Just one photo today of a common darter seen down at the dewpond. I will, however, add a little bit about how I took the shot.
First of all the equipment: I used the Canon 40D with the 100-400mm long lens at full zoom, so a 400mm focal length. ISO was set to 640 to help keep the shutter speed high, and I used aperture priority set to f/8, which (with the ISO) gave a shutter speed of 1/1600s. The camera was hand held (ie no tripod or support).
The difficult bit was to get the flying dragonfly in focus. That's tricky enough when they are over the flat surface of the water, but this one was staying over the much more complicated background of grass, soil and stones. The camera was set to 'AI' focusing with a single (central) focusing point. This means that the camera automatically refocuses on the target as it moves (so long as you keep the focusing point over the subject). Great for birds in flight, but for something this small and quick it can create a problem because as soon as the dragonfly moves off-centre the camera will refocus on the background. I got plenty of nice red blurs hovering over sharp white stones. Chasing it around clearly (or, more precisely, totally unclearly) wasn't going to work.
Fortunately, darters are creatures of precise habits. They will land again and again on the same spot. After watching for a while I could more or less predict its movements, so I focused on it when it had landed and waited. And I locked the focus. On the 40D this is easy. I have it set up so that I use one of the buttons on the rear of the camera to control focus, leaving the shutter button (which usually deals with focusing and firing) free to deal only with releasing the shutter. This two button system of focusing and firing really helps as it avoids the risk of accidentally refocusing when you finally take the shot. So, with the dragonfly nicely in focus I re-framed the shot (i.e. I moved the camera so that I could just make out the edge of the dragonfly in the corner of the frame), and waited. It took two or three attempts to get the timing right, but finally I managed to click as it took off. Presto! A dragonfly, in flight, over rough terrain, and in focus.
The finished shot is a moderate crop of the full frame. The background has been softened with Neat Image, and I've added a touch of sharpening to bring out the detail. I also brightened it a little in Photoshop Elements.
Camera note: taken with the EF 100-400mm f/4.5-5.6L USM IS.
cakkleberrylane
30 Sep 2008Great shot!
Vulpes vulpes
30 Sep 2008Wow! Well done!
Dudley
30 Sep 2008Nice :up:
CedarFox
30 Sep 2008Excellent!
gdare
30 Sep 2008Wow! :faint:
Words
30 Sep 2008Vulpes, thanks!
Words
30 Sep 2008Mark, thanks. The thing with cameras is that they are always bringing out new versions. The 40D is already last year's model so it's impossible to keep up (I got mine last month). This one will certainly keep me happy for a long while.
Words
30 Sep 2008Thanks Lois!
Words
30 Sep 2008Eric, thanks!
Words
30 Sep 2008Thanks Andy!
Flying Red Fox Blog
30 Sep 2008Very good. 😀 One of my MSN friends was chatting to me about his new camera which was a Canon 40D and how impressive it is. I will stick with my Fuji for now but when i have a better job with more money i would go out and buy a 40D camera! 😛
Words
30 Sep 2008Darko, thanks!
Furie
30 Sep 2008Wow, that's amazing. 😀
Words
30 Sep 2008Thanks Mik!
ojsnascimento
30 Sep 2008Excellent post !:yes:
Words
1 Oct 2008Thanks Orlando!
FrogBoots
1 Oct 2008Wonderful capture! Thanks for the helpful technical info too! :up: 🙂
Words
1 Oct 2008Thanks FB! I tried again today, but the little thing decided to have a nap and wouldn't move.
Mickeyjoe-Irl
1 Oct 2008I have to admire your patience, but it's easy to see why you do it. Fantastic shot.
Words
2 Oct 2008Thanks Mick!
suicidalstones
3 Oct 2008Thanks for the information. You inspire the rest of us.
Joe
Words
4 Oct 2008Thanks Joe. The key with dragonflies seems to be to wait for them to come into shot. They're almost impossible to 'chase'.
SittingFox
4 Oct 2008*would very much like a 40D* :whistle:
Great shot, well worth the effort!
Words
4 Oct 2008Adele, thanks! I can't see me upgrading again for a while though I assume the next upgrade round (presume 60D as the 50D has only just come out) will incorporate video as per the new 5DMkII. The price on the 40D should drop over the coming months.
SittingFox
4 Oct 2008Hm, just read a review of the 50D – it sounds fabulous! But I cannot see myself spending any money on photography equipment this side of 2010. I wish this hobby was just a little less expensive! 😉
ojsnascimento
4 Oct 2008Adele, I couldn't agree more with you… :awww: