The photographer is looking for generalized feedback about the aesthetic and technical qualities of their image.
Description
My husband knows me well. We were dealing with snow tires yesterday when he noticed this harvestman by the side of the garage and told me about it. Of course I went in to get the macro rig. It’s not the most natural of environments, but these guys move quickly when they do and so having a more open “stage” (my front steps) helped with positioning. Plus the afternoon light was pretty nice.
Sometimes called daddy long legs, but this species doesn’t have very long ones and so I call them harvestmen. They are not spiders since they have a single body region instead of distinct head and abdomen regions. Like tiny footballs with legs. I love how crab-like pedipalps are in front. They are venomous, but their fangs are too small to bite people. This one is about 1 inch across with those lovely legs. After it moved for like the third time, I stopped taking pictures and it retreated to the edge of the porch and I let it be. Soon it will need to find some comfy leaf litter or a rotting log for the winter.
Specific Feedback
Open to processing ideas.
Technical Details
Handheld, but the camera was directly on the step.
First -
Second -
Lr for initial processing - the usual S-curve for contrast. Topaz Sharpen AI and then into Ps with the raw file as layers so the sharpening could be controlled to certain areas. Some distraction removal and Gen Fill to expand the frame on one of them. Did a little dodging and burning to further improve luminosity. Back in Lr cropped and added a bit of texture.
Kris, I’m not familiar with these. Looks interesting though, and I am glad he was tolerant enough to let you get a few shots. I like the second one best. I can see it’s face better. The browns of him stand out nicely against the whites making him show up better. Snow tires!!! Wow! I guess you all will soon be getting snow there though.
Thanks @Shirley_Freeman & @Dennis_Plank - it was cool enough for it to be ambulatory, but a little slow and they will freeze for some minutes before deciding it’s safe enough to move again. I have some side-on shots as well, but worked these two first because they show that adorable face (ahem).
And yeah, snow. We usually get a dusting or two in mid-October. It never lasts, but this year it waited until the 31st to snow. Just an inch or two and it’s mostly gone except for really shady spots. Usually it starts sticking around and accumulating just before Thanksgiving. Life in the north.
Kris: I love how you find these more obscure critters and capture them so well. I like #1 for the long legs and #2 for the better facial details. Top notch. >=))>
My fave is the 4th one, for the light, shadow and focus. I’m just thinking that if they stop for a few minutes, it might be worth doing focus bracketing here - maybe it’ll come back for a second shoot! An interesting subject for sure.
Yeah, they will stop for a bit @Mike_Friel and I did a couple of “bracketing” sessions, meaning I chose different points based on the focus peaking indicator, but I was hand holding, kinda, so I just went with single shots. The shadow in the last one is pretty cool and I’m glad I got to spend some time with it before the frost hits.
Glad the additional photos help you visualize this little critter @Shirley_Freeman & @Dennis_Plank - they are like daddy long legs, but with shorter legs. If that make sense.
