Prince Baskettail

[Jon Swanson]

I was thrilled to finally watch one of these guys perch for the evening. They fly pretty much non stop over the lakes all day then find a place away from the water to 'roost'. I have thorax shots of this one as well but felt this angle showed the beauty of the eyes, wings, etc. that is so subtle in this species. D3s 300 2.8VR +TC + extension tube f11 ISO 800 -.33 1/250th no flash.


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[Jonathan Ashton]

Jon you have caught this one in a good position, you have optimised the focal plane. the exposure and background are equally good. I am guessing this is the seed head of a dock plant, I suppose not the ideal photographic perch for a dragonfly but nevertheless you have a fine image. You may wish to consider removing the small seed head on the right, it doesn't bother me personally but I suspect for some it may prove a little distracting.

[Steve Maxson]

Hi Jon and welcome to the Macro forum! You have a strong image here - I like the overall lighting and. in particular, the way it brings out the color in the eyes. The blueish reflections on the wings are also attractive. The clean background is very nice and you have good sharpness where you most need it. Cropping is always rather subjective - you might consider taking a little off the top and bottom as an alternate comp. I might also suggest removing the seed head in the LRC (if you are OK with such things) as it tends to draw my eye away from your subject - not a big deal, but something to consider. :S3: This is very nicely done and I hope to see more of your macro work!

[Jerry van Dijk]

Hi Jon, this is a lovely species and you managed to capture it with very nice light. I do think you oversharpened the image a little. I'd be tempted to add a little contrast to the lower part of the abdomen, to balance it with the upper part. I notice that the wingtips of the right wings are a bit soft, but it would probably have been difficult to get both sides of the wings and the abdomen all in the same plane without stopping down.

[Marina Scarr]

This is an all around dynamite image. Killer bg and love that pose and comp.

[Jason Stander]

Hi Jon,... welcome... great shot... excellent detail and exposure... a different angle to photograph a df... strong comp and bg... WD!

[Paul Sparks]

Really well seen and photographed.