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magnificent dragons


magnificent dragons
Photo Information
Copyright: jaap polak (carper) Gold Star Critiquer/Gold Star Workshop Editor/Gold Note Writer [C: 2009 W: 122 N: 2581] (8424)
Genre: Animals
Medium: Color
Date Taken: 2006-09-12
Categories: Insects
Camera: Canon 350D, Tamron 90mm macro
Exposure: f/14.0, 1/100 seconds
Details: (Fill) Flash: Yes
Photo Version: Original Version, Workshop
Date Submitted: 2006-09-23 5:19
Viewed: 1252
Points: 52
[Note Guidelines] Photographer's Note
The essence of summer", "the birdwatchers' insects", "among the most beautiful and attractive of all insects" are all phrases that recent accounts have used to describe dragonflies. For many people who consider insects as small, often troublesome organisms, lacking any interesting or redeeming behaviour, their introduction to dragonflies is often a revelation. Here is a group of conspicuous, highly colourful and attractive yet harmless insects that actually do things! The adults (and larvae) are active hunters. Many are strongly territorial, some are migratory and many will actually respond to your presence. It can also be a surprise to people when they discover that dragonflies have lived close to them, seemingly unnoticed until a flash of bright colours attracts their attention.
Dragonflies are aquatic insects which belong to the insect Order Odonata. The term Dragonfly is used here in its wider sense to include all species of Odonata. The modern Odonata are classified in two sub-orders, the Anisoptera and the Zygoptera (Corbet 1999). Some 5300 species have been described worldwide. The 'true' dragonflies, the Anisoptera, are large robust species. Adults are characterised by having dissimilar hind and fore wings which, at rest, are held out flat, and large compound eyes which occupy most of the head. The smaller, more delicate, damselflies of the suborder Zygoptera have smaller, widely separated eyes on the side of the head and similarly shaped fore and hind wings which are held folded above the body when the insect is resting. The larvae of the two suborders also differ in general form and shape. Damselfly larvae have three large gills at the end of abdomen, whilst Anisoptera larvae have internal gills situated in a rectal chamber.

The life cycle consists of a long larval phase and a short adult phase. The eggs are laid either by inserting them in aquatic plants or on the water surface. In most species the egg stage is of relatively short duration. Except in the case of a few non-European species, the larvae spend all their development time in water, growing by a variable number of moults. There is no pupal stage in the Odonata. Rather, the adult insect emerges directly from the larval skin. Both the larvae and adults of all Odonata species are active predators feeding mainly on smaller invertebrates. They in turn may be significant prey items of fish, birds and other invertebrates including other Odonata, spiders and predatory Coleoptera.

here realy lovely site.

Oke I am back after a small holyday and I go farther with another experiment. I use here the tamron 90 mm lens and my new tamron-f 2x teleconverter. oke it cost me a few F-stops but with enough light the result is very nice. I shoot this one in 800 iso.I used a monopod. I hope you like the result.
gr. jaap
dew77, uleko, pablominto, RAP, Hil, jhm, jmp, marhowie, ramthakur, loot, aido, wallhalla15, hester, sAner has marked this note useful
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Critiques [Translate]

  • Great 
  • dew77 Gold Star Critiquer/Gold Star Workshop Editor/Gold Note Writer [C: 4774 W: 294 N: 4020] (13209)
  • [2006-09-23 5:34]

Hello Jaap,
Wonderful close up.POV,details,framing,BG,sharpness and composition are excellent.Enjoy your new lens:)
TFS...:-)

  • Great 
  • uleko Gold Star Critiquer/Gold Star Workshop Editor/Gold Note Writer [C: 2989 W: 162 N: 941] (2769)
  • [2006-09-23 5:37]

Good close-up of an autumnal Sympetrum showing interesting details. I've also found the Irish site you refer to - must be the best on the web.
TFS, Ulla

Hello Jaap,
Excellent macro work in all aspects!
The background colours add to the beauty...
Good point of view gives fine details in the insect, and I appreciate the fine composition!
Greetings,
Pablo -

Jaap,
Heel mooie foto.
Vooral de kleuren passen bij elkaar.
De dieptewerking spreekt me ook aan.
Groeten
Annick

  • Great 
  • RAP Gold Star Critiquer/Gold Star Workshop Editor/Gold Note Writer [C: 2524 W: 345 N: 2373] (7405)
  • [2006-09-23 9:43]

Bienvenido nuevamente viejo amigo.
Otra interesante macro con un bello POV, colorido (me agrada la similitud de tonos entre el insecto y su soporte y la posición como está apoyado sobre ellas), buena nitidez y excelente trasfondo, difuso y contrastante.
Mis mejores saludos... Ricardo

Welcome back old friend.
Another interesting macro with a beautiful POV, coloring (I like it the similarity of tones between the insect and their support and the position like it is reclining on them), good clarity and excellent background, diffuse and contrasting.
My best regards... Ricardo

  • Great 
  • jossim Gold Star Critiquer/Gold Note Writer [C: 1575 W: 5 N: 2181] (12250)
  • [2006-09-23 9:51]

Bonjour Carper!

Bravo pour ce gros plan,les couleurs sont justes et les détails excellents.

Merci!
joseph

  • Great 
  • Hil Gold Star Critiquer/Silver Workshop Editor/Gold Note Writer [C: 705 W: 13 N: 1405] (5027)
  • [2006-09-23 12:07]

Hi Jaap

What a beautiful image, the composition and POV are perfect with nice sharp detail and wonderful colours, The BG is excellent and totally compliments the Dragonflies clolours.

TFS Hilary :o)

  • Great 
  • jhm Gold Star Critiquer/Gold Note Writer [C: 649 W: 0 N: 178] (628)
  • [2006-09-23 12:56]

Dag Jaap,

Het blijven zeer mooi opnames, misschien ben ik geneigd om te zeggen dat dit niet uw allerbeste is, maar mocht ik zoiets kunnen maken sprong ik al een meter de lucht in, dus begrijp mij niet verkeerd Jaap, want als men gewoon is van iedere kaas te eten en morgen is het jam, dat kijk men ook even raar, dus geen verdenkingen alleen verlijkingen!
Best wel mooi Jaap!

Groeten,
John

  • Great 
  • jmp Gold Star Critiquer/Gold Star Workshop Editor/Gold Note Writer [C: 1740 W: 95 N: 2273] (8411)
  • [2006-09-23 13:59]

Hi Jaap,
This is a very good composed shot. Colors, pov and background are fine.
TFS, José M.

Hi Jaap,
sure - they are magnificent.
I love this "old" insects of dinosour-times very much. I also went outside today to catch the last ones. I had the great luck to see such a brown one like you showed us in your last post. Very impressive.
But also the smaller like this here are pretty.
I like your pretty friend with the nice blue BG, thanks and bye
Sabine - wishnugaruda

Hallo Jaap,

Ook deze is weer mooi jaap
goed scherp met een leuke achtergrond waar deze libel mooi op afsteekt
Goede POV en DOF.

TFS
ik hoop dat de vakantie goed is geweest en dat je veel mooie foto's hebt kunnen maken.

Gr Thijs

  • Great 
  • arfer Gold Star Critiquer [C: 2731 W: 0 N: 0] (0)
  • [2006-09-23 21:46]

Hello Jaap

A well defined ,beautiful dragonfly.The DOF is sharp.Lovely BG and excellent composition.TFS

Rob

Hello Jaap,
I like the sharpness & details I see.
Very good DOF, exposure and natural colors as well.
I'm not sure about the comp, but this is always a matter of taste..
Nicely done mf.

Hi Jaap,
This is a wonderful macro, wow! Details are very good and I like this lightning especially on its eye. Great composition with very nice POV and a very good BG that suits your subject well! Thanks,
Claudine

  • Great 
  • wuta Gold Star Critiquer/Gold Note Writer [C: 856 W: 2 N: 617] (2142)
  • [2006-09-24 13:47]

Hoi Jaap , Is weer een hele mooie libel , hij heeft zo'n lief bekkie , mooie compositie en een prachtige achtergrond , groeten teunie .

hi jaap
de bons details sur ce cliché,la netteté est impeccable,un peu d'espace devant la libellule aurait ete mieux.
laurent

Hi Jaap!
You did a great job with your experiment, my friend.
It is one of those pictures that stand apart for their uniqueness. What I mean is the effects you have achieved in this shot, especially in terms of both FG and BG. They endow the subject with an awesone aura.
Great work!
TFS and regards.
Ram

Bonjour,
Magnifique libellule. Le fond est parfait.
Bonne journée.
clnaef

  • Great 
  • tjasa Gold Star Critiquer/Gold Note Writer [C: 100 W: 0 N: 84] (647)
  • [2006-09-27 14:12]

Hey Jaap!
Very nice catch, excellent details and POV. This flowers on picture are almost in the same collour like dragonfly :)
Well done!

  • Great 
  • loot Gold Star Critiquer/Gold Star Workshop Editor/Gold Note Writer [C: 5435 W: 593 N: 3649] (10027)
  • [2006-09-28 3:48]
  • [2]

Hoi Jaap
A very interesting and fascinating note to supplement this neat posting. While it is nothing strange to nature to make use of camouflage through colour adaptations and this dragon really fits in well with its surroundings.
You've captured the critter with amazing sharpness in the detail and showing it in a very unfamiliar POV. That is what gives this photo some added appeal.
I like the composition for its uniqueness; the colours are fine, razor sharp details throughout the spectrum of the DOF, a fitting and complimentary BG, and good management of the exposure levels. A very neat experiment.
Good work and TFS.
Regards
Loot

  • Great 
  • aido Gold Star Critiquer/Gold Star Workshop Editor [C: 1044 W: 156 N: 1218] (4046)
  • [2006-10-01 17:59]

Hi Jaap,
Excellent colours in this shot, the pale browns of the foreground and the deep blues of the background contrast very well. Great detail and a perfect DOF, no fall-off in focus on the wings. Excellent shot.
Regards,
Adrian

Great macro Jaap. Excellent composition with very good sharpness and very good details. Very good job. Well done. Thank you for posting.
Gr.
Heinz

  • Great 
  • hester Gold Star Critiquer/Silver Workshop Editor/Gold Note Writer [C: 1515 W: 18 N: 3165] (11638)
  • [2006-10-04 13:19]

Lovely details and a great POV. I love the composition and the blue BG. Great note too

tfs

Karan

  • Great 
  • osse Gold Star Critiquer/Gold Note Writer [C: 962 W: 0 N: 89] (7801)
  • [2006-10-04 14:02]

Hi Jaap
Nice close-up shot. Good sharpnes, light, details and POV.
Well done mf

osse

  • Great 
  • sAner Gold Star Critiquer/Gold Star Workshop Editor/Gold Note Writer [C: 1490 W: 72 N: 1427] (4744)
  • [2006-10-07 7:31]

Hoi Jaap,

Dit is weer heel dichtbij zeg! Prachtig hoor. Goede kleuren en mooie compositie. Scherpe details ook. Het seizoen loopt op zijn einde he?

Groet,
Pieter

  • Great 
  • SkyF Gold Star Critiquer/Gold Star Workshop Editor/Gold Note Writer [C: 2233 W: 188 N: 1929] (8127)
  • [2006-10-08 10:19]

Hello Jaap,
excellent shot, I like the composition and the POV. Lovely sharpness and great colors. Details, placing of subject and lighting is very nice. Possible a little softer BG would be of advantage.
TFS..Sky

Quelle chose bizare,vous avez dis bizar,je ne connais ni n' ai jamais vu cet annimal Amitié Thomas

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