Ebony Jewelwing.

[Dave Johnson]

This is a common species throughout Japan and this was taken near a shallow stream close to home. Cropped, boosted saturation, sharpened and removed a black blob on the reed in DPP.
Shooting info: Canon 60D, tripod, 100mm F2.8 L macro at F6.3, SS 1/200, ISO 250, Manual mode and focus.

All C&C (good and bad) welcome. Thanks for looking

[Jonathan Ashton]

Fine focus and a nicely diffused background, lovely detail in the head thorax and legs. The tail is out of focus due to the plane in which the image has been captured, it's all about compromise, if you want the head on look you don't get the body/tail in focus, a sideways image capture sharpness head to tail but you only get one eye. I am assuming this is a demoiselle species in which case I fully expect it to be dark, I am wondering of a slight lift in the Shadows in DPP would have helped a little.

[Cheryl Slechta]

Dave, I think it is a lovely image. I'm not familiar with the species so am not sure about the colors but it looks great against the green background. The detail in the head and legs looks great. I think I'd crop from the bottom eliminating the chewed part of the leaf. And maybe a little crop from the left of the image as well.

[Dave Johnson]

Thank you for the comment Jonathan, I was hoping you'd see this as I know how much you like dragon and damselflies :) I have better angles showing better DOF but unfortunately the backgrounds are far too busy on those shots... This species is Calopteryx atrata and this is a female. The males have bright green metallic bodies and I'll (hopefully) be posting a few images of them soon. I forgot to mention that I did actually lower the highlights in DPP to lessen the effect of the bright 'perch' which would have darkened off the image. I 'll look into that and lower saturation a touch as it looks very green here. Thanks again for the comment, much appreciated.

Thank you Cheryl, glad you liked it. Good points about the crop and I agree with you totally. Thanks for looking and commenting,

Dave J.

[Dave Leroy]

Lovely photo and good suggestions already given. I find it hard to get clean habitat shots and there always seems to be compromises. I really like the nice fine details and very sharp focus.
I am not familiar with the 60D and wonder if bumping ISO and/or SS to gain more DoF would have been possible.

[Marina Scarr]

Amazing details in the head and esp the legs!!! Love the black against the green. I would crop up to Cheryl suggested but leave the rest as is. She looks a bit like a ballerina.

[Dave Johnson]

Hi Dave. I think it lacks in DOF too. I find the 'sweet spot' to be ISO 200 on the 60D and try to keep things around that mark whenever possible. No excuses for not lowering SS though apart from lack of experience Oh well, this gives me an excuse to get out there again...

Hi Marina, and thank you for the comment, much appreciated.

[Arthur Morris]

I like it for the sweet BKGR and the sharpness and detail in the legs and head. A crop to 3X2 tightens it up nicely.

[Dave Johnson]

Thanks very much for commenting and the repost Arthur, it's a vast improvement on my original effort.

All the best,

Dave J.

[Bob Miller]

Dave....love the bg on this shot and the funky legs. Crop from the bottom works for me!

[Arthur Morris]

Thanks very much for commenting and the repost Arthur, it's a vast improvement on my original effort. All the best, Dave J.

YAW Dave. When in doubt, trying 3X2 is always worth a try .