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Phidippus putnami has to be without doubt one of the most handsome salticids out there. I photographed this fantastically ornamental and fluffy guy back in August of 2010 and somehow must have looked over this shot (a significantly cropped single shot with the 50mm reversed to extension tubes). The anterior median eyes of these males are often a deeply vivid and saturated green like little emeralds (a bit like P. mystaceus), but despite being in immaculate shape, somehow this specimen's eyes were considerably less lackluster and more maroon than I've seen. Absolutely beautiful nonetheless - and maybe the "greenness" had more to do with my lighting setup than the specimen itself. Like all salticids, he had quite a personality and was a pretty tough subject to work with. After a couple hours, I eventually had to resort to photographing him through the mouth of a mason jar just to keep track of him. The method didn't help to ease the struggle much as he was big, healthy, and dead set on jumping right on the lens.
To flesh the story out a bit, I'll include the original description from August 3rd, 2010 coupled with my first posting of this guy, and additional detail shots in the comment section below:
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"Here's another one of those shots I've been planning on taking for years - and now I've gotten it - full frame as well! My daily wanderings paid off a couple days ago as I was making my way along a trail (following a large robber fly). A little form on the railing of a wooden bridge caught my eye from about 20 feet away, and as I took a couple steps closer - it spun around to greet me and I immediately recognized the face as an adult male Phidippus putnami.
These adult males have to be some of the wildest and hairiest spiders out there - the markings and tufts of hair are just unparalleled (excluding some of the really wild Habronattus species out west). "
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And for what it's worth, I recently started both a Google + account and a twitter if anyone would like to follow what's going on with me and my photography:
plus.google.com/109479692449086547856
twitter.com/#!/ThomasShahan
Tags: male jumping spider jumper salticid salticidae arachnid arachnology entomology bug close-up face portrait head cephalothorax chelicerae fangs palps pedipalps eyes hair fluffy macro macrophotography pentax k200d dslr slr smc 50mm f/1.7 prime lens reversed extension tubes vintage vivitar zoom thyristor flash diffuser softbox thomas shahan oklahoma
Make sure to click here to view the larger image as Flickr's resizing creates moiré artifacts and over-sharpens a bit!
Alright! It's been far too long! I nearly ran over this wonderful little female with my bike while returning from a book sale this weekend. Initially, I wasn't quite sure if she was a salticid or not as I careened around her, but after momentarily debating turning back – I decided to do so and was instantly ecstatic upon realizing that the little speck of arthropod I’d instinctively avoided killing was none other than the most resplendent salticid of them all – Phidippus mystaceus! And not only that – she was in absolutely wonderful shape with fantastic hair coverage, a plump abdomen, and clean eyes!
The shot above was achieved by letting her hop on a sunflower leaf and holding her up to the sky to get a blue-sky background bright enough in the exposure. The image is a focus-stack of three images taken at about f/11 or f/16 with my old (now scratched) 50mm prime reversed on extension tubes. Also noteworthy is the fact that this is one of my first salticid shots taken with the new Pentax K-x body and in RAW nonetheless (all my previous work was shot in jpeg!). She ended up being quite cooperative and didn’t require too much pain or toil on my part – working with salticids is always a pleasure - even when difficult!
Apologies for the infrequent uploads lately, I’ve just been busy outside of the macrophotography world – but be assured – I’m still taking shots and searching for subjects and likely always will.
In other news – Bugshot 2011 with Alex Wild and John Abbott was a resounding success and proved to be a wonderful opportunity to hear and learn from a variety of entomologists, macro photographers, and more. Should it happen again next year – I’m fully behind it and consider it an invaluable resource.
Tags: pentax kx jumping spider salticid salticidae arachnid arthropod invertebrate hairy furry macro macrophotography smc 50mm f/1.7 prime lens reversed extension tubes vivitar zoom thyristor flash homemade diffuser softbox oklahoma thomas shahan phidippus mystaceus
As always, I'd like to apologize for the lack of postings lately. I’ve been quite busy recently and haven’t had as much time as I’d like to get out and shoot arthropods like I used to. Additionally, I’ve been in Italy for the past month and didn’t have my usual macro equipment with me. Be assured – more macro photos will come someday.
The image above is one of the plentiful and beautiful Hummingbird Hawk Moths (Macroglossum stellatarum) I encountered while in Arezzo, Italy. The shot was taken with my new Pentax Kx and an old 50mm f/1.4 prime.
To all of you who have been asking questions about my equipment or macrophotography in general – I apologize for my silence – I just can’t get back to all of you. If you are interested, I have an FAQ here: thomasshahan.com/other and additionally - a short video about my techniques here: www.youtube.com/watch?v=wqRn3at0H60
Tags: hummingbird hawk moth macroglossum stellatarum proboscis macro macrophotography pentax kx k x 50mm f/1.4 prime vintage lens arezzo italy tuscany thomas shahan
Make sure to click here to view the larger image as Flickr's resizing creates moiré artifacts and dulls the brilliance of the compound eyes!
This beautiful little Ommatius female caught my eye one miserably hot day last August while I was fruitlessly chasing Holcocephala robbers around a swampy area. She seemed to be relatively unfazed by my presence and was perched atop a secure stick in the shade, so I decided to try for a few shots. After carefully clearing a little spot to sit near her and upon noticing how cooperative she was, I proceeded to spend the next hour watching her hunt. Due to my soft spot for the Holcocephala robbers of this area, I’d largely overlooked these pretty little (~11mm) asilids that occupy the same areas up until this encounter. She was an absolute joy to watch and photograph – leaping from her perch constantly only to reappear at the exact same perch seconds later – each time with a new pierced captive. She was so fast I could never see where she was going, but her lightning quick hunts always seemed to be successful. These Ommatius species must have fantastic vision.
As of writing this, I’m not quite sure which species she is – I’ve read that the only definitive way to identify robbers within this genus is to analyze the genitalia of male specimens. Visually, they all look quite similar to me. Here’s a great page from Herschel Raney with a bit of an introduction to Ommatius robbers: www.hr-rna.com/RNA/Rfly Another thing worth pointing out – the compound eyes were a beautiful deep metallic green to my eyes in the sunlight, but somehow my diffused flash picked up the reddish hue you see in the eyes above and below. Maybe I’ll have to try a combination of natural light and a fill-flash should I attempt to photograph this species again next summer. The image above is a crop from a focus stack of about 6 images taken with the 50mm reversed on a set of extension tubes.
Sorry about the infrequent uploads – I’ve been quite busy lately and after all it is winter here. Currently it’s about 10° F and windy in Oklahoma. If you’re interested in more things Thomas, head on over to my artwork account here: www.flickr.com/panbasket
...or if you’re really bored, I use this account for just documenting vintage illustrations: www.flickr.com/49580580@N02/
Tags: robber fly robberfly Ommatius female flies bug insect wings hairs antennae compound eyes legs close macro macrophotography pentax k200d dslr slr smc k bayonet 50mm f/1 7 prime lens reversed extension tubes focus stacked vintage vivitar zoom thyristor flash diffuser softbox thomas shahan arthropod entomology asilidae asilid oklahoma
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I apologize for the lack of posts lately - I've been quite busy. Rest assured, big news (don't get your hopes up just yet - just be thinking "NG") and more shots are on their way! For now, check out some of my more recent artwork: www.flickr.com/panbasket
Here's an old shot from last last May that I originally turned down in favor for this shot. I realize this type of shot may not be a big hit, but in retrospect, I prefer this composition despite the decreased magnification and hidden chelicerae. Here's the original text that accompanied the last post:
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Several weeks ago, I photographed an interesting looking female Habronattus at a spot near the Canadian River I visit frequently to look for tiger beetles. She looked quite different than the usual female H. coecatus specimens I can find relatively easily around Oklahoma, so I've been having high hopes I finding a new Habronattus male species every time I head out to the spot.
So, my persistence payed off, and after a rather unsuccessful afternoon of stalking the larger tiger beetles near the river, I spotted this little guy (~4mm) as he was watching a large caterpillar wiggle its way across the sandy path. I was exhausted and didn't feel like chasing him around in the sand, so I let him hop in a jar I had with me and took him on home.
Although not as flashy as some of the Habronattus species in the U.S., this little male H. cognatus is handsome in his own right - I love those intermittent, mottled scales on his chelicerae. He wasn't in the best cosmetic shape (missing scales/worn) but proved to be quite a lively and active spider that would only slow down when partially covered by the leaves I collected and set out to photograph him on. During the next bug-hunt, I released him at the excact same spot where I found him.
If you are interested in the Habronattus genus (you really should be) make sure to take a look at tolweb's entry here: tolweb.org/Habronattus
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Tags: justpentax habronattus cognatus jumping spider salticid salticidae arachnid arthropod arachnology macvro macrophotography close portrait face eyes pentax k200d dslr extension tubes reversed prime 50mm f/1.7 smc k bayonet lens vintage vivitar thyristor flash diy homemade softbox diffuser thomas shahan oklahoma
