Young Milkweed Tussock Moth Caterpillars 2 - Crosseye 3D
Taken with my Panasonic Lumix DMC-FZ35.
A large infestation of milkweed tussock moth caterpillars decimated this one milkweed plant.
In just a couple days the group of hundreds had eaten every single leaf so that only the bare stalk and branches of the large plant were left.
Here is a small group out on the edge of one of the barren branches.
It can be extremely difficult enough to get perfect 3D images of just single insects in the frame without having any retinal rivalries using the cha-cha method when taking 3D photos, but when there are a couple or large groups of insects . . . YIKES!!!
A retinal rivalry can occur when one image may have a subtle or drastic difference in one or more areas between the two images, so that while viewing the pair of images in 3D, the affected area looks distorted or incorrect, which can lead to eye strain discomfort or an uneasiness while viewing the image in 3D.
In case some people are wondering what the cha-cha method is, it's the process of taking 2 separate photos of the same subject(s), but at 2 slightly offset angles along a horizontal plane. You snap 1 photo, then move the camera either slightly left, or slightly right horizontally, then snap a 2nd photo.
You can then place these 2 slightly offset images side-by-side to create a stereo 3D image. Or, you can overlap the 2 images, but remove the red color channel from one image, while removing the green and blue color channels from the 2nd image. This is called an anaglyph image and requires those funny looking glasses with the red and cyan colored lenses in them so that you can see the overlapping images as a single 3D picture.
However, while using the cha-cha method, movement of the subjects or anything within the surrounding background area between the taking of one image to the second will cause these rivalries in the final 3D image.
So one trick that I have used often with certain insects to avoid or at least extremely limit the possibility of rivalries, is to slightly breathe out on them. The instinctive defensive action of many insects to avoid predators looking to eat them, is to stop moving in an attempt to blend in to their surroundings.
So with a gentle breathe some insects seem to associate that with the presence of a possible predator, and immediately stop all their movement. Another trick is to just cause a mild vibration near some insects, or actually gently touch them, and the same defensive reaction of staying perfectly still may also be employed.
This defensive freezing time can then be used to quickly get my 2 or more photo captures at the various horizontal positions I need to create my 3D images of the insects. Of course insects don't always cooperate, especially when there are groups of them within your photo framing, so it's always a hit or miss venture!
However, I have used these techniques very successfully many times on various insects . . . unfortunately the same techniques will certainly do the opposite and scare away many insects as well . . . you learn with experience which ones to annoy in this fashion, and which ones not to annoy! ;-)
Young Milkweed Tussock Moth Caterpillars 2 - Crosseye 3D
Taken with my Panasonic Lumix DMC-FZ35.
A large infestation of milkweed tussock moth caterpillars decimated this one milkweed plant.
In just a couple days the group of hundreds had eaten every single leaf so that only the bare stalk and branches of the large plant were left.
Here is a small group out on the edge of one of the barren branches.
It can be extremely difficult enough to get perfect 3D images of just single insects in the frame without having any retinal rivalries using the cha-cha method when taking 3D photos, but when there are a couple or large groups of insects . . . YIKES!!!
A retinal rivalry can occur when one image may have a subtle or drastic difference in one or more areas between the two images, so that while viewing the pair of images in 3D, the affected area looks distorted or incorrect, which can lead to eye strain discomfort or an uneasiness while viewing the image in 3D.
In case some people are wondering what the cha-cha method is, it's the process of taking 2 separate photos of the same subject(s), but at 2 slightly offset angles along a horizontal plane. You snap 1 photo, then move the camera either slightly left, or slightly right horizontally, then snap a 2nd photo.
You can then place these 2 slightly offset images side-by-side to create a stereo 3D image. Or, you can overlap the 2 images, but remove the red color channel from one image, while removing the green and blue color channels from the 2nd image. This is called an anaglyph image and requires those funny looking glasses with the red and cyan colored lenses in them so that you can see the overlapping images as a single 3D picture.
However, while using the cha-cha method, movement of the subjects or anything within the surrounding background area between the taking of one image to the second will cause these rivalries in the final 3D image.
So one trick that I have used often with certain insects to avoid or at least extremely limit the possibility of rivalries, is to slightly breathe out on them. The instinctive defensive action of many insects to avoid predators looking to eat them, is to stop moving in an attempt to blend in to their surroundings.
So with a gentle breathe some insects seem to associate that with the presence of a possible predator, and immediately stop all their movement. Another trick is to just cause a mild vibration near some insects, or actually gently touch them, and the same defensive reaction of staying perfectly still may also be employed.
This defensive freezing time can then be used to quickly get my 2 or more photo captures at the various horizontal positions I need to create my 3D images of the insects. Of course insects don't always cooperate, especially when there are groups of them within your photo framing, so it's always a hit or miss venture!
However, I have used these techniques very successfully many times on various insects . . . unfortunately the same techniques will certainly do the opposite and scare away many insects as well . . . you learn with experience which ones to annoy in this fashion, and which ones not to annoy! ;-)