snorkie128
Red Under Black
Day 221 of 365
"Red Under Black"
Today's subject caught my attention the other night. I was taking out the trash bins in the dark, when I was suddenly overcome by strands of cobwebs in my hair and face. I really should turn the lights on before I venture outside into Spiderland. Lesson well learned. Anywho, when I spotted the potential guilty party, I went against my natural instincts, and decided she might make for a lovely portrait. But how to capture a Black Widow? For some unknown reason, I decided to use my daughter's "Frozen" snack cup as a trap. I scooped the spider up, and left her on the windowsill for a couple of days. The look she gave me with her eight beady eyes is a look I shall never forget. Chilling. I managed to extract her and slid her into a clear plastic tube, but soon realized that the reflections would be a pain when lighting her. I then poured her into a smooth plastic trough used for spackling. I stuck a small branch into the mouth of an A-clamp, carefully placed the clamp inside the trough, and she climbed to the top of the stick. The stage was now set. But the lighting!!! Going with the theme of the red belly, I figured a little red light would be apropos. So, there is a gridded AND snooted speedlight with a red gel just behind our subject, below the plastic trough. Not only did the backlight add the color, but it also separates the spider, and webs from the background. At camera-left is a beauty dish, without a grid or sock. I have it aimed slightly towards camera, as to avoid contaminating the black background. The most surprising moment during the shoot was after our subject had inspected the trough below. When she first set up shop, she tethered herself to the top of the branch. When she finished exploring, she suddenly shot up to the top of the branch, like a bloody Cirque du Soleil performer. No, I wasn't scared.......Anyway, thanks for creeping by!!
#spider #arachnid #blackwidow #insect #nature #web #cobweb #eyes #canon5dmarkIII #canon100macro #paulcbuffinc #paulcbuffeinstein #beautydish #monsterlighting
Red Under Black
Day 221 of 365
"Red Under Black"
Today's subject caught my attention the other night. I was taking out the trash bins in the dark, when I was suddenly overcome by strands of cobwebs in my hair and face. I really should turn the lights on before I venture outside into Spiderland. Lesson well learned. Anywho, when I spotted the potential guilty party, I went against my natural instincts, and decided she might make for a lovely portrait. But how to capture a Black Widow? For some unknown reason, I decided to use my daughter's "Frozen" snack cup as a trap. I scooped the spider up, and left her on the windowsill for a couple of days. The look she gave me with her eight beady eyes is a look I shall never forget. Chilling. I managed to extract her and slid her into a clear plastic tube, but soon realized that the reflections would be a pain when lighting her. I then poured her into a smooth plastic trough used for spackling. I stuck a small branch into the mouth of an A-clamp, carefully placed the clamp inside the trough, and she climbed to the top of the stick. The stage was now set. But the lighting!!! Going with the theme of the red belly, I figured a little red light would be apropos. So, there is a gridded AND snooted speedlight with a red gel just behind our subject, below the plastic trough. Not only did the backlight add the color, but it also separates the spider, and webs from the background. At camera-left is a beauty dish, without a grid or sock. I have it aimed slightly towards camera, as to avoid contaminating the black background. The most surprising moment during the shoot was after our subject had inspected the trough below. When she first set up shop, she tethered herself to the top of the branch. When she finished exploring, she suddenly shot up to the top of the branch, like a bloody Cirque du Soleil performer. No, I wasn't scared.......Anyway, thanks for creeping by!!
#spider #arachnid #blackwidow #insect #nature #web #cobweb #eyes #canon5dmarkIII #canon100macro #paulcbuffinc #paulcbuffeinstein #beautydish #monsterlighting