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Thread: Dung beetles with ball

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    Default Dung beetles with ball

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    I am not sure where to post this as I did not think it was really a macro element. Hope this ok.

    This pair of dung beetles came rolling past the front of my vehicle at the LBE site and I hunched down to get a lower angle out the door (I don't have a door on drivers side). They always impress me with their ability to zone in on animal dung as well as their enormous strength in relation to their size.

    Used side of door frame as a steady
    Canon MK IV - 300mm f2.8 Mk II plus 2 X extender Mk III
    ISO 1600, 1/1600 sec, f5.6
    As the shadow of the ball shows in the image I was at a slight angle

    I cropped it a bit and left it at this comp as I wanted to show the kind of terrain these guys are forced to negotiate ( a little later he rolled it over the stump in the BG) . The female holds on to the ball whilst the male rolls her and the ball to a suitable location where the ground is soft enough to dig a hole to bury the ball of dung. I am not entirely sure why the female has to hold on as opposed to following but do know that there are times when the females often lose their grip and fall off. When this happens they can become quite disorientated and really battle to find her place again if he is on a mission to get somewhere.

    LR5 basics - WB - brushed a little NR on beetles - The beetles have a bit of natural magenta and purple in them so I only just touched on that in HSL slider.
    PSE 9 - LM on beetles and ball - layer adj , B&C, sat, levels - USM - SFW

    I cloned out a little blade of grass in the FG and darkened the BG slightly.Thats all

    All C&C welcome

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    Lifetime Member Andre Pretorius's Avatar
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    Hi Carl

    Image crisp, like the comp.

    I think the colour of the Beetles are as they are in nature.

    I would suggest bit of NR on LHS (as we look) of ball.

    The white rock on RHS is almost on focal plane, but OOF- my suggestion is to clone it out.

    Cheers

    Andre
    Regards

    Andre.

    www.gappimages.com

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    Wildlife Moderator Steve Kaluski's Avatar
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    Hi Carl, I've been waiting to see one of these for ages, so my recollection is this is a first, well certainly in my 4 years and personally I don't see why it cannot be posted here.

    Taken in situ, you have little control of the environment and shooting from the vehicle would not have allowed you to remove the wood in the BKG which is a little distracting, however your call on leaving it in, or dealing with it. Overall I like the comp and position and how it illustrates the beetles working as a team. If you were able, then shooting without the 2x and getting closure would have help IQ overall and a better DOF if requited. Overall the main area looks as if it's been lightened and or the higher ISO & sharpening is making things look crunchy, personally I would back off on the sharpening and be specific in how you deal with the darker/shadow areas, as lightening them will bring out noise. Remember, don't always global sharpen the area required, you can be specific in how much or how less the area needs to be. I think the small rock on the RHS should be sharp too, as it appears to be on the same focal plain, WDYT? Perhaps Carl, take a flash with you, might help?

    PSE 9 - LM on beetles and ball - layer adj , B&C, sat, levels - USM - SFW
    What's B&C sorry lost me on that one?
    Hopefully you will be on a roll here and look forward to your participation, can't wait to see the next image, great to see something new.

    TFS
    Steve
    Post Production: It’s ALL about what you do with the tools and not, which brand of tool you use.

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    Lifetime Member Rachel Hollander's Avatar
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    Hi Carl - I also don't remember having dung beetles posted in Wildlife before so great to see. Interesting about the female being along for the ride and getting disoriented if she falls. You've gotten good suggestions above. In addition I would apply a bit more NR on the logs on the rhs.

    Steve - my guess is that B&C refers to brightness and contrast.

    TFS,
    Rachel

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    Thanks Andre, Steve and Rachel. Steve it is as Rachel has guessed. Thanks for all the good pointers and I agree - I will work on it . I guess my mind is so focused on LBE's and Pygmy KF's that are really very active at times that I don't concentrate enough to unexpected interruptions. I carry the flash with me but did not even think about it. I will have better opportunities to get off the vehicle for closer shots and low angles with these guys.

    You will probably laugh though and think I am a wimp but lying on the ground here is not something I like doing for very good reasons. You cannot walk around here in the bush without finding plenty of pepper ticks ( they are the size of pin heads and cling in bunches on grass stems) on you afterwards. Luckily I am immune to tick bite fever but having up to 10 or 20 itchy pepper tick bites is not comfortable and can last days

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    Wildlife Moderator Steve Kaluski's Avatar
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    Safety is always paramount Carl, thanks for the info.

    B&C - all this new lingo...
    Post Production: It’s ALL about what you do with the tools and not, which brand of tool you use.

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    I totally love the subject! Dung beetles are amazing creatures and certainly have developed a good use for the natural resources. I like the pose of the 2 beetles facing each other as they grip the dung ball. The brightness of that whitish piece just to the right side of the dung ball is distracting. Toning it down would be a possibility. I know what you mean about it being hard to shift mental gears from your target to something completely different.

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    BPN Member Morkel Erasmus's Avatar
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    Well, Carl, this is either a "small wildlife" shot or a "insect/macro in environment" shot LOL
    I like the detail you captured. Some good suggestions given alread on noise reduction, what would have made a more pleasing comp and how to handle sharpening in shots like this.
    Overall IQ seems to have suffered a bit from the high-ish ISO coupled with the use of the 2x converter (even though it's the new one).
    Morkel Erasmus

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    Forum Participant edwardselfe's Avatar
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    The details are good I think. The dung ball is too sharp and I think that draws the eye. I would tone that down a bit but leave the rest of sharpening and apply the other suggestions above. Nice different image and a good story.
    Ed

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