Diamondback Rattlesnake Scales at 4x!

[Mike B in OKlahoma]

It dawned on me recently that I never got out my MP-E-65 for some good high-magnification bug photography this Summer. Too late for that now (I was in the impact area of the big snowstorm that was featured on news in the US this past week), but at least I can go photograph some reptiles with it....This is part of the result of a trip today.

This was shot at about 4x, so not much depth of field. Made worse by rattlesnakes not being nice and flat, but nearly all of the two primary scales is in focus here. This shot is mostly a stunt, but it does show how much flex is built into the snakes skin to enable it to expand to swallow large prey.

Eastern Diamondback Rattlesnake
controlled situation
65mm bellows lens at about 4x
1/250th second @ f/13 (set in camera--Actual f/stop about f/65 due to magnification)
ISO 160
flash as main light
flash highlights (mostly) cloned out in PS
(note that there was glass between me and the snake!)

[Ken Ramos]

With an MP-E-65! A "stunt" you say. We will be hearing and reading about you in the evening news Mike, "stunt photographer whacked by Eastern Diamondback, film at eleven." A rather good shot though I must say. Care to give us a few more particulars on how you accomplished this?

[Mike B in OKlahoma]

Care to give us a few more particulars on how you accomplished this?

Nothing to it except being patient and bullheaded. :-) The snake is resting comfortably in a zoo display, about an inch away on the other side of a sheet of glass. I just found a clean, unscratched bit of glass, set up my flashes to illuminate the area, lined up the camera carefully, and took the shot. Actually, I took about half a dozen shots....In these circumstances, high-precision setups like Rik uses can't be transported to, let alone set up in, the photo site, so I am hand-holding the lens. Combine getting the distance right and getting reasonably parallel to the primary plane of the snake with the not-particularly-bright display lighting, and it is a wobbly enterprise. I took half a dozen shots, and usually take more for this kind of shot. Then one of them is usually fairly good. Thank Gawd for digital!

[Ken Ramos]

You know for a moment or two there, I thought that you got up-close and personal with the snake while someone, a trained handler of course, must have been holding it. I see that I missed the part about the glass partition and should have known anyway, seeing as how you have shown us many images of these reptiles. Thanks for the added info there Mike...had me going there for a moment.

[beetleman]

When you see the scales on the snake ,you think they are close together but in your picture you can see how separated they are and the skin attachment. Very interesting Mike. Great shot

[rjlittlefield]

...skin attachment...

Or something very much like an attachment, in any case.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Snake_scales is quite a nice article about these things (and comes complete with a reference for almost every paragraph! ).

--Rik

[Mike B in OKlahoma]

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Snake_scales is quite a nice article about these things (and comes complete with a reference for almost every paragraph! ).

"In certain areas of North America...Keys using scales have been constructed to enable the public to identify poisonous from non-poisonous snakes." (rough article quote from memory)

Mein Gott! I don't think I WANT to tell a poisonous snake by what his scales are like! If I'm that close, I'm likely to have found out he's poisonous through other means....

As I understand it, in the United States (not South of the Rio Grande), all poisonous snakes except the coral snake are pit vipers, and have the distinctive traingle-shaped head. The coral snake is pretty distinctive on it's own, and is pretty non-aggressive anyway.

[Cyclops]

Man thats closer to a rattler I ever want to get!
Cool shots!