jcaraway

Butterflies & Thistle Flowers-7

Merritt Island National Wildlife Refuge, Florida

Merritt Island National Wildlife Refuge, Florida
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NIKON D300

settings

Aperture f/5.3 ISO 200 Shutter 25/10000 Focal Length 120/1

upload_date

Apr, 2015

Views

383

Likes

+34

Awards

Superb Composition

Peer Award

Absolute Masterpiece

Outstanding Creativity

Top Choice

Magnificent Capture

Top Ranks

Top 10 rank

Top 20 rank week 2

Top 20 rank week 1

Top 10 rank

Top 10 rank week 1

Behind The Lens

Location

Merritt Island National Wildlife Sanctuary, Florida, USA

Time

Early afternoon

Lighting

The sunlight was bright and rather harsh. In order to soften the light and reduce reflected light from the white and light surfaces, I used a circular polarizing filter.

Equipment

This shot was made in aperture priority with a fairly shallow DOF of F5, ISO 200 and 1/400 sec. with a handheld Nikon D-300 camera, 18-200 3.5-5.6 vr lens with a circular polarizing filter.

Inspiration

We frequent this location often. The abundant flora/fauna vary depending on the season and weather conditions. On this March 30th trip the thistle flowers were in full bloom and the southern white butterflies abundant. The soft colors of the blooms and butterflies and the contrasting textures of the thistle were a natural draw. This was the first time we have seen the thistles in full bloom.

Editing

Post processing was minimal in Photoshop - minor tweaks to levels, saturation, brightness and contrast.

In my camera bag

In addition to the mentioned camera and lens, I carry a 50mm 1.8 prime lens, remote shutter releases, Nikon SB-800 and SB-600 TTL hot shoe flashes, two tripods, a 3-stop neutral density filter, a circular polarizing filter and a UV filter in addition to the requisite cleaning and maintenance supplies.

Feedback

I think the things that made this shot work in bright sunlight were the circular polarizing filter and a relatively shallow DOF. The filter effectively softened the glare from the white and light surfaces and the background bokeh. Other than that, the best advice that I can offer is get out frequently with your camera , keep your eyes open and enjoy your surroundings wherever you are. You never know what you might stumble upon. Happy Shooting

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jcaraway

jcaraway

Butterflies & Thistle Flowers-7

Merritt Island National Wildlife Refuge, Florida

Behind The Lens

See more amazing photos, follow jcaraway

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