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Chrysalis

Gallery: Macro & Close-upPosted September 27, 201066 views6 comments

I photographed this chrysalis attached to a stalk of Bronze Fennel in a shady part of my wife's garden July 20, 2010. It appears as if the chrysalis was created to mimic a face with eyes and horns, perhaps to keep predators away. It's attached to the stalk by an mass of ultra-thin threads wrapped around the stalk with two thicker strands then attached to the back of the chrysalis. I have images from that angle showing the attachment plus the amazing bead-and-ribbon-like surface, but even at f/29 on a tripod, the d/o/f at this close distance wasn't enough for complete "focus". Planning to re-shoot to try and capture all the detail in one shot, I went back the following day only to find the chrysalis open and the butterfly gone. The caterpillar that created this masterpiece was a beautiful lime green with black bands dotted with white spots.
Tech data: Canon Mk4, 100mm macro, f/29 @ 1/1.2s, ISO1600. 85% of frame, smaller blade of plant L/R intentionally left in; I don't believe in altering nature shots by removing objects.

Comments

6 comments

Comment posted by Peter May on September 27, 2010 at 5:59 PM

Probably a black swallowtail. Fennel is a common foodplant for Papilio polyxenes.

Registered on November 1, 2003, 7 Posts, 239 Comments

Comment posted by Dan Borzynski on September 27, 2010 at 9:15 PM

At the magnification you are working at, you probably won't get everything in focus. You are somewhere around 1/3 life size, which at f29 is about one inch (25 mm) of DOF. The key is to maximize the impact of what is in focus.

I probably would drop the camera slightly and focus slightly in back of the front surface. This should get the entire chrysalis in focus but cause the top of the step to go further out of focus. There is also the possibility that you may let some of the sky into the shot, which probably would be a distraction.

For what it might be worth, the small out of focus area at the bottom of the chrysalis is not a big distraction. I like the image as you have it.

Registered on November 1, 2003, 109 Posts, 799 Comments

Comment posted by Gary Yeoh on September 27, 2010 at 9:43 PM

Tom:
Very interesting shape to this chrysalis. I like the slight diagonal orientation. As you have noticed, the image is slightly soft and the DOF is quite shallow. Not really sure of the softness - it may be motion blur from breeze etc with a slow SS. Don't think diffraction is an issue as Mike Moats have shown that F32 can be easily sharpened in post processing. Not sure whether this is AF or manual focus. The AF may be difficult when there isn't much contrast as in this subject. Another thing that is noticeable is the rather strong highlight which may be tamed by a diffuser or polariser.

Registered on September 1, 2009, 588 Posts, 8184 Comments

Comment posted by Bill Fach on September 27, 2010 at 11:31 PM

Tom: Definitely a black swallowtail chrysalis. What is really interesting about them is that they will often take on the color of the perch and blend in to look like a broken branch. I think your POF may be the issue or perhaps the plane of focus. With a 100mm you ought to be able to get the whole chrysalis within the DOF range even with a full frame sensor. I appreciate your philosophy but I do think the bright BG blade is a major distraction. >=))>

Registered on November 1, 2003, 1805 Posts, 26981 Comments

Comment posted by Mike Moats on September 28, 2010 at 6:45 AM

Hey Tom, cool looking subject. Nice details on the subject, like the diagonal line.

To all our macro contribitors, our image comments have been up lately, and I would like to thank all those who have been taking the time to comment on images. Thanks and keep em coming

Registered on October 20, 2004, 892 Posts, 6324 Comments

Comment posted by Alessandra & Rocco on September 29, 2010 at 7:26 AM

Great colors :)

Registered on March 3, 2007, 122 Posts, 778 Comments