Vine Snake Strike

Gallery: WildlifePosted April 7, 2013603 views15 comments

I found this Vine Snake while working on a banana plantation in western Ecuador. After a while I found that if I stayed just the right distance away it would hold its mouth open in threat. If I got a little too far away it would close its mouth, and a little too close and it would strike. I was using Provia 400 film but it was still pretty dark in the understory and I was hand-holding the camera, so I had to shoot with the aperture wide open, though I like the shallow depth of field. I was amazed a month later to see that I got the eyes in perfect focus!

Minolta Maxxum 7, 100mm Macro Lens, 1/60 sec at f/2.8, Provia 400, Handheld

Comments

15 comments

Comment posted by Patricia Brundage on April 7, 2013 at 6:36 PM

Awesome action shot. Hate snakes... but you seem to have figured out his thinking.

Registered on March 23, 2006, 1111 Posts, 6531 Comments

Comment posted by Bill Fach on April 7, 2013 at 6:45 PM

I'll echo Patricia's attitude regarding snakes even if it is irrational. Love the DOF and the color palette as well as the comp. Good photography! >=))>

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

Comment posted by Brad Hill on April 7, 2013 at 10:08 PM

Hi Thomas,

Very cool. Love the colour, contrst, action, and the DoF. Looks almost like an animation. A real eye-catcher - well done!

Cheers...

Brad

Registered on May 29, 2007, 431 Posts, 6061 Comments

Comment posted by Ajit Huilgol on April 7, 2013 at 10:21 PM

This looks surreal!

Registered on December 19, 2008, 302 Posts, 2055 Comments

Comment posted by Gary Gulash on April 7, 2013 at 10:28 PM

Very cool photo Thomas, to say the open mouth is eye catching is an understatement. I would like to see a little better sharpness on the mouth/head and there is quite a lot of noise in the background but this photo has such a strong graphic appeal those niggling details hardly count for much.

Registered on January 28, 2005, 879 Posts, 12098 Comments

Comment posted by Vijay Raj on April 8, 2013 at 12:02 AM

Very nice in the face shot. I like the eyes standing out even for a snake which is not easy. One of the easiest snakes to encounter in the Tropics. This elegant non-venomous snake almost mimics a vine in a evergreen forest and usually hangs around for a while when encountered providing ample shooting opportunities. In fact this snake is pre-dominantly green only when it is agitated it puts a very lovely chequered pattern like this
http://www.naturephotographers.net/imagecritique/ic.cgi?a=vp&pr=198977&CGISESSID=03be8b316a4c0f4d508b3338bd07f8ac&u=3701.

In this case the shallow dof works.

regards
Vijay Mohan Raj

Registered on November 22, 2010, 29 Posts, 100 Comments

Comment posted by Balan Vinod on April 8, 2013 at 1:24 AM

Beautifully composed. Cracker ..well done

Balan Vinod

Registered on March 20, 2006, 889 Posts, 2312 Comments

Comment posted by Vincent Grafhorst on April 8, 2013 at 4:13 AM

Wow, really striking image Thomas!

Perhaps a bit of NR?
I would be interested to know your equipment and exposure info btw.

Registered on February 24, 2006, 504 Posts, 7203 Comments

Comment posted by Steeve Marcoux on April 8, 2013 at 8:00 AM

Nice shot, i like the results !

Registered on November 23, 2012, 15 Posts, 76 Comments

Comment posted by Don Westbrook on April 8, 2013 at 10:37 AM

Nice image. Enjoyed your DOF choice to imply movement and depth. In a perfect world I would have liked the head to be a more in focus, but, we all understand that snakes really don't take direction well.

Registered on January 4, 2013, 11 Posts, 332 Comments

Comment posted by Clinton Bauder on April 8, 2013 at 3:14 PM

Ohhh - nice! I happen to like snakes and this is really a great image. Shallow DOF works great for me. As you say the eyes are in focus so it doesn't really bother me that the snout isn't. The soft focus of the rest of the image is perfect. I might crop a bit from the left side as the balance seems a bit to the right maybe?

Clinton

Registered on December 8, 2009, 31 Posts, 231 Comments

Comment posted by Lon Sharp on April 10, 2013 at 11:55 AM

Thumbs up for a dramatic capture that goes beyond documentary and provides us with an artistic aesthetic!

Registered on December 9, 2007, 258 Posts, 9892 Comments

Comment posted by Marsel van Oosten on April 11, 2013 at 5:47 AM

Very striking (sorry) image! A bit more DOF and noise reduction would make this even more powerful.

Registered on March 9, 2004, 285 Posts, 2277 Comments

Comment posted by Ken Archer on April 13, 2013 at 12:11 AM

This is awesome

I like it a lot just as presented. A very pleasing composition.

Sweet One Thomas!!!

Ken Archer

Registered on October 28, 2004, 222 Posts, 6683 Comments

Comment posted by Eirini Pajak on April 14, 2013 at 3:20 PM

What an intense image! Nice one!

Registered on December 13, 2011, 216 Posts, 1671 Comments