Lazy Lizard
Jan, 2015Views
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Behind The Lens
Location
This photo was taken at the Reptile Gardens in the Black Hills of South Dakota. I was on a photo shoot with a group of people as part of the Black Hills Photo Shootout.Time
This was shot mid day but the light was diffused by a big glass dome that this and other reptiles were kept.Lighting
Shooting at mid day would normally result in very harsh lighting but the glass dome building that the reptiles are kept in provided a nice soft and diffused light. Because of that the lighting conditions were relatively low and required a tripod or the use of a flash.Equipment
This was shot with a Nikon D5000 on a tripod with a 105mm macro lens, 1/10 sec., at f/7.1. Fortunately, because I was at 1/10th of a second, this lizard sat motionless and I was able to get a nice sharp image.Inspiration
We were in a building surrounded by lizards and snakes but with the colors and expression and unobstructed background of this cute little guy I couldn't resist taking some photos of him.Editing
I shoot everything in raw so everything requires some post processing. I use Lightroom and the only thing I had to do for this image was open up the shadows a bit and fine tune the whites and blacks. I also added a little clarity and vibrance. From Lightroom my go too plugin is On1 Effects 10 where I usually add some tonal contrast to bring out more detail.In my camera bag
At the time this image was taken I was using the Nikon D5000. I now shoot with a Nikon D7200 so my D5000 is used a backup. My tripod goes everywhere with me as does my 105mm macro, 50mm f/1.8, 18-140mm, & 70-300mm. My flash is also in my bag along with a polarization filter, and a variable ND filter. Occasionally I'll bring along my ring flash for my macro.Feedback
For those that are trying to capture something similar you need to be patient and aware of your surroundings. Especially what's in the background. In environments which require such a low shutter speed, your subject needs to be perfectly still in order to make it happen. A macro lens will also help you in these situations as you can shoot from a distance that won't startle the subject.
