Showing off his Bling

[Linda Dulak]

This little daring jumping spider was found on some young basil plants I have growing in my kitchen. He was quite cooperative, turning to show his bluish mouth parts called chelicerae. The lighting is from above from the full spectrum lamps over the plants.


Nikon D300, Nikkor 105 mm macro, f16, 1/20s, EC+.33, manual focus, mirror up. No flash

[Marina Scarr]

This is quite a stunning looking spider, Linda. You sure must have been close to capture this at 105mm! I love how sharp all the legs are and the color of its "breast" is riveting. I don't know much about macro so I am only going on instinct here, but the spider's legs appear sharper than its head. I really like all the fuzz on top of its head and your comp works well.

[Jonathan Ashton]

A very nice shot Linda, I can see your dilemma regarding choosing a focus point and DOF but I think you are almost there. I am guessing you focused just in front of the smaller forelegs (are they legs or not?) hoping that f16 would render the larger legs and the eyes in focus. I suspect f22 may have done it, alternatively you could have gone for slightly less magnification and then you would have had more DOF. I like the lighting and he is really quite an appealing little chap isn't he?

[Steve Maxson]

Hi Linda. Jumping spiders are one of my favorite (and most challenging) subjects. The colorful mouthparts make this one special. This little guy gave you a very nice pose in an attractive setting and I like the comp with the spider off-center. The issue, as noted by Marina and Jon, is that the eyes are not as sharp as the front legs and pedipalps. Jon has suggested a couple things to try which would increase DOF. Another option would be to shoot from a slightly higher angle which would place the eyes and front legs closer to the same plane of focus. Just a few things to try the next time you find one of these. :S3:

[Jonathan Ashton]

Steve that's the word I was looking for - pedipalps I presume it is Latin meaning something like feethands in other words the the limbs have become modified for grasping and holding.

[Linda Dulak]

Thanks for the comments, everyone. They are very helpful for when (if) I find another one in my house. In thinking back on how I worked to capture this image, I was trying hard to keep the eyes in focus, but probably missed and got the pedipalps instead. I may also have been close to the minimal focusing distance of the lens so that made it a bit iffy as well.

If you see one with these colorful mouthparts, they are the group of jumping spiders called daring jumping spiders. I'm not sure where that name came from, but they are interesting subjects.

Linda

[Bob Miller]

Hi Linda....nice work with this...good advice given above....You might consider changing the green hue on the leaf as I think it looks a bit bright and unnnatural. just an opinion! Hope to see more of your work!

[Dave Johnson]

Cool little jumper you caught there Linda! Nice work on the comp! Just needed more DOF to put those big glistening eyes in focus and this would have been really special.

[Linda Dulak]

Thanks for all the comments. I reworked the image to selectively sharpen the eyes. I think it's helped and improves the image.

Steve: I would have tried a higher angle, but the basil is growing in an Aerogarden, a hydroponic set up with a hood with the full spectrum lights. I got as high as I could as I was bumping against that hood. Sometimes it's not possible to go higher :bg3:.

Bob: The basil is an amazing green, very much like the photo.

Linda

[Ken Childs]

Linda,

I love jumpers so it's always great to see any photo of their expressive faces. They have such personality!
The repost looks better but it's still not quite there....everything else can be OOF but the eyes need to be as sharp as possible.

You're just going to have find another one to shoot. I'm looking forward to your next attempt. :S3: