Posted on August 7, 2021
I was looking for a Praying Mantis in our gardens to photograph when this male Blue Dasher dragonfly landed on a branch by our carport. Not a great background but decided to photograph it anyway since I did not see any other interesting bugs. To minimize detail in the background carport siding I chose f/8 to minimize the carport detail. Since I was @ f/8 I shot a handheld series of images to retain detail on the dragonfly. I shot 3 images to focus stack on the dragonfly from wingtip to wingtip, then a 3 image series head to tail. After the main image stack, I moved in closer & closer for a few different closer versions since it seemed to be tolerating my being there.



Category: Blog, canon R, Closeup Photography, Dragonflies, dragonfly, Equipment, Favorite Locations, Tips & Techniques Tagged: Blue Dasher, Blue Dasher Dragonfly, canon 1.4x teleconverter series III, canon 300mm f/4 IS lens, canon R camera, Focus Stacking, Focus stacking for more depth of field, Focus stacking for smoother cleaner backgrounds, Focus stacking for specific detail & sharpness, focus stacking in Photoshop, Male Blue Dasher Dragonfly
Posted on July 27, 2021
I was looking for interesting bugs in our gardens to photograph and I found this Praying Mantis in the shade under some of the flowers. It was very dark but that made the Mantis stand out more. I was using a 300mm lens with a 1.4X Teleconverter @ f/11 with a Canon R. I wanted to make sure I got detail on the head and antennae only so I did a handheld 13 image focus stack to make sure I had detail on it’s head & 2 antennae or feelers. I purposely only wanted detail on the head and antennae and let the body go soft.
Category: Blog, canon R, Closeup Photography, Equipment, Favorite Locations, Focus Stacking, Image Stacking, Insects, Nature Still Lifes, Panorama & Stacked Images, photoshop tips, Stacked Images, Tips & Techniques Tagged: canon 300mm f/4 IS lens, canon R camera, Canon Series III 1.4X Teleconverter, Focus stacking for specific detail & sharpness, Praying Mantis, Praying Mantis Closeups, Praying Mantis Focus stack
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