# DONT Doubt the power of POINT AND SHOOT!!



## agent A (Oct 5, 2012)

hey all, pulled out my 3 year old cannon powershot A720 IS and i didnt add a single lens or flash to it, i used the built in stuff, manual mode, macro mode, and took some AWESOME shots!

stagmomantis limbata:

















toadlet!! :wub: 

\


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## sinensispsyched (Oct 5, 2012)

Not bad at all!

Your best pics yet!


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## agent A (Oct 5, 2012)

and this is with the camera i dont want &lt;_&lt;


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## brancsikia339 (Oct 5, 2012)

nice shots!


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## slytle90 (Oct 5, 2012)

OMG that second one is great! ... and is that a fire belly toad?


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## agent A (Oct 5, 2012)

slytle90 said:


> OMG that second one is great! ... and is that a fire belly toad?


yes it is! i breed them


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## slytle90 (Oct 5, 2012)

agent A said:


> yes it is! i breed them


awwwww that is so cool. I used to have ton of them in a huge tank w/ half land and half water. I kept some anoles in with them too. I love the noises they make at night, it's so cute.


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## lancaster1313 (Oct 5, 2012)

Great photos!


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## sueb4653 (Oct 5, 2012)

great photos


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## stacy (Oct 5, 2012)

great pics!


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## MandellaMandy123 (Oct 5, 2012)

Great pictures! I love my Canon Powershot


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## aNisip (Oct 5, 2012)

The toad looks radioactive  great shots btw


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## angelofdeathzz (Oct 5, 2012)

Nice! Are you sure your buddy Precarious didn't take those?


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## fleurdejoo (Oct 6, 2012)

Oh they are gorgeous!


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## gripen (Oct 6, 2012)

Those pics are amazing! Great composition. You will have to show me a thing or two one day...


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## agent A (Oct 6, 2012)

angelofdeathzz said:


> Nice! Are you sure your buddy Precarious didn't take those?


right now i'm abt ready to take the camera and precarious and combine them if u know wat i mean  



gripen said:


> Those pics are amazing! Great composition. You will have to show me a thing or two one day...


i will, i will  



AndrewNisip said:


> The toad looks radioactive  great shots btw


maybe it is :shifty:


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## Precarious (Oct 7, 2012)

agent A said:


> right now i'm abt ready to take the camera and precarious and combine them if u know wat i mean


Good luck with that. I'm not a defenseless insect you can mutilate for fun.


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## agent A (Oct 7, 2012)

Precarious said:


> Good luck with that. I'm not a defenseless insect you can mutilate for fun.


i don't mutilate insects for fun

i merely suggested something that i figured from my own thinking might solve an otherwise grave problem

my misconception behind the suggestion was fixed and i haven't suggested anything like it since

there's no need to linger on something that didnt happen  

anyways i think i like my newer camera better since it has more potential


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## Precarious (Oct 7, 2012)

agent A said:


> i don't mutilate insects for fun


Oh, sorry. My mistake. I guess this video on your YouTube channel of a kid torturing and mutilating an insect is someone else.

(reposted)


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## fleurdejoo (Oct 7, 2012)

###### dude!?!?

Alex why in the world would you do that?


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## agent A (Oct 7, 2012)

Precarious said:


> Oh, sorry. My mistake. I guess this video on your YouTube channel of a kid torturing and mutilating and insect is someone else.
> 
> http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7GF_ZGkqRIw


possibly

or i was avenging a phyllocrania nymph the thing killed

what i can tell u is every piece of that earwig except the pinchy things at the end went to the axolotl u could clearly see in the video and it certainly died a lot quicker than if a mantis had eaten it


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## fleurdejoo (Oct 7, 2012)

Do you have cats or dogs Alex?


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## agent A (Oct 7, 2012)

fleurdejoo said:


> Do you have cats or dogs Alex?


no but i wish

my mom says when my sis and i go to college she's gonna get a puppy :wub:


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## hierodula (Oct 7, 2012)

Alex.... Not cool bro. At least feed it to a mantis or put it outside....


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## angelofdeathzz (Oct 7, 2012)

Precarious said:


> Oh, sorry. My mistake. I guess this video on your YouTube channel of a kid torturing and mutilating and insect is someone else.
> 
> http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7GF_ZGkqRIw


Ouch!!! Busted... You should really try to respect more things in life than just your Spanish teacher?


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## agent A (Oct 7, 2012)

hierodula said:


> Alex.... Not cool bro. At least feed it to a mantis or put it outside....


yeah well i tried feeding some to a mantis

the sphodromantis that ate one a few days later got sick

the earwigs also caused harm to my young luna moth larvae

i quickly and effectively put the earwig out by separating vital body systems

precarious is upset at that but when huge numbers of insects are sprayed with chemical pesticides that take hours or even days to slowly kill the poor things he seems to be MIA

and angelofdeath, i dont take spanish :lol:


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## sueb4653 (Oct 7, 2012)

hmmm video removed by user


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## Precarious (Oct 7, 2012)

agent A said:


> possibly
> 
> or i was avenging a phyllocrania nymph the thing killed
> 
> what i can tell u is every piece of that earwig except the pinchy things at the end went to the axolotl u could clearly see in the video and it certainly died a lot quicker than if a mantis had eaten it


There you go rationalizing again. The bottom line is you took enjoyment torturing that insect. It's not about what could have happened in a different situation, or a more natural situation where it was eaten by a predator. It's about your choice of actions. You chose to tear apart a defenseless insect for you own enjoyment. And what's worse you thought it was cool to record and post it. That says quite a bit about who you are, your lack of empathy, and your inability to judge right from wrong.

It is for these reason I will never sell to you.

You obviously have no emotional attachment to your pets...


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## Precarious (Oct 7, 2012)

agent A said:


> precarious is upset at that but when huge numbers of insects are sprayed with chemical pesticides that take hours or even days to slowly kill the poor things he seems to be MIA


You don't know anything about me so don't bother trying to make this about me.


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## agent A (Oct 7, 2012)

i didnt enjoy killing the insect

i enjoyed getting justice for the ghostie it killed

the swearing video (which i deleted because i was only keeping it there for a few days because of a request for it) has nothing to do with the issue at hand

i'm done arguing with you on something so stupid, we've all done stupid things in our lives but it doesnt make us less human, perhaps it's just a phase i'm going through, phases like this occur at my age

keep in mind how old the earwig video was, it was a few months ago that this happened, havent done this sort of thing recently &lt;_&lt;


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## Precarious (Oct 7, 2012)

sueb4653 said:


> hmmm video removed by user


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## patrickfraser (Oct 7, 2012)

I'm too late. What was on the deleted video? Inquiring minds want to know. :huh:


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## Precarious (Oct 7, 2012)

agent A said:


> i didnt enjoy killing the insect
> 
> i enjoyed getting justice for the ghostie it killed
> 
> ...


Just keep rationalizing why is was OK instead of taking an honest look at yourself. That will get you far in life.


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## Precarious (Oct 7, 2012)

patrickfraser said:


> I'm too late. What was on the deleted video? Inquiring minds want to know. :huh:


Reposted right above your comment.


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## agent A (Oct 7, 2012)

patrickfraser said:


> I'm too late. What was on the deleted video? Inquiring minds want to know. :huh:


i deleted it because it caused a stir

and to precarious about the dancing dead majuscula

1: i did that because somebody who i was going to send him to didnt believe he had died so i needed a way to prove he was dead, a video of him and me holding the body did the trick

2: he was DEAD, i dont think he cared if i did that to him



Precarious said:


> You obviously have no emotional attachment to your pets...


i find it's best not to get too attached to things

when something is dead, it's done for and life goes on

u think it's only insects i can quickly cope with the deaths of? once again i am done arguing over this


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## angelofdeathzz (Oct 7, 2012)

Do I smell a good old fashion lynching about to take place?(jk)


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## agent A (Oct 7, 2012)

Precarious said:


> You obviously have no emotional attachment to your pets...


for the forum to decide:

listen to the way i endear my axolotl in this video:

i'm not as cold as u think, if i didnt love my ghosts i wouldnt have let the earwig live

sure i could've killed it more humanley but that's a lesson i will use another day


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## Precarious (Oct 7, 2012)

agent A said:


> once again i am done arguing over this


That's good because there is no argument. There are no excuses. We just live in different worlds. You will continue to rationalize your behavior and never correct your faults. That is a sure path to continued conflict and unhappiness, and a classic expression of the traits of a psychopath.

*Psychopathy* (/saɪˈkɒpəθi/ from the Ancient Greek ψυχή "psyche", -soul, mind and πάθος, "pathos" -suffering, disease, condition) is a personality disorder that has been variously described as characterized by shallow emotions (in particular reduced fear), stress tolerance, lacking empathy, coldheartedness, lacking guilt, egocentricity, superficial charm, manipulativeness, irresponsibility, impulsivity and antisocial behaviors such as parasitic lifestyle and criminality.

http://en.wikipedia....iki/Psychopathy


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## agent A (Oct 7, 2012)

how can i correct something that ALREADY HAPPENED?? people make mistakes, it doesnt make me a bad person

this seems to be the only thing u see me for and that's kind of unfair


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## angelofdeathzz (Oct 7, 2012)

I understand your anger, you know I do, and I don't like alot of things he does either but come on man he is just a kid, and I think you made your point, lets not make him go off the deep end? :mellow:


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## Precarious (Oct 7, 2012)

agent A said:


> how can i correct something that ALREADY HAPPENED?? people make mistakes, it doesnt make me a bad person
> 
> this seems to be the only thing u see me for and that's kind of unfair





agent A said:


> how can i correct something that ALREADY HAPPENED?? people make mistakes, it doesnt make me a bad person
> 
> this seems to be the only thing u see me for and that's kind of unfair


It's not just this. There is a pattern of behavior I find disturbing. I'm trying to wake you up to it. Unfortunately, you blow everything off unless directly confronted with evidence. Even then you rationalize away your guilt. You really need to examine your actions and reign in your impulses before they ruin your life. Best to adjust your habits now before they are too set in place to reverse. I understand you are young. That is no excuse but it works to your benefit. You have plenty of time to work on yourself. It's not too late.



angelofdeathzz said:


> I understand your anger, you know I do, and I don't like alot of things he does either but come on man he is just a kid, and I think you made your point, lets not make him go off the deep end? :mellow:


I'm not being mean, Nick. I haven't said anything hateful. I'm trying to help the kid. You know he doesn't respond to anything other than direct confrontation.


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## agent A (Oct 7, 2012)

sadly, i think precarious is right on this

i dont pick up on social cues (one of my many social awkwardnesses)

i did go through therapy a few years back and it helped with some issues but other issues returned when some traumatic (not sure what else to call them) life issues hit last year and the help i recieved for certain things never sunk in because things i went through made me stop accosiating them with normal life

i will eventually reveal all and maybe some of u will understand, tomorrow i will type a whole thing on some of the issues troubling me (i thought i moved past them but maybe my behavior is from anger over them, not an excuse but i think they should be known)

now i'm tired and sad that precarious hates me now


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## patrickfraser (Oct 7, 2012)

It's one thing to do something in "private", but when you make a video and upload it for the world to see, it becomes fodder for disapproval and judgement by the masses. Some people may not have the time to paruse all your videos, but if they were to see that one would not think to highly of you from first impressions. You did seem to enjoy it, but that's not bad. But you did what you did deliberately and made a video to post publicly. Why? What purpose did it serve? I enjoy feeding mantids and other favored insects to my chameleons and I take pictures, but i do not "torture" them beforehand and it's usually a mismolt or "knocking on heave's door".

A word of advise...Be mindful of the "you" that you make accessible to the world. Social media is the :devil: , and you, my friend, have become his  .

I'm not saying, but I'm just saying..... :whistling:


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## angelofdeathzz (Oct 7, 2012)

The mantis forum is not the place to put your dirty laundry tomorrow Alex, you need to talk to a school counselor or go back to therapy and want to change for it to ever happen, life is not a bowl of cherries as some of us were told when we were young, it's how you correct your short comings that make the man you become...


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## fleurdejoo (Oct 7, 2012)

I am just concerned about the way you are treating and interacting with your pets period.

I think you should speak to a counselor Alex.

I don't think Precarious hates you Alex.

That's a very strong word.


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## Precarious (Oct 8, 2012)

agent A said:


> now i'm tired and sad that precarious hates me now


I don't hate you but you have found ways to bother me. I'm the kind of person that faces what is bothering me. I'm sorry you have issues. We all do. What counts is that we acknowledge and address them. No issue is uncorrectable. So get a grip and decide to be honest with yourself. That is something that will benefit you the rest of your life.

I'm sorry if I hurt your feelings with my honesty. But a little emotional pain is often the best motivator to change. I sincerely hope you do take this to heart and become the person you are intended to be. We all get lazy sometimes and forget who we are or what we should be working towards. Don't become the victim of bad habits. Take control and present a face to the world you can be proud of. That's all I'm trying to accomplish with all of this.

So take a step back and decide who you'd like to be. Maybe back off from social media for a while. Spend some time in your own head examining your impulses and their source, then make sure any action you take is a conscious action of your choosing. I promise you, if you do this you will be a stronger man for your effort, you will find more love and happiness in your life. I remember being 16 and I wish I'd had someone to point me in the right direction then. It would have saved me a ton of heartache and regret later. So bypass all that bull and start today.

I don't think you should post anything about your personal issues. That will look like a plea for pity. You don't need pity. You need strength. You've got all the strength you need if you just bring it out of yourself.


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## angelofdeathzz (Oct 8, 2012)

Well put my friend! Sounds alot like what I told him, just longer and more drawn out. :lol:


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## hierodula (Oct 8, 2012)

Alex, Ill admit that what i'm going to say is a bit cliche, but I look at life and think 'tomorrows a better day' Ill give you an example, I got a B on my test and I said what can I do to improve and did it. Thats my philosophy on life and a simple rexamination makes life that much better. Best of luck man.


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