From NaturePixels.org
May 2008
Author & Editor
Author: Colleen Goh aka Damselfly
Editor: <Please add your name here if you have edit this article>
Photographs and article are copyright of Colleen Goh
Introduction
Mother Nature’s creations evoke any number of visceral reactions in me - ranging from fear to pleasure, and always, awe. And it is the amazing miniature world of nature macro that I have fallen in love with. It is through this medium that I am able to observe, at first hand and in close contact, some of the most fascinating physical and behavioural adaptations found in the natural world.
In this article, I will share with you some ways fun and unique ways of capturing nature macros. Hopefully, I will be able to draw you into this exquisite universe too!
To make all this less dreary (and to save myself several thousand words), I have taken the artistic liberty to include some of my photographs to illustrate some of the things I would like to discuss. I shall profess at the outset that these are by no means good images. Many were taken with my point and shoot when I first started shooting macro and processed using only iPhoto. Image quality, lighting and composition are somewhat less than ideal. My apologies too for the burnt spots, cropped legs/feelers, dust bunnies and less than acceptable lighting.
SAY NO TO “SHOE VIEW” – MY APPROACH TO MACROS
I like to compose my images in a non-clinical way, approaching each shot as if I am doing a “portrait” of the insect. I prefer to avoid an aerial or what I call “shoe view” (showing the bug as the bottom of your shoe might see it). Leave those shots for the field guides and ID books.
The art of the shot is to capture the subject in a unique and dynamic pose. Think about what makes your subject interesting and then try to highlight that feature.
These are some things I like to keep in mind when I am shooting and composing my nature macros:
1. Capturing detail
2. Colours, patterns and lines
3. Symmetry
4. Capturing the strange
5. Action
6. Composition
7. Use of DOF
8. Bugs with personality
9. Monochrome
10. NC16 (mating shots)
11. Eggs and babies (a natural progression from #10)
CAPTURING DETAIL
Detail plays a key role in any form of macro photography and even more so in nature macros. The magnification of a macro set-up opens up a whole new world of close-in, exquisite detail to the photographer. Look for the detail that you cannot see with your naked eye and you will be amazed at the intricate beauty that Mother Nature offers.
Woodlouse and leaf detail – Shot this at night with the Sony T10 using the ring-light attachment.
Crazy Eyes – I love the crazy, tripping colours on the eyes of the fly.
Ant Mandibles – I followed this ant for the longest time as it went about its business, snapping every time it stopped to clean itself or examine something it came across. I was fortunate to shoot it with its mandibles exposed.
Grasshopper Portrait – Would have preferred a nicer background but I liked the detail on his face. This guy was huge and I was so afraid it was going to jump into my face while I was shooting him!
COLOURS, PATTERNS, LINES AND SHAPES
Bugs and plants come in a dazzling array of colours, patterns and shapes. Look for that extra-special one that will give you that eye-catching picture. Even the most fearsome bug can be made to look beautiful.
Neon Hopper – Especially memorable as I shot this at my first macro outing with birders, Eric Pooi, Sandy and Garion. This is the first time I have seen this colourful little fellow. The colours were further emphasized by the lovely, young Simpoh Air leaf it was sitting on.
Michael Jackson Fly – Another T10 shot. I love the play on lines and patterns here, not to mention the cute white socks he had on!
Juvenile Stink Bug – One of my earliest and favourite shots with my trusty Sony T10. I adore the colours on this little fellow.
SYMMETRY
Mother Nature’s creations are perfect in their special way. And I try to highlight this by looking for shots that can be composed in a symmetrical way.
Six Cats A-munching – I could not believe it when I saw how perfectly arranged these six caterpillars were. They looked like they were seated at a dining table, all ready for lunch.
Jumper with Egg Sac
Look into my eyes…all eight of them
CAPTURING THE STRANGE
Looking for the strange and weird in the natural world is not all that hard, especially in the world of bugs. Look for adaptations that you find interesting and try to convey them in your photo. This is one of the easiest ways to catch your viewer’s attention.
Darth Vader Under Attack - These ants were trying to move this bug head that was obviously too heavy for them to even budge. Shot handheld at 1/10, ISO 400, f16. The motion blur from the slow shutter speed emphasized the fact that the ants were trying to shift something totally immobile.
Hopper on Edge – Hopper crawling on the edge of a leaf. His get-up reminds me of the costumes of the band, Earth, Wind and Fire (alright, I am showing my age).
Dragonhead Caterpillar – The strangest caterpillar I have seen. Belongs to the Blue Nawab (Polyura schreiber tisamenus). Shot by bro, Mendis.
ACTION!
Much like bird photography, an action shot is highly prized. Bugs are in a constant state of activity and capturing them mid-action offers an insight into the micro world that exists around us. Admittedly, some luck is required to nail such a shot. Patience and a keen sense of observation will help you anticipate the insect’s next move. And before you know it – Voila…”Bug in Flight”, “Ant Dragging Prey” and “Spider in Mid-moult” will be in your CF card!
Lizard Lick – I waited and shot quite a few frames before I got this one shot. Never knew lizards had forked tongues!
WWF Ant-style – I love to shoot ants as I think they are extremely intelligent and actually do interact with me. And if I am patient and wait long enough, I am usually rewarded with a slice of action.
Lunch is Served – This ant was struggling to drag the worm into the nest. I thought it ironic that the ant was trying to maneuver itself through two red twines that made it look like the ant itself was being grabbed by a pair of red chopsticks! You can see that the lower portion of the worm has broken off.
Mantid Meal – I was lucky to get this Mantis as it lunged out of the darkness and grabbed its prey.
COMPOSITION
A macro shot with no thought to composition is no better than a boring record shot from a field guide. Rule of thirds, framing, perspective, balance, space all have a part to play in macro photography. Use them to lead your viewers’ eyes around the picture and to the subject matter.
Long climb to the Top – Backlit shot using the T10. Use of diagonals give an impression of a long climb up. Veins radiating from the main vein draw the eye around the picture
Cyndi Lauper’s Pet Caterpillar – Lighting and background are not ideal but this is an example of how I tried to use the lines of the leaf blade to lead the eye to the caterpillar. Lines created by the hair take your eye around the picture and back to the caterpillar head again.
Love Bites – Placement of ant using rule of thirds and framed using the red petals. Ant is angled to give a sense of dynamism, as if it is about to lunge forward and bite you.
USE OF DOF
One of the greatest uses of shallow DOF in macro photography is subject isolation. The combination of short distance and long focal length will make your tiny subject pop, while at the same time reducing the effect of distracting background clutter. Use it to single out those amazing bugs eyes or that beautiful edge of a flower petal. Everything else will be thrown into a creamy, dreamy blur that further highlights the main subject of the picture. Shallow DOF can also be used to give a surreal and abstract feel to your macro.
Orchid – I find orchids very hard to shoot because of the DOF issues and not knowing where I should focus. Finally decided to focus on the lip.
Atlas Moth - Found so many of these dying by the wayside after having laid their eggs. These are the world's largest moths. Handheld 1/100, f3.5, no flash.
You spin me right round - Two tiny flower buds I found in my daughter's school garden. ISO 160, f 3.2, 1/100, 60mm
Napoleon Bonaparte @ Bt Tinggi – f2.8, 1/160, no flash
BUGS WITH PERSONALITY
Contrary to popular belief, bugs are not mindless creatures, devoid of emotion. In the short time I have spent shooting bugs, I have found them to possess distinct personalities. Some even exhibit human-like facial expressions. I love to capture my subjects showing fear, inquisitiveness or anger. This adds an extra dimension to the picture and differentiates it from the run-of-the-mill, bug-smack-in-the-centre, top-down-view bug photo.
Aunt Mildred – Adore that human-like expression and that side-long glance.
“Please don’t shoot. I come in peace!” – Grasshopper from Sungei Buloh. Love how he was peeking over the leaf with that petrified look on his face.
MONOCHROME
It is not always necessary for your nature macro to be in colour. A well-executed monochrome macro will give your photo a simplicity that allows the viewer to focus on the essence of the subject.
What kinds of macros are good in monochrome? Look for:
1) High variance in contrast
2) Interesting shapes and contours
3) Clean lines
A rule of thumb for me is - if the photo has only few colours but the colours have different tonal variations, it should look good in B&W.
The Often Neglected Side – I always love to shoot the backs of leaves. There’s always so much happening there. I find the radiating vein patterns are brought out even more after the BW conversion. My apologies for the burnt spots though.
Eyes of a Dragon – I was lucky to have found a co-operative dragonfly that allowed me to shoot him with my 60 mm. Did not miss my chance to get a full-frame shot of these skittish creatures.
EGGS AND BABIES
As in birding, ‘nesting shots and ‘fledgings’ always make a macro maniac’s day.
Ant-like Crab Spider with Egg Sac – I shot this using my macro ring-light. My usual flash set-up of the 430 EX was not able to get into the folded grass blade to illuminate the spider and her egg-sac.
Spider with Eggs – My first nesting shot using the Sony T10. Found her on the underside of a Simpoh Air leaf. This was the shot that started me on the road to macro.
Freshly–hatched Spiderlings of an Orb Spider
NC 16
Mating action never fails to draw the crowds.
Mating Mantids – Shot with the Sony T10
Mating Flies – Those orange eyes just stole my heart.
Mating Bugs – Never knew what a bug penis looked like till I shot this one!
SOME ADDITIONAL POINTERS
"Macro photography" is simply another name for "close-up photography." The closer you can focus on your subject the larger it will appear in the frame, which is really the point to macro photography -- to magnify small objects. Some purists insist that the term macro be reserved for images that are at least life-sized in the film -- an object 1" long must record an image 1" long or longer in the film to count as macro to these folks.
I prefer to speak more loosely of macro photography as being anything that uses some sort of technique that yields an image more magnified than would be possible with just an ordinary lens on the camera. For me, macro photography can have relatively small magnification factors -- just as long as there is more magnification than with a conventional lens by itself.
By the way, some people use the term "micro photography" instead of macro photography, but I think it is the same thing.
Macro photography lets you fill the frame with small subjects. A picture of a caterpillar taken with a 50 mm lens from 10 feet away is unlikely to be interesting because the subject is a tiny speck in the photo. Make that same caterpillar fill the frame of film, however, and all of the sudden you have an exciting photograph. As in all things in photography – adopting a different perspective is what distinguishes a passable photograph from a truly great one.
But you can do more than simply enlarge small subjects to fill the frame. You can use enough magnification to overfill the frame with the subject, abstracting out one part of the subject to stand for the whole. With enough magnification, you can make the photo an interesting abstraction where the viewer will have a challenging (and interesting!) time trying to figure outwhat the original subject was. The possibilities of macro photography are limited only by your imagination.
CONCLUSION
So, these are just some of the ways I take my nature macros shots. It almost goes without saying that these cannot possibly be an exhaustive list of the many ways to take a great macro shot. These are certainly not rules. While following certain guidelines are helpful and generally lead to a good shot – I believe that the only rule is that “There are No Rules and Rules are made to be broken!” In the final analysis, a great shot is measured only by the way it captures our imagination and enables us to see something in a different perspective – that is what Art is all about after all. Many of you would have your own treasury of tips and tricks – and it is this variety of perspectives and sharing that makes macro photography an ever-growing genre of photography.
___________________above article, photographs contributed and copyright of Colleen Goh
