My setup was for photographing hummingbirds but this dragonfly and its perch caught my attention. The dragonfly is a little soft because the Dusty Miller was a standout.
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Technical Details
Is this a composite: No
Canon 5dMk.III with 100x400x1.4 Ext., at f-71, with 1/3200sec and iso of 1250.
Wayne, that is a bummer that the dragonfly is soft. I love the background and the perch, and the colors of the DF really stand out nicely. The wings seem to be sharp, so I am thinking if you had changed your settings to maybe f9, it might would have given you enough DOF. How many times have I had my camera all set for one situation/subject, and got handed a different one, so forgot to change the settings to meet the new situation.
Bump up the aperture to f11-f16 and focus on the eye. That adjustment will enable you to get most of the Dusty Miller and head of the blue dasher. Also drop the exposure down a notch as the plant is slightly over-exposed. I like what you are going for with this image. Dragonflies will use a favorite perch multiple times and it may give you another chance for perfection…Jim
Thanks to all, Vanessa your post is appreciated. As mentioned in my narration I had set up my camera for hummingbird shooting. Fast shutter speed to stop the wings and somewhat high ISO to bump up the exposure _ _then this dragonfly arrived. The temperature ranged around 95 degrees so I continued to shoot hummingbirds. In post I discovered that 95% of my shots were out of focus. My question is, has anyone else had trouble with high heat affecting telephoto lens focusing. I was using manual focus on the Canon 100mmx400mmx1.4 Extension tubes. I can understand a few shots being out of focus but not the majority of them. I would appreciate any comment.