Predaceous Diving Beetle larva

[Steve Maxson]

This is a very young larva (about 1 inch long) of a Predaceous Diving Beetle (Dytiscus sp.). Despite its small size, it already has the temperament and ferocity of older larvae many times larger. Here it is suspended in mid-water shortly before it floated up to the surface to breath air through the tip of its abdomen. 2.5 gal aquarium setup, 1D IV, 100 mm macro, 1/160, f/16, ISO 100, 2 remotely fired 430 EX flashes (diffused), HH, AF. I chose to leave some of the visible small particles that can be seen in the water. I applied some nr to the background. All comments are welcome and appreciated.

[Mitch Haimov]

I always enjoy your images of aquatic critters. Fascinating window into another world. Consistently technically & artistically right on. TFS.

[vishaljadhav]

Wow this is a superb image, i like the concept and the composition is superb too
i love the details captured here. Looks wonderful

[Jonathan Ashton]

Steve super detail great pose and yes you guessed it I like the little bits of debris in the water. The DOF is just perfect, the only thing I would question is the (beautiful) blue background, I would have expected a grey/brown colour.
Some folks have set ups like these and also put a second tank behind the critter tank, the critter being in clean water and the rear tank in less clean so you get good detail and a credible background that does not interfere with detail.

[Allen Sparks]

Wow! beautiful capture Steve. Love the details, lighting, etc... really interesting subject too.................. -- Allen

[Steve Maxson]

Thanks for the comments folks!
Jon - I was thinking of you when I left some of those bits of debris in the background. :S3: I also agree that the background is a little too blue to look "natural" and I'll be doing some experimenting to get a different look - use of a second tank sounds intriguing. (In the meantime, I have a couple more shots to share that have the bluish background. :S3: )