your question/s.

[ClaudioG]

That looks like a great piece of equipment.. So does it come in a whole set together(I mean the swivel ring and all?) May I ask what make that one is and model?

[John 2]

Thanks Steven.

[teokf]

That looks like a great piece of equipment.. So does it come in a whole set together(I mean the swivel ring and all?) May I ask what make that one is and model?

My left hand was on the monopod and the fingers on the Tamron lens. The off camera flash is a DIY diffuser made like yours. It's a hollow casing extended to the end of the lens. Inside the hollow case I lined it with a reflective material.

[teokf]

Adding some more mating macros.

4. a pair of cotton stainer ... the background is not their natural environment.



5. a pair of tiger moths



6. a pair of common house flies

[zen]

Thanks, Steven, for the photo. That makes it clear. But why not use the mono pod head? My RRS mono has a tilt head that points up or down with the twist of a large, positive lock knob. I've tried it your way and on the RRS tilt head and both seem equally as good as the other. I have an RRS carbon fiber with the standard RRS head. It's light, fast, very rigid and sturdy. Plus, the length, and therefore the height/distance away from the subject, is easily adjusted.

Either way, you are getting great macros. Thanks for sharing your technique.

Zen

[Arlen]

Steven, those are some very nice shots. And I have to say, you seem to live in a place with a multitude of the most colorful bugs!

[teokf]

... But why not use the mono pod head? ...
Zen

Hi Zen, I have a RRS head and I use it when I use my Tamron 180mm lens for specific macro shoots. Otherwise, it's the "cue stick." But I find using the RRS has its challenges when switching between portrait and landscape mode. While the "cue stick" method is so much faster as I just move up or down as I release loosen my left hand grip on the monopod or just flip it about between the two modes. The downside is feeling the weight of the gear on the fingers of my right hand.

[teokf]

Steven, those are some very nice shots. And I have to say, you seem to live in a place with a multitude of the most colorful bugs!

Hi Arlen, thanks for the view and comments. I guess living in this hot climatic condition does have it's benefits