Several pictures of some plants

[elgecko]

I thought I'd post a few pictures of some plants.

The first one up is a windowsill grown Heliamphora heteradoxa x nutans. I got this in trade late summer. Took a long time to settle in since it was just the rhizome and no roots when I got it. Just starting to form new pitchers.

And some other stuff.

Pyro these 2 may look familiar. D. kenneallyi and D. petiolaris. The D. kenneallyi and D. falconeri are going dormant. The D. dilatao-petiolaris I tried on the windowsill and it did not like it.

 

[nightsky]

Superb photos, as usual. Your plants are in great shape!

 

[jimscott]

Geez I wish I had your camera!

 

[RL7836]

Sir Gecko,
Great high-quality pics (as usual from you). Really enjoy your 'art' pics (ones w/ your name) - always interesting to see the plants we enjoy presented in a near-abstract way...

Keep up the great work (both growing & photographing)!

Also - good catch with that aphid (or 2) in the other thread. Reminds me how you picked out Lone Star ticks in the underbrush in the barrens .....

 

[Grey Moss]

Thats a interesting amp, how did you get it so white. How much light does it get?

 

[Capensis]

Amazing plants as always! I love the picture of the back of the peristome! I must get that window of yours.

 

[SashaM24]

You really have some of the best looking plants that I have seen. Especially for some that are window grown...where did you buy that window from?? Great growing!

 

[Zero]

Great pictures!
Love the ceph and heli.
can I ask what kind of lens and lighting you are using?
I know the camera you have is basically the same as mine
thanks,
Zero

 

[elgecko]

Thanks everyone on the comments on the pictures. Glad you enjoyed them.

Ron,
When do you want to go to the Pine Barrens this year to search out some more Lone Stars?

Mr. Truncata,
I do not know. It is in a south facing window along with all the other neps I grow and many other plants so it gets good sunlight.

Zero,
I used my 18 - 70mm zoom lens with a 12mm Extension Tube on many of the pictures. As for lighting most where with a Ring Flash. They could have been better if I was not so lazy and got the tripod out.

 

[RL7836]

Ron,
When do you want to go to the Pine Barrens this year to search out some more Lone Stars?

I thought you were spending the year in the 'glades' gator-wrassling - no?

 

[jimscott]

What's an 12mm Extension Tube? This has gotta help!

 

[nepenthes_ak]

Its is what the name implies, its just a tube, that extends the lens out, generally used in macro shots usually.

 

[elgecko]

I thought you were spending the year in the 'glades' gator-wrassling - no?

I'm absolutely going to the Everglades to do some back country canoeing / gator wrestling, but it's only for 16 or 17 days.
That means I have plenty of time for the annual Pine Barrens trip, so think about what dates good for you. I want to get back in the last stream we paddled, but on the other side of the road. If the stream stays as deep as the side we paddled, we have many miles to explore. I have to say it's the neatest area that we / I have explored in the Pine Barrens so far.

Scott,
The extension tube will only fit on SLR's. It attaches between the camera body and lens.
It allows you to focus closer to the subject then the lens normally would. Since you get closer to the subject, it is larger.
What else is great about extension tubes is that there is no added glass to degrade your image quality.

 

[Drosera36]

elgecko, I was wondering what kind of setup you have for your more professional shots with a background? I'm more so wondering what sort of lights you use; I've built a macro studio, but I can never get enough light into it.

Thanks,
-Ben

 

[NeciFiX]

Nice! Wish I could grow carnivorous plants.

 

[elgecko]

elgecko, I was wondering what kind of setup you have for your more professional shots with a background? I'm more so wondering what sort of lights you use; I've built a macro studio, but I can never get enough light into it.

Thanks,
-Ben

I have several ways I photo my plants.

I made a macro studio using PVC piping. I use a black cloth in the back for my backdrop. I then cover the PVC with a very light, transparent, white cloth. I also have white reflective material, foam board, under the subject I'm photographing.

Shine the lights in through the cloth to diffuse it and help eliminate shadows, the white foam board helps also by reflecting light back to illuminate under the subject.
I really only use this when I taking shots like this.

The lights I use are 500 watt shop lights. I also use a trouble light sometime to highlight certain parts of the plants.

As you can see with this type of shot, I use a tripod and cable release. Most shots are well over 5 seconds long.



Most times I just throw the black cloth over a chair, sit the plant down on the chair and take the shot hand-held. I'll use either my regular flash, not the built in flash but a separate flash with a diffuser.

Or the other way is with the ring flash.

It also matters a lot with macro photography how you use your F- stops. I very rarely take a picture in the Auto mode of the camera. Everything is done in manual mode so I control what the camera is doing to get the results I want. With macro shots I also manually focus the shot.