More composite images: P. obscurus exuvia

The following focus-stacked composite images show dorsal- and ventral views of the exuvia from a Common Sanddragon (Progomphus obscurus) larva that was collected and reared by Bob Perkins.

Common Sanddragon (P. obscurus) | exuvia (dorsal)

Here are some personal observations after examining the specimen carefully.

• Large eyes, shaped like Crescent Moons (as seen in face-head view).
• Hairy antennae.
• Lateral spines on abdominal segments five through nine (S5-9).
• Dorsal hooks on S2-9: prominent on S2, less prominent on S3; vestigial on S4-9.
• “Shoulder pads” on thorax.
• Cerci approximately one-third as long as paraprocts; epiproct and paraprocts about equal in length.

Common Sanddragon (P. obscurus) | exuvia (ventral)

The front- and middle legs block the mentum (prementum). This specimen is a good candidate for rehydrating the exuvia and reposing its legs.

Related Resource: Composite image: Progomphus obscurus exuvia.

Tech Tips

Six (6) photos were used to create the first focus stack; seven (7) photos were used for the second. A single focus point was positioned over select anatomical features, working from back-to-front; photos were taken at each point of interest.

The following equipment was used to shoot all of the photographs for the two focus-stacked composite images, shown above: Canon EOS 5D Mark II digital camera, in manual mode; Kenko 20mm macro automatic extension tube; Canon EF100mm f/2.8L Macro lens (set for manual focus); and Canon MT-26EX-RT Macro Twin Lite set for “Master” mode, and several external flashes set for “Slave” mode including Canon 580 EX- and Canon 580EX II Speedlites and a Godox TT685C Thinklite TTL Flash fitted with a Lastolite Ezybox Speed-Lite 2 flash modifier.

Adobe Photoshop CC 2017 was used to create the focus-stacked composite images, as well as spot-heal and sharpen the final output.

Copyright © 2019 Walter Sanford. All rights reserved.

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Composite image: Shadow Darner dragonfly

Bob Perkins collected and reared a Shadow Darner dragonfly (Aeshna umbrosa) larva/nymph. This blog post features a focus-stacked composite image of a beautifully preserved specimen of the adult that emerged from the larva.

This individual is a male, as indicated by his “indented” hind wings.

Shadow Darner (Aeshna umbrosa) | face-head-dorsal

Artifacts

In my experience, focus stacking either works or it doesn’t. When it doesn’t work, “artifacts” appear in the final output that can be caused by many factors. There are work-arounds that can be used to repair the artifacts with mixed success. (See Tech Tips/Related Resources.)

I shot 19 photographs that were used to create a focus-stacked composite image of the Shadow Darner dragonfly. There’s a lot going on in those photos that caused too many artifacts to publish the final output. Several of the more noticeable artifacts are shown below.

Can you see three artifacts?

Artifacts highlighted.

I created another composite image; I used as many photos as I could before the first artifacts appeared. As it turns out, only five of 19 photos were used in the do-over composite image (shown at the beginning of this blog post). Look closely — some of the same artifacts are also noticeable in the do-over version.

Related Resources

• Test shots: Shadow Darner dragonfly.
• Test shots: Aeshna umbrosa exuvia.

Tech Tips

The following equipment was used to shoot the preceding composite image: Canon EOS 5D Mark II digital camera, in manual mode; Kenko macro automatic extension tubes (12mm, 20mm, and 36mm); Canon EF100mm f/2.8L Macro lens (set for manual focus); and Canon MT-26EX-RT Macro Twin Lite set for “Master” mode, and several external flashes set for “Slave” mode including Canon 580 EX- and Canon 580EX II Speedlites and a Godox TT685C Thinklite TTL Flash fitted with a Lastolite Ezybox Speed-Lite 2 flash modifier.

Auto power-off was disabled for the camera and all external flash units.

Adobe Photoshop CC 2017 was used to spot-heal and sharpen the final output.

Tech Tips/Related Resources

• How to Focus-Stack Macro Images using Photoshop, by Don Komarechka.
• Stack it up — a guide to using the focus stacking photography technique
• Zerene Stacker Slabbing [The “Extreme Macro” Web site features lots of good resources.]

Copyright © 2019 Walter Sanford. All rights reserved.

Test shots: Shadow Darner dragonfly

Bob Perkins collected and reared a Shadow Darner dragonfly (Aeshna umbrosa) larva/nymph. This is a preserved specimen of the adult that emerged from the larva.

Test shots of this beautiful specimen were taken using a relatively small aperture of f/16 for greater depth of field. The following photo is a “one-off,” that is, not a composite image.

Shadow Darner (Aeshna umbrosa) | face-head

Related Resource: Test shots: Aeshna umbrosa exuvia.

Tech Tips

The following equipment was used to shoot the preceding photograph: Canon EOS 5D Mark II digital camera, in manual mode; Kenko macro automatic extension tubes (12mm, 20mm, and 36mm); Canon EF100mm f/2.8L Macro lens (set for manual focus); and Canon MT-26EX-RT Macro Twin Lite set for “Master” mode, and several external flashes set for “Slave” mode including Canon 580 EX- and Canon 580EX II Speedlites and a Godox TT685C Thinklite TTL Flash fitted with a Lastolite Ezybox Speed-Lite 2 flash modifier.

Auto power-off was disabled for the camera and all external flash units.

Adobe Photoshop CC 2017 was used to spot-heal and sharpen the final output.

Copyright © 2019 Walter Sanford. All rights reserved.

Focus-stacking with CamRanger

This blog post reports the result of more experimentation with completely automated focus stacking using CamRanger.

25 photos were used to create this focus-stacked composite image of an Eastern Least Clubtail dragonfly (Stylogomphus albistylus) exuvia from an odonate nymph that Bob Perkins collected and reared.

Eastern Least Clubtail (Stylogomphus albistylus) | exuvia (face-head)

I own two Canon macro lenses: a Canon MP-E 65mm Macro lens; and a Canon EF100mm f/2.8L Macro lens.

The MP-E 65mm macro is manual focus only, and cannot be used with CamRanger to create automated focus-stacked composite images.

In contrast, the EF100mm macro can be used with CamRanger to create automated focus stacks. In order to increase the magnification of the EF100mm macro, I used the lens in combination with three Kenko macro automatic extension tubes: 12mm; 20mm; and 36mm.

Pros and Cons

My goal was to create a tight close-up showing the face-head only. On one hand I failed to achieve my goal due to less maximum magnification using the combination of EF100mm macro lens and extension tubes rather than the MP-E 65mm macro lens.

On the other hand I shot 25 photos in a little more than four minutes^*, with the focus plane shifted in small increments from front to back along the subject — all without touching the camera after setting the initial focus point. That’s what I call success!

Related Resources

• More focus stacking with CamRanger
• Another foray into focus stacking

Tech Tips

The following equipment was used to shoot all of the photographs for the focus-stacked composite image of the exuvia: CamRanger hardware, and iOS app running on my iPad mini (with retina display); Canon EOS 5D Mark II digital camera, in manual mode; Kenko macro automatic extension tubes (12mm, 20mm, and 36mm); Canon EF100mm f/2.8L Macro lens (set for manual focus); and Canon MT-26EX-RT Macro Twin Lite set for “Master” mode, and several external flashes set for “Slave” mode including Canon 580 EX- and Canon 580EX II Speedlites and a Godox TT685C Thinklite TTL Flash fitted with a Lastolite Ezybox Speed-Lite 2 flash modifier.

Auto power-off was disabled for the camera and all external flash units. CamRanger was set for a ^*10-second delay between shots in order to allow sufficient time for the lens to change focus automatically, the camera rig to settle, and the flash units to power-cycle.

Adobe Photoshop CC 2017 was used to create the focus-stacked composite image, as well as spot-heal and sharpen the final output.

Copyright © 2019 Walter Sanford. All rights reserved.

Five-flash studio macro photography rig

This blog post is a follow-on to a previous post entitled Studio macro photography rig. As you can see, my four-flash rig has been updated to include a fifth flash: a Godox TT685C Thinklite TTL Flash fitted with a Lastolite Ezybox Speed-Lite 2 flash modifier.

Although it isn’t shown clearly in the following quick-and-dirty photo taken with my iPad 3, both the Godox TT685C and a Canon 580EX II Speedlite are mounted on the crossbar of my Vanguard Alta Pro 263AB 100 Aluminum Alloy Tripod. Look closely — the tiny subject (a Stylogomphus albistylus exuvia) is positioned in the far-left corner of the white posing platform, in front of the Lastolite flash modifier.

The Lastolite flash modifier features a two-layer system of diffusers that provides beautiful soft light: the white square you can see on the outside of the collapsible box and another white square that you can’t see, located halfway between the flash head and the front of the box.

Another addition to the rig is my new 3 Legged Thing QR11-LC Universal L-Bracket. (Note: The camera body blocks your view of the L-bracket.) The L-bracket enabled me to mount the camera in portrait mode quickly and securely. Although the Manfrotto 405 Pro Digital Geared Head can be adjusted to position my camera rig in portrait mode, the heavy camera-lens-flash combo is unstable and can tip over easily.

New gear used for studio macro photography.

By the way, in case you looked at the preceding photo and wondered “What’s up with the crazy crop?” I used Photoshop to conceal some of the clutter in my kitchen. I set up my macro photo rig in the kitchen because it’s the largest uncarpeted area in my tiny apartment. Padded carpet is a poor surface for macro photography — the field of view from a tripod-mounted camera-lens-flash combo shifts noticeably (and unacceptably) as one moves around the rig.

More Tech Tips: A complete description of all of the equipment used in my studio macro photography rig is provided in a previous blog post entitled Studio macro photography rig.

Copyright © 2019 Walter Sanford. All rights reserved.

Top 10 Photos of 2018

The following gallery shows 18 finalists for my “Top 10 Photos of 2018.” The photos are presented in reverse-chronological order beginning in September 2018 and ending in February 2018.

No. 1

20 SEP 2018 | Fairfax County, VA | Pandora Sphinx moth

No. 2

23 AUG 2018 | Occoquan Bay NWR | Osprey (male, plus prey)

No. 3

10 AUG 2018 | Occoquan Bay NWR | Calico Pennant (female)

No. 4

19 JUL 2018 | Fairfax County, VA | Black-shouldered Spinyleg (female)

No. 5

17 JUL 2018 | Huntley Meadows Park | Mocha Emerald (male)

No. 6

05 JUL 2018 | Fairfax County, VA | Sable Clubtail (female)

No. 7

24 JUN 2018 | Occoquan Regional Park | Widow Skimmer (immature male)

No. 8

24 JUN 2018 | Occoquan Regional Park | Ebony Jewelwing (mating pair)

No. 9

12 JUN 2018 | Fairfax County, VA | Sable Clubtail (male)

No. 10

08 JUN 2018 | Fairfax County, VA | Sable Clubtail (male)

No. 11

06 JUN 2018 | Northern Virginia | Gray Petaltail (male)

No. 12

23 APR 2018 | Hemlock Overlook Regional Park | Virginia Bluebells

No. 13

23 APR 2017 | HORP | Springtime Darner (male)

No. 14

23 APR 2018 | Hemlock Overlook Regional Park | Horseshoe Trail

No. 15

29 MAR 2018 | Ashy Clubtail (Phanogomphus lividus) | exuvia (face-head)

No. 16

06 MAR 2018 | Fawn Darner (Boyeria vinosa) | exuvia (face-head)

No. 17

13 FEB 2018 | Gray Petaltail (Tachopteryx thoreyi) | exuvia (face-head)

No. 18

03 FEB 2018 | Tiger Spiketail (Cordulegaster erronea) | exuvia (face-head)

Editor’s Note: The following location codes are used in some photo captions, shown above.

• HMP = Huntley Meadows Park
• HORP = Hemlock Overlook Regional Park
• JMAWR = Jackson Mile Abbott Wetland Refuge
• MNWP = Mason Neck West Park
• MRA = Meadowood Recreation Area
• OBNWR = Occoquan Bay National Wildlife Refuge
• WP/DC = Wickford Park/Dogue Creek

Copyright © 2019 Walter Sanford. All rights reserved.

New odonate exuviae in 2018 (by family)

2018 is the year I got serious about macro photography of odonate exuviae. I bought lots of new photography gear and spent hours learning to use it, and spent more time refining my workflow for creating focus-stacked composite images.

I am blessed to have several mentors who have patiently taught me a lot about identification of odonate exuviae, and many friends who have kindly collected and shared specimens with me. Sincere thanks to Sue and John Gregoire, Richard Orr, Michael Powell, Bob Perkins, Mike Boatwright, Andy Davidson, and Joe Johnston.

Dragonflies (Order Anisoptera)

Family Aeshnidae (Darners)

Boyeria vinosa exuvia (Fawn Darner)

• Test shots: Aeshna umbrosa exuvia (Shadow Darner)
• Test shots: Brachyton pratense exuvia (female) [Hairy Dragonfly]

Family Cordulegastridae (Spiketails)

• Cordulegastridae exuvia

Cordulegaster erronea exuvia (Tiger Spiketail)

Family Corduliidae (Emeralds)

• Epitheca princeps exuvia [another Prince Baskettail]
• Helocordulia uhleri exuvia [Uhler’s Sundragon]
• Test shots: Unknown odonate exuvia [Downy Emerald (Cordulia aenea)]

Family Gomphidae (Clubtails)

• Erpetogomphus designatus exuvia [Eastern Ringtail]
• Ophiogomphus aspersus exuvia [Brook Snaketail]
• Ophiogomphus incurvatus exuvia [Appalachian Snaketail]
• Ophiogomphus incurvatus head shots [Appalachian Snaketail]
• More composite images [Appalachian Snaketail]

Phanogomphus lividus exuvia [Ashy Clubtail]

• Stenogomphurus rogersi: Miraculous metamorphosis [Sable Clubtail] New!
• Stenogomphurus rogersi exuvia [Sable Clubtail] New!
• Test shots: Stylogomphus albistylus exuvia [Eastern Least Clubtail] New!
• More test shots: Stylogomphus albistylus exuvia [Eastern Least Clubtail] New!
• Test shots: Stylurus sp. exuvia [possible Laura’s Clubtail] New!
• Stylurus plagiatus exuvia [Russet-tipped Clubtail] New!
• Test shots: Stylurus plagiatus exuvia [Russet-tipped Clubtail] New!
• Stylurus scudderi exuvia [Zebra Clubtail] New!

Family Libellulidae (Skimmers)

• Calico Pennant exuvia composite image [Celithemis elisa]
• More Calico Pennant exuvia composite images [Celithemis elisa]
• Previews of coming attractions [Slaty Skimmer (Libellula incesta)]
• Test shots: Erythemis simplicollis exuvia [Eastern Pondhawk]
• Test shots: Libellula luctuosa exuvia [Widow Skimmer]
• Test shots: Pachydiplax longipennis exuvia [Blue Dasher]
• Test shots: Pantala flavescens exuvia [Wandering Glider]

Family Macromiidae (Cruisers)

• Macromia alleghaniensis exuvia [Allegheny River Cruiser]
• Swift River Cruiser exuvia [Macromia illinoiensis]

Family Petaluridae (Petaltails)

Tachopteryx thoreyi exuvia [Gray Petaltail]

• Test shots: Tachopteryx thoreyi exuviae [Gray Petaltail]

Damselflies (Order Zygoptera)

Family Calopterygidae (Broad-winged Damselflies)

• American Rubyspot damselfly exuvia
• Hetaerina americana exuvia [American Rubyspot]

Related Resources: Odonate Exuviae.

---

Next post: New Life List additions in 2018 (odonates).

Copyright © 2018 Walter Sanford. All rights reserved.

More test shots: Stylogomphus albistylus exuvia

This blog post features another focus-stacked composite image of an Eastern Least Clubtail dragonfly (Stylogomphus albistylus) exuvia from an odonate nymph that Bob Perkins collected and reared.

11 photos were used to create this focus stack. My camera is set for spot focus, meaning one-area focus for each photo. A single focus point was positioned manually somewhere on the face-head in all 11 photos.

From this viewpoint, the large, dish-shaped antennae remind me of wooden spoons (with short handles).

Eastern Least Clubtail (Stylogomphus albistylus) | exuvia (face-head)

This is the first time I shot some photos in portrait mode using my new 3 Legged Thing QR11-LC Universal L-Bracket (Orange) mounted on my Canon 5D Mark II DSLR camera. I’m sold!

3 Legged Thing QR11-LC Universal L-Bracket (Orange).

Related Resources

• 3 Legged Thing QE11-LC Universal L-Bracket, a product review by Walter Sanford.
• L Brackets: Two Minute Tips with David Bergman, by Adorama (2:46)

Tech Tips

The following equipment was used to shoot all of the photographs for the focus-stacked composite image of the exuvia: Canon EOS 5D Mark II digital camera, in manual mode; Kenko 20mm macro automatic extension tube; Canon EF100mm f/2.8L Macro lens (set for manual focus); and Canon MT-26EX-RT Macro Twin Lite set for “Master” mode, and several external flashes set for “Slave” mode including Canon 580 EX- and Canon 580EX II Speedlites and a Godox TT685C Thinklite TTL Flash fitted with a Lastolite Ezybox Speed-Lite 2 flash modifier.

Adobe Photoshop CC 2017 was used to create the focus-stacked composite image, as well as spot-heal and sharpen the final output.

I used my Panasonic Lumix DMC-FZ150 superzoom camera and a handheld Canon 580EX Speedlite fitted with a Lastolite Ezybox Speed-Lite 2 flash modifier to shoot the photo of my Canon 5D Mark II.

Copyright © 2018 Walter Sanford. All rights reserved.

Test shots: Stylogomphus albistylus exuvia

Bob Perkins collected and reared an Eastern Least Clubtail dragonfly (Stylogomphus albistylus) nymph. This blog post features two focus-stacked composite images of the exuvia from the odonate nymph.

Nine photos were used to create the first focus stack. This small specimen features several easy-to-recognize field marks including large, dish-shaped antennae, distinctive color bands on the legs, lateral spines on abdominal segments eight and nine (S8-9), and terminal appendages tipped with a lighter color.

Eastern Least Clubtail (Stylogomphus albistylus) | exuvia (dorsal)

12 photos were used to create the last focus stack. This individual might be a male, as indicated by what appear to be vestigial hamules on the ventral side of the specimen.

Eastern Least Clubtail (Stylogomphus albistylus) | exuvia (ventral)

Tech Tips

The following equipment was used to shoot all of the photographs for the two focus-stacked composite images, shown above: Canon EOS 5D Mark II digital camera, in manual mode; Kenko 20mm macro automatic extension tube; Canon EF100mm f/2.8L Macro lens (set for manual focus); and Canon MT-26EX-RT Macro Twin Lite set for “Master” mode, and several external flashes set for “Slave” mode including Canon 580 EX- and Canon 580EX II Speedlites and a Godox TT685C Thinklite TTL Flash fitted with a Lastolite Ezybox Speed-Lite 2 flash modifier.

Adobe Photoshop CC 2017 was used to create the focus-stacked composite images, as well as spot-heal and sharpen the final output.

Copyright © 2018 Walter Sanford. All rights reserved.

Pot o’ Emeralds

The following photo shows a plastic container of 20 Downy Emerald dragonfly (Cordulia aenea) exuviae, collected by a good friend during April 2018 in Vienna, Austria. Not a pot o’ gold at the end of a rainbow, but valuable treasure nonetheless!

Thanks to field marks shared by Benoit Guillon, I was able to quickly determine that all of the exuviae are the same species as the specimen featured in a recent blog post.

Downy Emerald dragonfly (Cordulia aenea) | exuviae (20)

Benoit’s excellent Web pages are written in French. I used the Google Chrome Web browser to translate French to English.

The exuvia of the Tanned Cordulia is easy to recognize, provided you have good eyes or … a magnifying glass. It is indeed only to present a line, or double black line, on the thorax, clearly visible on the enlargement of the photo on the top left [see Benoit’s Web page]. She also has very large legs and we easily notice the teeth of the palps of her [face] mask in the photo above [see Benoit’s Web page]. As for his eyes, even if they are spectacular [sic?], some other odonate varieties are also strange. Source Credit: Benoit Guillon.

The key field marks — shown in the following focus-stacked composite image — include one- or two dark lines along the thorax, and a dark line between its small, pointy eyes.

Downy Emerald dragonfly (Cordulia aenea) | exuviae (dorsal)

Related Resource: Cordulia aenea: exuviae (1/2), by Benoit Guillon.

Tech Tips

I used my Panasonic Lumix DMC-FZ150 superzoom camera and a handheld Canon 580EX Speedlite fitted with a Lastolite Ezybox Speed-Lite 2 flash modifier to shoot the first photo featured in this blog post.

The following equipment was used to shoot all of the photographs for the focus-stacked composite image, shown above: Canon EOS 5D Mark II digital camera, in manual mode; Kenko 20mm macro automatic extension tube; Canon EF100mm f/2.8L Macro lens (set for manual focus); and Canon MT-26EX-RT Macro Twin Lite set for “Master” mode, and several external flashes set for “Slave” mode including Canon 580 EX- and Canon 580EX II Speedlites and a Godox TT685C Thinklite TTL Flash fitted with a Lastolite Ezybox Speed-Lite 2 flash modifier. Adobe Photoshop CC 2017 was used to create the focus-stacked composite image, as well as spot-heal and sharpen the final output.

Copyright © 2018 Walter Sanford. All rights reserved.