Hi Dean,
I hoped I would hear from you. Two things worked against me in this shot.
First, the insects move from bloom to bloom on this bush continuously, so
time is short. I managed to get two shots of this one, and this was the
sharper of the two. The lighting was harsh, but mid morning is when the
insects appear.
Second, nature gave this fellow a very nice camouflage job. If you look
close, the undersides of the wings, and even the snout, have a "mottled"
pattern of bland colors. I read that they can hang upside down on the
underside of a tree branch and appear to preditors as if they were a dead
leaf.
Thanks for looking, and for the kind words. I have not recently tried fill
flash for this kind of shot. Maybe I should give it a try. However, I bet
I only get one shot that way, before he leaves the area.
Jim Nichols
Tullahoma, TN USA
----- Original Message -----
From: "Dean Hansen" <hanse112@xxxxxxxxxx>
To: <olympus@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx>
Sent: Saturday, July 17, 2010 9:49 AM
Subject: [OM] IMG: Another Friday Flower, With a Nose?
> Jim recently posted:
>
> "I shot two shots of this visitor without seeing the abnormality, which
> I didn't notice until I processed the images. By that time the
> long-nosed visitor had disappeared. Do any of you naturalists out there
> recognize the Durante-like snoz?
>
> http://gallery.leica-users.org/v/OldNick/Butterfly.jpg.html
>
> Jim has since identified the butterfly with the Durante-like snoz as
> the American Snout Butterfly. It's an uncommon immigrant up here in
> Minnesota (and nearby Wisconsin).
> More information on the butterfly is at
> <http://wisconsinbutterflies.org/butterfly/species/61-american-snout>.
> I like the dynamic aspect of Jim's shot--there's more "going on" in
> his picture than in the three shots on the Wisconsin butterfly site.
> Does Jim's shot show a lower dynamic range with a digital camera than is
> possible with film? The angle of the sun in Jim's shot catches the
> upperside of the butterfly's left forewing at an oblique angle, which
> brings out the slight irregularities caused by the wing's veins. But
> the undersides of the right wings are shaded and lose detail, as does
> the underside of the butterfly's thorax and abdomen. The uppersides of
> the leaves, on the other hand, are blown out by the direct sunlight.
> Would an axial fill flash have helped? Or a diffuser to block out the
> direct sunlight?
> Grab shots of subjects unwilling to pose in just the right lighting
> and setting are a challenge. Jim did a good job on this one.
> Dean
>
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