Latest stack, common wasp

[lauriek]

This was the 'freezer proof' wasp mentioned in my last thread in the "Equipment" forum - http://www.photomacrography.net/forum/v ... php?t=4410 - another few hours in the freezer seem to have finished her off...

I managed to clean off the worst fluff using a tiny paintbrush, while looking at the wasp through the camera, still got a load of pollen of something in the fine hair on the top of the head but I think it's still okay!

I actually did quite a deep stack on this one but in the end I only used the front half of the pictures as when I ran the full stack and got more of the hairy body in focus it didn't look as good...

Shot with Olympus E330, OM Auto Bellows, OM50/1.8 reversed, Macro twinflash. Black velvet background a long way behind the subject. Bellows and micromanipulator (subject holder) are now screwed firmly to an old wooden sink cover.

[jmlphoto]

i like the way the antennae are in this pic great shot

[lauriek]

Thanks Jordan!

[rjlittlefield]

Laurie,

I think you did an excellent job of handling the stacking on this shot. Leaving the body blurred makes a nice separation between head and body. I imagine that if everything were sharp, it would be hard to tell what's what.

One thing that might improve this type of shot would be some extra fill lighting to brighten up places that the flash can't get to directly. I notice that I'm having trouble making out detail in dark areas around the mouth, for example. An easy way to add fill light is to stick a diffuse reflector like a white index card under the front of the specimen.

This is looking good -- keep at it!

--Rik

[lauriek]

Thanks for the kind words Rik!

There was actually a white card right underneath the wasp, but I think the way I have my flash heads mounted (on their normal lens mounting ring) they are not catching the card at enough of an angle to bounce light up under the front of the subject - any bounced light is all going behind the subject... Lighting is an issue I'm looking into at the moment!!

On that subject, what do I need to look for in a fibre optic lighting rig?

[acerola]

It has a sad smile. Good shot.

[rjlittlefield]

On that subject, what do I need to look for in a fibre optic lighting rig?

150 watts and dual-head, long enough to reach what you need. The guide bundles come as either self-supporting or not (soft & pliable). Adjustable lenses on the outputs are nice to have on occasion, but to tell the truth, I seldom use them. Most units control intensity by dimming the bulb, which means the color shifts, often by a lot. I understand there are units that dim by closing an aperture, which avoids that problem, but I've never used one. Power supplies may be regulated or not, which might matter if your power fluctuates or if you stack with short shutter speeds, say 1/30 second or less.

The unit I have appears to be identical to the HEI-FOI-110 illuminator and HEI-DP-18 light guide sold by Howard Electronics. I actually bought mine through eBay from a different supplier, for basically the same price, but without a warranty, without even a label, and with a defect -- easily repairable, fortunately.

I'm quite happy with it. And despite that the vendor didn't say anything about its power supply, it turns out to be a high frequency switcher -- completely flicker free and very well regulated according to my meters.

--Rik

[JoanYoung]

An excellent pic.

[beetleman]

A great stack lauriek. Wasps always make interesting pictures. All the focused areas look tack sharp and an excellent job on the fine hairs.