The last thing a mosquito sees in the rearview mirror...

twebster · Post by **twebster** » Sun Sep 24, 2006 9:48 am

Wandering Glider (Pantala flavescens) Canon EOS 20D dSLR, Canon EF 300mm f 2.8L IS lens with Canon EF 2x II teleconverter, ISO 800, 1/800 sec @ f 11, natural light, tripod with IS turned on.

Hi y'all,

Last week I was out photographing waterfowl at the Gilbert Water Ranch, Gilbert, Arizona, USA when this dragonfly kept getting in my face

So, I thought, to heck with him. I'll shoot him

It is so much fun photographing flying dragonflies. I used my Canon EF 300 f 2.8L IS lens with the Canon EF 2x II teleconverter to make this image. When you factor in the 1.6x crop factor of the Canon EOS 20D camera, the resulting focal length is effectively 960mm

I put the Canon EOS 20D on AIServo focusing, placed the central autofocus sensor on the dragonfly's head, and fired 5 frame bursts. The real challenge in photographing flying dragonflies is not so much in focusing on them but the challenge is finding them in the viewfinder

Enjoy, my friends

Hatch1921 · Post by **Hatch1921** » Sun Sep 24, 2006 10:08 am

Excellent capture! I have tried all summer long with ZERO success to capture a shot like this. Love the tones in the shot and the focus on the dragon. Keep up the great work.

Hatch

Ken Ramos · Post by **Ken Ramos** » Sun Sep 24, 2006 10:34 am

Outstanding image there Tom.

Sort of reminds me of an old bomber on a mission run.

rjlittlefield · Post by **rjlittlefield** » Sun Sep 24, 2006 10:35 am

Tom, this is a great picture, and a perfect title!

Your description amused me. Image stabilization, predictive auto-focus, burst shooting -- this technology is starting to remind me of advanced weaponry.

Any day now, I'm expecting to see advertisements along the line of

"Yes, it's true, folks. This camera is smart enough to know what it's after, and powerful enough to go get it. You provide the strategy -- leave the tactics to our automation!"

--Rik

Ken Ramos · Post by **Ken Ramos** » Sun Sep 24, 2006 10:40 am

you know Rik, that sound like an advertisment for a cruise missile.

twebster · Post by **twebster** » Sun Sep 24, 2006 11:27 am

The laser ranging dragonfly locator is due to arrive next week

MacroLuv · Post by **MacroLuv** » Sun Sep 24, 2006 11:33 am

Marvelous!

Well guys, with those heavy weapons you can fire from long distance. I must crawl like commando to get close.

beetleman · Post by **beetleman** » Sun Sep 24, 2006 3:22 pm

Pictures I always dream of

...and then I wake up

How about "Auto Turret cameras"

puzzledpaul · Post by **puzzledpaul** » Mon Sep 25, 2006 2:15 am

Excellent job ...

Take a few more like this and you'll have Stephen Dalton looking over his shouder

Not the sort of pic I'd even contemplate trying with the setup I normally use ...

pp