More spider drama

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More spider drama

August 31, 2014 by Mike Powell

When I encountered this spider hanging on a branch just above eye-level, I knew I was going to have a problem getting a stable shooting position, so I decided to use my popup flash. It added some additional light and a little drama, though it is pretty obvious that I used it. Like the spider image that I posted earlier today, the image has a really narrow depth of field, a consequence of having to shoot hand held, and only a few of the spider’s legs are in focus.

Posted in Arachnids, Macro Photography, Nature, Photography | Tagged Alexandria VA, Canon 50D, drama, flash, Huntley Meadows Park, spider, Tamron 180mm macro lens | 11 Comments

11 Responses

on August 31, 2014 at 3:58 pm | Reply Penny Ann Koch

I love you photos. They are of the same genre that I take. You have inspired me to start shooting again. Thank you!

Sent from my iPad

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- on August 31, 2014 at 4:27 pm | Reply Mike Powell
  
  That’s great. I love to shoot with my macro lens and the summer is a great time to capture insects. Happy shooting!
on August 31, 2014 at 5:12 pm | Reply Mike

Nice shot. Spiders are so interesting. I noticed the very shallow depth of field. What lens and camera settings did you use? I checked the exif for the image but it was missing. Thanks!
- on August 31, 2014 at 5:21 pm | Reply Mike Powell
  
  I used my Canon 50D with a Tamron 180mm macro lens at F/7.1, 1/125 sec, at ISO 1600.
  - on August 31, 2014 at 5:59 pm Mike
    
    Thanks. I like to try out the settings used to produce photos I like and then play around to see what happens when I vary them.
  - on August 31, 2014 at 8:39 pm Mike Powell
    
    I like to play around with the setting too. In this case, I had raised the ISO pretty high, but still couldn’t get the aperture setting that would have given me more depth of field. As it was, I was at a lower shutter speed than I should be using with the 180mm macro lens (with no image stabilization), so I was happy that the image was relatively sharp in places.
on September 1, 2014 at 4:56 am | Reply Bruce Ruston

Nice shot you and I definitely have a connection with spiders. I really want to try a longer macro lens. Going to have to wait till my partners not looking and borrow hers again. I agree with a shorter lens and the flash that you can get more depth of field, but must admit I sometime overdo the flash 😀
on September 1, 2014 at 8:09 am | Reply Ed

Excellent shot..:-)
on September 1, 2014 at 9:17 am | Reply New Hampshire Garden Solutions

He looks like a big one!
on September 1, 2014 at 11:06 am | Reply krikitarts

The flash reflections on the stem don’t detract from the overall image, as far as I’m concerned. Nice work, especially under the difficult circumstances.
on September 2, 2014 at 9:03 am | Reply mariekeates

I don’t like this one as much as the other but that is nothing to do with your skill more to do with my taste.