Longhorn Beetle - Sternotomis amabilis

Bad lighting, I know. But, I wanted to show its face. I will redo this one at some point.

*Specimen

Native to Africa

comments (6)

Ferdy Christant

Lion

It does have that dramatic horror movie lighting effect, which is pretty cool! Posted 3 years ago
1. Christine Young
  
  Lion
  
  The horror aspect is cool, but I hate this photo and can't wait to replace it. Posted 3 years ago
2. 1. Ferdy Christant
    
    Lion
    
    Rome wasn't built in a day. (Extreme) macro lighting can be difficult. You're making great steps in positioning and lighting, it's improving much faster than you may care to admit. Posted 3 years ago
  2. 1. Christine Young
      
      Lion
      
      Thanks! Some sessions are such crap, but I am not giving up. :) One of my biggest issue is specimen quality. So many are so old and fragile, weren't stored properly, etc. It's frustrating. #2 problem would definitely be lighting and figuring out the technical things that don't come naturally to me at all. Posted 3 years ago
    2. 1. Ferdy Christant
        
        Lion
        
        I can totally relate. Even when you fully master the total workflow there's still going to be disappointing results sometimes. Probably because *everything* has to be correct, it's very unforgiving.
        
        Specimen quality and cleaning are my #1 challenge too. With higher magnifications this challenge only increases. So no worries, everybody has that problem.
        
        You'll figure out the technical stuff. Write it down like you do, once you got the settings, it's repeatable.
        
        When in doubt, zoom out. As a year passes, you're going to be amazed at what you produced at the beginning versus the end. Posted 3 years ago
      2. Christine Young
        
        Lion
        
        Thanks for the encouragement. I feel like I have learned a lot just by being on JungleDragon. Seeing everyone's photos and techniques is both inspiring and educational. Plus, all your guidance has been priceless. Posted 3 years ago