Really Nasty (yet cool) Spider

[KagoGrl]

I took this at night with the help of a flashlight (to see him in the dark before my flash went off). It used a long zoom otherwise I'd never have gotten that close. Please comment as much as possible - I rarely attempt macro and would love suggestions and critiques. Thanks!! *click image for larger, grosser, version

[carl yeomans]

hi kagoGrl. i dont know if iam doing somthing wrong, but i cant see your image.

[KagoGrl]

Thanks for saying something! I'll look into it!! - Okay, try that now, if you can't see the attachment then please let me know (I seem to be having issues getting my images and links to work)

[PLouie]

I'm not sure if it's because of the quality of the image but it looks like it's a bit out of focus. Do you have a less compressed jpg?

I'd like to see it with more contrast and definately a darker background. A crop for a tighter or different composition would be a good idea too.

[oriolhdz]

Hi KagoGrl:
IMHO there are some improvements you can make I think. First, depend on the quality of the image you can crop it a little bit more or take it a little bit closer, even you said you used the entire zoom you had. Digitally I guess if you have photoshop (Don't know how to use Gimp, which is free) you can maybe use some hi pass filter or unsharp mask, to try to make it more focused. But even with all of that, as you said, that's a nasty and scary spider!
Thanks for sharing it!

[KagoGrl]

Thanks for the comments! I have to admit I'm having trouble with this shot. I absolutely detest spiders but my husband thought this barn spider would make a great shot and I had to agree. Problem is, I can't seem to look at it long enough to do a lot of editing - nor could I bring myself to get closer to it. Perhaps I'm better off avoiding spider shots all together.

I will do my best to take into consideration some of the comments made and see if I can come up with something. In another section I saw that someone else has posted some super macro shots of one of these spiders - I couldn't look at it at all!! But you might want to check it out (it's in How I Took It - Macro Spider).

[Wookie]

Hi... This is a beautiful pic... it seems just a little out of focus, which is understandable with the lighting. Did you take only one snap or several? How far from the spider were you? Ya know, they generally don't leap from their webs LOL.

I think I would have tried some different lighting with the flash light and maybe dropped some of the flash illum... Probably something that I would have spent an hour or more with different settings, lighting...

You want to see a nasty creature? I'll post one soon... *chills* I have some not so great pix of a battle between a camel spider and a praying mantis.

Not sure if I helped or not, cept maybe.. juuuuust maybe... next time you'll get a little closer *smiles*

Regards...

W

[KagoGrl]

I know they don't leap but I am really not partial to spiders. I did take a few other shots... what do you think of this one?

[PLouie]

Looks like it found itself a meal. Haha. Not sure what it's eating. Looks like some type of larvae.

[KagoGrl]

Yea, it was pretty gross to watch!! I have another shot of it all curled around it's meal - you can see it in my gallery