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Captain Curious



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A curious little jumping spider on a leaf.

A curious little jumping spider on a leaf.
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533

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Awards

People's Choice in Snails and Other Little Life Photo Challenge
Peer Award
Drosera alef0 photoABSTRACTION Foxyphotos tapvanderschyff rosemoyle Backstreets
Absolute Masterpiece
craftworker Pjerry Paul_Joslin Steve_Thomas Capture-Life
Superior Skill
lhartney andrewrundgren
Top Choice
ivanfurman waynemilburn
Magnificent Capture
Rustybucket8472 iluv2shoot
Outstanding Creativity
SBPHOTOGRAPHIA KevinGPhotography
Superb Composition
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2 Comments | Report
andrewrundgren
 
andrewrundgren September 30, 2016
Really amazing capture what lens are you using?
bretthondow
bretthondow September 30, 2016
Hi Andrew, thanks for the comment. For this guy I used a Nikkor 50mm 1.8 lens reverse-mounted on a set of 3 Kenko extension tubes. I took many shots, this was the only half-decent one that turned out. :)
craftworker PRO+
 
craftworker Jan 19
Fantastic shot, wow!
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Behind The Lens

Location

I took this photo in Houston next to a bayou close to where I work.

Time

I took the picture late afternoon around 5pm.

Lighting

It was a mostly sunny day but late in the afternoon around 5pm. Sunset wasn't due for a couple more hours and there was enough light to use with my extension tubes. It certainly wasn't goldenhour but I made do with the available sunlight at my back. I shone a flashlight on the spider with the same hand that was holding the spring it was sitting on, while shooting one-handed with my pop-up flash. After 50+ photos, my hand got VERY sore and tired! Some images shot into the sun or side-on to the low sun turned out too dark and unusable. My only workable images were with the sun directly behind me with the sky as a background.

Equipment

I used my Nikon D5300 with a nikkor 50mm 2.8 Prime lens. I used two Kenko extension tubes (12mm and 36mm) and reverse-mounted the lens. No tripod was used but I used my external flash. Oh, I also used an LED flashlight to light the spider as the setup I use doesn't allow much light in. I have no idea what aperture it was, as it was reverse-mounted and couldn't be adjusted on my Nikon body. I actually used a paperclip to hold the aperture lever open a touch to improve the DoF.

Inspiration

I came across some YouTube videos about macro photography and found some very interesting ones by Thomas Shahan. He has amassed quite a collection of brilliant macro photography and "specializes" in jumping spider macro photography. I loved his work so much I though I'd try to get workable equipment and do the same, he makes it look so easy. Boy was I wrong! He processes his work in Photoshop whereas I don't. His tutorials gave me confidence to try and not to worry about making mistakes, it's all about going through the numbers... take tons of photos and you may get a few usable ones. I saw it as a challenge to see where I was currently at as a photographer and to find the areas that I could improve on.

Editing

Only minor post-processing was done as I don't use (or understand) Photoshop or Lightroom. I used Nikon's NX software and Windows editing software for sharpening highlights, adjusting the shadows, brightness etc. That's all the editing I ever do, and I don't have the software for focus-stacking.

In my camera bag

I have a small bag... Inside I keep my Nikon D5300 with a Nikkor 105mm macro lens, my Nikkor 50mm Prime 2.8, set of Kenko extension tubes. Also a few odds and ends like filters, extra batteries, lens wipes, spare battery and even a home-made diffuser made from an old film canister.

Feedback

Don't be afraid to get your hands dirty, get right in there! I found myself scrabbling through prickly bushes and shrubs, breaking off twigs to capture my subject, then try and "herd" it to the position I wanted. From there it's a matter of quick focusing and snapping off TONS of images before the subject disappears, hopefully getting one you can keep. Don't be afraid to take a 100 pictures of a single subject, it just improves your chances of a workable image. Keep a couple of different lenses in your bag, one for ultra close-ups and another for larger insectoid subjects. Experiment at different apertures, flash settings and focal distance for different results, and sometimes the time of day and sky conditions can make a big difference to a finished image as well. A diffuser can help soften the tones too, although I didn't use one for Captain Curious - I wanted all the light I could get. Also experiment with different backgrounds, avoiding ugly backgrounds. I find smooth greens or blues work well, so I snap my subjects in front of lush grass or a blue sky. Don't be discouraged if photo's don't turn out the way you want the first time. Just go back out there and try again, seeking to improve and correct what went wrong. Honestly I took well over 50 images of this spider, yet only this one was useable. The others ended up too blurred, incorrectly focused or underexposed. This happens a lot! Overall, patience is key. Be prepared to be disappointed a lot, but persevere. You'll get images you can be proud of if you experiment, practice and just keep taking lots of photos. As I like to say, (and this applies to me!) even a monkey finds a banana once in awhile. :) And above all, keep it fun!

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