Antlion (portrait)

Posted by T Williams on Mon Oct 20, 2003 9:51 pm

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I could hardly believe this when I saw it in the viewfinder. This Antlion let me crawl on my belly to within about 10 inches of it, and let me take photos of it for 20 minutes or more. Although I used flash, the catchlight was present under normal ambient light. I also tried some shots at f11, but they were soft due to camera shake.

Equipment: 10D, 100mm macro, 12mm extension and 2X (for more working distance), off-camera 550EX at -1.5, handheld. ISO 100, 1/125 sec. at f/8.

Thanks for looking, and all comments/critiques are appreciated.

Tom
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by D7avid on Mon Oct 20, 2003 10:08 pm

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What an incredible eye..I saw another recent post of one these and noticed the funky antennae ..these things are amazing..nice job!

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by Cindy Marple on Mon Oct 20, 2003 10:20 pm

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Very cool! I see these guy's mounds but don't think I've ever seen the creature. I love the composition and the soft background. Great shot.

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by NDCheryl on Mon Oct 20, 2003 10:34 pm

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Cool shot. That eye is amazing.

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by Harvey Edelman on Mon Oct 20, 2003 10:38 pm

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Super closeup. As you mentioned a smaller aperature would have been better for wider DOF. You could have kicked up the ISO for a faster shutter speed or as I do for over 95% of my shots, used a tripod. Still though an excellent shot and one I wouldn't mind having in my files.

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by Dennis Olivero on Mon Oct 20, 2003 10:59 pm

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WOW, what a great shot of a very interesting insect. I dont think I have ever seen one of these before. I can decide which is better the funky antennae or the the eye!.. Thanks for sharing..

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by Carol Clarke on Tue Oct 21, 2003 2:59 am

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Great shot Tom - amazing detail and coloured eye, and its looking right at you!

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by DC on Tue Oct 21, 2003 3:13 am

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Very cool shot. That eye is amazing. Well captured.

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Some days you're the bug, some days you're the windscreen

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by Laura Stiefel on Tue Oct 21, 2003 6:30 am

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What a strange looking bug! I love that eye and all the details you've captured here.

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by chew on Tue Oct 21, 2003 7:03 am

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Alright Tom, glad to see this posted. What an amazing Suess-like creature. Good eye to even see this tiny bug let alone get something this sharp. Excellant.

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by Bob Ettinger on Tue Oct 21, 2003 8:42 am

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Tom,

Great shot and that eye is something.

Bob Ettinger

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by E.J. Peiker on Tue Oct 21, 2003 11:16 am

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Wow, this is amazing!!!

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by Bill Keown on Tue Oct 21, 2003 2:08 pm

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Absolutely amazing creature (I think I saw this in a Sci-Fi movie). Very nicely captured. That eye is amazing.

Bill Keown

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by Michael Brown on Tue Oct 21, 2003 6:16 pm

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Now this is one of the best shots of a weird and very cool looking bug (insects) that I have seen in a while.
Excellent closeup view, detail, and comp!

Mike

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by T Williams on Tue Oct 21, 2003 8:17 pm

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Harvey Edelman wrote:Super closeup. As you mentioned a smaller aperature would have been better for wider DOF. You could have kicked up the ISO for a faster shutter speed or as I do for over 95% of my shots, used a tripod. Still though an excellent shot and one I wouldn't mind having in my files.

Good point, Harvey. When I took this photo, I was really new to digital cameras, and it didn't occur to me to change the ISO. I would definitely do that now.
As for the tripod, this antlion was very low to the ground and in some thick grasses. I did consider using a tripod, but I think I would have disturbed it by trying to maneuver tripod legs around it.

Thank you, everyone, for the comments.

Tom
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