Monday, April 30, 2007

Know you subject

Haystack Butterfly series 1-7
Haystack Butterfly series 1-7
Originally uploaded by Dalantech.
I think it’s funny when people ask me what camera or lens that I use. One recent comment on one of my photos was “You must have a really good telephoto lens” –for the record I shoot all of my insect shots with Canon’s 100mm macro lens. It’s not the hardware that lets me get close, it’s all technique.

Study your subject and learn their habits.

If you take the time to get to know the critters that you shoot then your success at getting good shots of them will only improve. Take the Haystack Butterfly image in this post. I know that butterflies need to warm up and dry out in the morning -the previous night’s dew can get them pretty wet. They are also more likely to be feeding in the morning, and if they are busy eating they won’t mind me getting close, provided I move slow enough. So I went out early and captured this butterfly.

You don’t need special equipment, you just need experience…

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