Bejeweled Moth On A Soybean Leaf

[Norm Dulak]

Nikon D300 w/105mm f/2.8 VRII Micro Nikkor Lens, tripod mounted
ISO Equivalent 640; 1/60 sec @ f/32; Matrix Metering -0.33
Nikon R1 twin strobes, uncompensated
PP: mild DeNoise v4; PS CS5 curves; some cloning of light bkg area; V crop from H file

This moth sparkled like a gem in the early sunlight this morning. And no wonder, considering the numerous dew droplets that covered it, caught the light and reflected it back!

In composing this image, I liked the opposing diagonal lines created by the body of the moth and the various veins of the soybean leaf. And in making the vertical crop, I felt that I had to retain the hole in the leaf, lined as it was with micro filaments and sparkling dew droplets.

Norm

[Julie Kenward]

Norm, I have to tell you - everytime I look and see it's one of your posts I instantly think of "Norm!" on Cheers. ;)

I like your moth! I wish we could see those dark legs and antenna a bit more - they seem to blend in with the dark greens quite a bit. You did a nice job of keeping the moth even on the focal plane - all the dew drops are nicely sharp throughout. For me, it almost feels over sharpened but let's see what the others say.

Not sure about the BG - I wish it were all one color or more uniformly lit but I know how hard it is to get great conditions in the field.

[Roman Kurywczak]

Hey Norm,
Considering you used the strobes.....not that bad on the highlights! You have some on the leaf......but you would with sunlit conditions too,,,,so not a big deal for me. I do think you could go over the pale green area in the URC and tone it down some......and if you really want to get crazy......go in and lighten the legs a touch with the dodge tool at low opacity.....just to give them seperation.......probably would be a better choice than lightening the BG leaf around them slightly......would have same effect.....but might be worth exploring both to see which you prefer. I do like the inclusion of the hole.....and while not my favorite pose.....does show the moth off pretty well. Did you hang around to see if he opened up his wings?

[Norm Dulak]

Hey Norm,
Considering you used the strobes.....not that bad on the highlights! You have some on the leaf......but you would with sunlit conditions too,,,,so not a big deal for me. I do think you could go over the pale green area in the URC and tone it down some......and if you really want to get crazy......go in and lighten the legs a touch with the dodge tool at low opacity.....just to give them seperation.......probably would be a better choice than lightening the BG leaf around them slightly......would have same effect.....but might be worth exploring both to see which you prefer. I do like the inclusion of the hole.....and while not my favorite pose.....does show the moth off pretty well. Did you hang around to see if he opened up his wings?

Thanks for the suggestions, Roman. They're very helpful, and I'll work on them.

As for the moth, I did look at it awhile later. While the sun was shining on the leaf it had been on, it had moved to a shady area on a different leaf, where the direct sunlight was blocked by a higher leaf. But the wings were still closed, and the moth was still covered with dewdrops. I suspect that moth didn't open its wings until much later, after the dewdrops had evaporated!

Norm

[Ken Childs]

It's interesting that my only shot of this species was taken in the morning and it was covered with sparkling dew. This is not the kind of bug that you'll find perched with its wings open. If the wings are open, it's probably flying. :)

[Norm Dulak]

It's interesting that my only shot of this species was taken in the morning and it was covered with sparkling dew. This is not the kind of bug that you'll find perched with its wings open. If the wings are open, it's probably flying. :)

That's a most interesting observation, Ken! Thanks for offering it.:)