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Great Diving Beetle
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Great Diving Beetle

by John Robinson

Gallery: Macro & Close-upPosted April 23, 2014111 views8 comments
Dytiscus marginalis (Male)
Luckily this turned up im my greehouse rain water tub.
I have loads of pics with them "perching" so to speak but wanted one free swimming. Finally managed it in my special tank in the office last night. Shows the hairy leg "oars" quite well I thought.
You might find some streaks or detritus specks I,ve missed if you really blow it up.
Nikon D7100
micro Nikor 40 mm
Camera flash
About full frame.
60th sec @f18
ISO800
Neat image and CZM stacking programme with one shot to get high pass sharpening.
Curves in PSP7
Cheers
JohnR

Comments

8 comments
Comment posted by Jim Zablotny on April 23, 2014 at 6:57 PM
John--this is a super shot. I like the beetle, bubbles, pose, and lighting! My only nit is a minor one at best. There are two vertical lines that intersect the tarsal segments of the right middle leg (The beetle's right) which is visible only in the large image. They might be from scratches on the tank glass. These can be easily removed in Photo shop. Other than that-- :toast: :toast: ............................Jim
Registered on January 17, 2004, 705 Posts, 3594 Comments
Comment posted by Rick Cloran on April 23, 2014 at 7:22 PM
Super job. The only thing I might wish for is a little OOF vegetation in the BG to make it look more like a pond. :toast: :toast:
Registered on April 6, 2004, 119 Posts, 1989 Comments
Comment posted by John Robinson on April 23, 2014 at 7:38 PM
Thanks both
Jim
Yes I can see them on the original. I make my own tanks but they don;t last long due to scratches from cleaning the glass.
Its a pain !!! As you say-easily sorted though I don't use Photo shop. Can do it in Paint Shop pro I won't take up site space by reposting but I.ve done the original.
Thanks again.
Rick Thanks They are in fact plants ! Its algae and moss photographed way out of focus and printed A3 and used as backdrops. I find using weed in the same tank introduces so much rubbish floating about. I do some times uses partitions.
Thanks for your interest both
Cheers
John
Registered on March 2, 2008, 535 Posts, 2453 Comments
Comment posted by John Neukirch on April 23, 2014 at 9:05 PM
WOW, a once in a million capture. Way to be ready. :toast:
Registered on July 9, 2012, 207 Posts, 1476 Comments
Comment posted by Howard Cheek on April 24, 2014 at 9:55 AM
Wow John, very cool.. Looks like it's floating weightless in space!
Great use of flash with very good details, POV, comp, and BG :toast: :toast:
Registered on July 24, 2008, 1201 Posts, 10758 Comments
Comment posted by scott lanz on April 24, 2014 at 12:46 PM
Nice work, John. Expert capture of the swimming action.
Registered on November 14, 2003, 840 Posts, 12902 Comments
Comment posted by Mark Seaver on April 24, 2014 at 5:10 PM
This is a great shot, John, with excellent details of the beetle and enough background to show off the environment. Having spent some time trying to get these and other "water bugs" in motion, I know how hard that is.
Registered on January 23, 2011, 1103 Posts, 17270 Comments
Comment posted by Carol Hyman on April 26, 2014 at 1:50 PM
John this has wonderful focus on the beetle. Nice job.

Cheers,
Carol
Registered on January 18, 2007, 597 Posts, 8062 Comments