The photographer is looking for generalized feedback about the aesthetic and technical qualities of their image.
Description
Help with ID would be wonderful. It was just bigger than an ant, and so I spotted it on this Iris blade, and got down low and took a few shots. Another shot shows more eyes like a spider would have, and it does have 8 legs, but what kind of spider I don’t know.
Specific Feedback
This is how I took him, but wondering if rotating the image to have him more level would work better?
Technical Details
HH Canon 5D Mark IV, Canon 100mm L f2.8 macro lens, KX-800 twin flash with DIY diffuser at 1/8th power, all manual settings, f9, 1/200, ISO 160.
Oooh very cool. What a tiny thing! I love the red and green contrast and the simple, uncluttered framing is a winning combination. I like it angled like this - spiders can walk on pretty much anything, so this seems more dynamic and is totally plausible. What a shiny little thing. If you have a shot with the head and the eyes showing pretty clearly, I could have a go an an ID. One of the factors for that in my new spider book is eye configuration.
Shirley, this is an excellent composition and shows the spider (an ant mimic?) to full advantage. I would have cropped the leaf blade into the corners, but I know for others that’s a no-no! Gorgeous contrasting colours too!
According to my new field guide this is a male Synemosyna formica which is in the Salticidae family - Jumping spiders, although this one doesn’t jump very much, but my book says it moves more like an ant. So that’s fun that it kind of looks like one, too. There is no common name for this spider, but it’s very wide spread in the eastern half of the US. The eye configuration = jumper and the pedipalpls = male for sure, just had to look for the species.
Love this shot for the simplicity, Shirley. Also like the fact that his is upside down, as @Kris said, it is dynamic and a different type of view. Great shot and very nicely done! Keep 'em coming!
Thank you, @Kris_Smith@Mike_Friel and @linda_mellor for your comments and the ID. I knew that the face when looking face on did remind me of a Jumping Spider, but side view looked more like an ant. Now I know why! I had heard about the Jumping Spider that mimic ants, but had never seen one before and just didn’t give it a thought. Thank you for looking it up for me Kris.
At first glance I thought it was an ant but then it became obvious that it was a spider of some sort.
I love the clean diagonal lines from the leaf and the color combination is great, as is the sharp details and the DOF.
I like the face on version as well, and a 90° or a 180° CW rotation seems to work quite well, too, it’s just a matter of preference and of course so many of these tiny creatures love to travel along upside down as they are here.
Hi Shirley, I like the diagonals in this image so I would keep the angles as they are. And a great catch of this tiny guy - well positioned in the frame. The subject’s contrast with the green surroundings is pleasing too. Well done.
Definitely an Ant-spider… Wonderful capture – the composition (of both) is perfect!! The face-on view is very cool, too – it is very interesting in that it is defying gravity and the legs are very interesting as well as the face. Lighten it a bit and you have two winners!
