Copperhead snake

[Jerry Calhoun]

I almost put my head down right near this guy, luckily I caught him out the corner of my eye and took a few pics before I went to the bathroom to change my underwear.

Camera Model Canon EOS 7D
Shooting Mode Aperture-Priority AE
Tv( Shutter Speed ) 1/160
Av( Aperture Value ) 2.8
Metering Mode Evaluative Metering
Exposure Compensation 0
ISO Speed 400
Auto ISO Speed OFF
Lens EF100mm f/2.8 Macro USM
Focal Length 100.0mm
Flash Type External E-TTL
AF Mode One-Shot AF
AF area select mode Manual selection

[Jim Bridges]

The DOF is very nice in this photo! It looks more like a young cottonmouth by the marking on the head and they aren't as aggressive as a copperhead, but will stand their ground and usually open their mouth at you before striking...a copperhead will strike with no warning at all:eek:

[Patrick Sparkman]

Nice photo, I like the sharpness of the eye. I might have moved a little to right to get more parallel to the head.

Seeing this makes my foot hurt! I was bitten on the left foot by a Copperhead in my backyard 15 years ago, and spent a night in the hospital and a week in agonizing pain . Jim is right, Copperheads can be very aggressive and I don't recommend getting head shots with a 100mm lens. :eek::eek:

[James Shadle]

Jerry,
The head position and color pattern is dead on(no pun intended)for a Water Moccasin.
Are you positive this is a Copperhead?

I'm positive it's a dangerous pit viper. :eek:
James

[Maureen Allen]

I agree with James and Jim, this looks like a young FL cottonmouth (water moccasin.)

I hope this is a significant crop!

[bhavya joshi]

Nice head pose.. and good eye sharpness. Really You are very lucky that you caught in early.. because this is the one of the most dangerous snake in world. Be careful Jerry.!!

[Jerry Calhoun]

Jerry,
The head position and color pattern is dead on(no pun intended)for a Water Moccasin.
Are you positive this is a Copperhead?

I'm positive it's a dangerous pit viper. :eek:
James

James, Im not 100% sure it's a copperhead I have a few full body pics if that will help identify this little Guy. I will post later when I get home.

[James Shadle]

James, Im not 100% sure it's a copperhead I have a few full body pics if that will help identify this little Guy. I will post later when I get home.

Thanks, I'm sure the additional photos will confirm one way or the other.
Regardless, that is no a snake to pet.

"Cotton Mouths" are also a very aggressive snake. They would rather hold their ground and strike than "escape".

[Roman Kurywczak]

Hey Jerry,
I do think a few more steps to get a better HA would have been nice.......but given the circumstances, I don't think I would have even taken the pic.....even with a 400mm!

[Steve Maxson]

Hi Jerry. Couldn't you have gotten just a little closer? - just kidding!! I doubt if I would have taken this shot with only a 100 mm lens. :eek: You captured a good pose and you have good sharpness within your DOF - though I would wish for a little more depth to get the entire head sharp. You might consider cloning some of the flash-generated spectral highlights on the head. I hope to see more of your work here in Macro. :S3:

[Jerry Calhoun]

Jerry,
The head position and color pattern is dead on(no pun intended)for a Water Moccasin.
Are you positive this is a Copperhead?

I'm positive it's a dangerous pit viper. :eek:
James
James here is a full body pic. Thanks for the help

[Jerry Calhoun]

I agree with James and Jim, this looks like a young FL cottonmouth (water moccasin.)

I hope this is a significant crop!
No crop straight out of camera. I was actually laying down to take a pic of a spider and this guy just so happen to be right at my head. Luckily I caught him right out the corner of my eye and just had to take a few shots. I know very stupid thing to do but I just had to.

[Patrick Sparkman]

My vote is on a juvenile Cottonmouth. That dark band across the cheek and eye look more like a cottonmouth. Classic cat-eye pupil, and head up pose to use the heat sensing pits. Although they are not real prominent on this one.

[James Shadle]

Thanks for the re-post.
IMO Water Moccasin.

[Jim Bridges]

Yes sir that's a juvenile cottonmouth...they look a lot like a copperhead and hard to tell apart.

[Ken Childs]

Hey Jerry, young Cottonmouths are beautiful snakes and you did a good job of capturing it. Steve made some good points about the DOF and flash highlights. If this were mine, I'd crop in a bit tighter, moving the eye slightly off-center to the left. I also think a slight contrast boost would go a long way in bringing a little pop to those nice colors.

Cottonmouths have a bad reputation that they don't really deserve. A lot of what is thought of as aggression is really curiosity. Respect them but don't fear them. :S3:

[Julie Kenward]

I might have moved a little to right to get more parallel to the head.


I'd have moved to a whole new state. :bg3:

I understand taking the image while you're there anyway - but wow...I would also have started to cry a little I think!

[daniel valovich]

I like the photo!
Here in Arkansas we have plenty of both . It is definitely a cottonmouth which is the bad boy of the two.
If you had moved to the front I am sure you would have seen why the are called a cottonmouth. Big white mouth and throat with an impressive set of dentures.They will usually strike the lens first.
here is a copperhead image;
http://inlinethumb35.webshots.com/44770/2602450030033810500S600x600Q85.jpg