Oxyopsis gracilis adults

[Precarious]

Stunning mantis shots! you say you're shooting with the Mpe 65 on the close ups of the faces or no?

Yes, MP-E 65mm. Really amazing lens, but very specialized.

 

[OctoberRainne]

Yeah I've heard looks really good used here though,that lens makes me want to switch to canon in the future lol

 

[Precarious]

Yeah I've heard looks really good used here though,that lens makes me want to switch to canon in the future lol

I did quite a bit of research before buying my first DSLR a year and a half ago and it looked to me that Canon is the best choice for macro beyond actual size. The MP-E is the only lens on the market that goes all the way down to 5x. Macro lenses normally only go down to 1:1 unless you add extension tubes or bellows. The ability to walk through the woods and take freehand photos at up to 5x is pretty novel.

Canon also has some of the best flash units made specifically for macro. I have the MT-24EX and it is a game changer. That's what allows me to do all my shots freehand. At this point I couldn't even imagine using a tripod and focusing rail.

 

[OctoberRainne]

Yeah i shoot free hand with a 105 lens,tubes and a raynox filter if needed but because of all that when you do try to shoot really small the DOF goes out the window,so probably will someday upgrade and go in that direction just to be able to get some super macros of tiny things without having to add on inches of equipment

 

[Precarious]

Yeah i shoot free hand with a 105 lens,tubes and a raynox filter if needed but because of all that when you do try to shoot really small the DOF goes out the window,so probably will someday upgrade and go in that direction just to be able to get some super macros of tiny things without having to add on inches of equipment

Yeah, all in one is the way to go. Travel relatively light. Plus each add-on increases the light requirements and adds to chromatic aberration.

You're still going to get shallow DoF. No way around that. The super closeups above are 2 or 3 images stacked.

Hey, I checked out your deviantART galleries. The Birthday Cicada shots are really cute. ^_^

 

[OctoberRainne]

Thanxx lol not much on there haven't had time to edit,so just decided to shoot and post the mantids and some previews elsewhere,I sometimes stack but don't plan on stacking unless its a concept im really determined to get,really should though,the benefits are far greater than the time it takes

 

[mutrok4040]

Nice shots!

 

[Precarious]

Thanxx lol not much on there haven't had time to edit,so just decided to shoot and post the mantids and some previews elsewhere,I sometimes stack but don't plan on stacking unless its a concept im really determined to get,really should though,the benefits are far greater than the time it takes

If you're good in Photoshop stacking really isn't too difficult, depending on the situation. For most of my shots it's just getting the mouth or eye in focus in one shot and the rest in another. Auto-align the layers, apply layer mask to reveal part of the layer below. I don't usually do much more than that. The real work goes into getting the processing just right.

 

[OctoberRainne]

Yeah i manually stack in PS CS3,but if anyone moves then stacking doesn't work out unless its really close to the first shot,i have folders and folders of pics to be stacked so I try to avoid it unless its for something really good or close,I can't keep up lol for ultra close though I'm finding there is no way around it because it wants to focus on just the eyes,nose or mouth ect. so to get that all in order,you really need to stack. Far enough away and you can get pretty good all sharp images so those tend to be the ones I get to first

 

[jimpaunik]

Wow, this pics are really good !

 

[mantid_mike]

AMAZING shots!!! Love the details

 

[Precarious]

Since it seems a lot of people are just discovering the old post I may as well give you all a sneak peek at what I've been up to.

I have new color morphs for the Oxys! Selective breeding, etc. The nymphs are always very colorful but adults are usually all the same green with very little variation. This generation nearly all adult females are different colors. I'll do a full post with more photos and video later, and I'll be selling ooths and nymphs with the new color genes.

Mint, Standard Green, Rust

Rust (this girls has gotten more orange)

Pear (this girls has gotten more yellow)

 

[kitkat39]

That's awesome!!!

 

[OctoberRainne]

Looks like a really colorful species,will have to look for some in the distant future,good share

 

[happy1892]

Wow!

 

[ShieldMantid1997]

I would love a mated rust female

Good luck, that would be cool of all nymphs from mint were mint, and all rust, rust.

 

[Precarious]

I would love a mated rust female

Good luck, that would be cool of all nymphs from mint were mint, and all rust, rust.

That would be cool but very doubtful. Just bringing new colors into adults is pretty exciting in itself.

I only have a single rust female. She's my most prized pet at the moment so won't be for sale, but I will sell her ooths.

I raise only 6 females and got these variations so I expect the offspring will all carry the gene.

 

[OctoberRainne]

Will you be selling any of the offspring? If its at the right time,would get some

 

[Precarious]

Yeah, I'll be selling nymphs and ooths. I may sell some mated females of the standard color.

 

[OctoberRainne]

Sweet