Mayfly

I found a couple of these beautiful but weird creatures when I was chasing demoiselles this morning. I've got images showing the full mayfly but they are pretty boring as the detail is minimal if you keep the front legs and tails in the frame so I settled for this one

Canon 20D
Sigma 150mm + tubes
1/13sec@f16 iso 200 raw + a touch of fill in flash
Gitzo 1348 tripod and manfrotto geared head
Processed in C1 Pro and CS2

Get rid of the dust bunnies ( ) and it's a stunning picture Kevin

damn it you spotted some more??? sheesh these small apertures are a major pain lol

at least 6 - that's the problem with diffuse backgrounds (says me who also recently posted an image with bunnies )

ok I got them :) I added a Levels Layer and narrowed the colour range to make them stand out and then hit them with a big hammer. Thanks for letting me know

Have you reposted 'cos if you have... they're still there!

Not on here Barrie I can't post more than one every 72 hours and the original file is on photobucket. The updated file is on my website under current work

Lovely image Kevin. I may be about to ask a silly question here - but you mentiuoned that you used 150mm (i assume a macro lens) + tubes, does this carry the reproduction ratio past what is nromally possible with a macro lens?

Thanks and regards
Chris
www.c-m-l.com

Sharp as a tack - nice one

Chris: yes it's the Sigma 150mm f2.8 macro lens so in 35mm terms it gives a maximum magnification of 1 : 1 at minimum focus. On the 20D it gives 1.6 : 1 because of the crop factor on the sensor. Adding extension tubes between the lens and camera body allows the lens to focus closer than it's designed to. This increases the magnification even further.

I hope that makes some sort of sense?

Superb image Kevin. Nits mentioned.
John
Aberdeen

Good one Kev. The "Bunnies" are so small as to be totally insignificant on my monitor. 6 scattered around he frame is hardly a worry.

Rob

Thanks Kevin, it's just that I have the same lens so was wondering what the effect was and whether it was worth considering.

Regards Chris.
www.c-m-l.com

Chris: a set of extension tubes is well worth the space in a kitbag :) They will work with all lenses and I regularly use one on my Canon 600mm to get frame filling images of the smaller wildlife. I use the Kenro? Kenko set which retain the Aperture and AF functions.

Nice one Kev....

Must take you to task over one point however... even on a 1.6 crop format the reproduction ratio is still 1:1

Phil you know what I mean even if I don't

Cheers kevin, I will give it a bit of thought, I don't think I'd need it on the 200-400mm as it focuses down to 2metres, plus any converters. I guess it would be just for macro.

Thanks and regards
Chris
www.c-m-l.com

Stunning. Love the way the wings shimmer with gold iridescence. Lovely depth of field too. Must keep my eyes out at the water's edge.

Superb shot